Bedlam has drama — in Stillwater
Usually lopsided rivalry becomes competitive in Payne County

By Berry Tramel

Published: November 24, 2006

STILLWATER — Take novice football fans to Oklahoma-Texas at the Cotton Bowl, and a high time will be had by all.

They will love the setting. The fair. The color. The pageantry. The crowd. The passion. The fury.

But the game itself, not so much. For all its splendor, OU-Texas usually is a dud, competitively. The Sooners and Longhorns haven't staged a single-digit verdict since 1997.

You want better theater, check in on the Boonedock every other year. Bedlam in Stillwater is far better football.

38-35 OU in 2004. 38-28 OSU in 2002. 12-7 OU in 2000.

One of the nation's most lopsided in-state rivalries has turned superbly competitive in Stillwater. The Sooners have won only four of their last seven trips to Payne County.

Truth is, throw out a stretch of domination by Bud Wilkinson in the 1950s and Barry Switzer in the 1970s, and Bedlam football has a solid history of dramatic games, though OU usually has emerged on top.

31-28 in 1988. 13-0 in the 1985 Ice Bowl. 21-20 in 1983. 28-27 in 1969. 21-16 in 1964. 7-0 in 1958. The Cowboys won 15-14 in 1966.

But before we pass out laurel wreaths for providing such entertainment, a question is in order. Isn't this how it's supposed to be?

A home team should stand toe to toe against an arch rival, even if it's somewhat outmanned.

When trying to uncover the mysteries of homefield advantage, we focus on the road team's demise. Maybe it's just that the home team plays better. Maybe it's just that the home team offers up its best shot.

"That's probably fair to say," said OU coach Bob Stoops, who with the Sooners is 2-1 in Stillwater but has been outscored 80-78. "Most teams, in their own place, the familiarity, the confidence factor, whatever it is, the home team performs better."

OSU certainly has become a tough place to play. In the Big 12 era, the Cowboys are 4-3 against OU and Nebraska combined at Boone Pickens Stadium. In the Big Eight era (1960-1995), the Cowboys were a combined 32-2-2 against the Big Reds in Stillwater.

"It's a crazy atmosphere," OU cornerback Marcus Walker said of Boone Pickens. "The fans right there, talking to you a whole lot. It's a fun place to play as far as the fans being right there and being an in-state rivalry game."

Boone Pickens figures to become even tougher when the west-end construction is completed in 2008, which will enclose the stadium and create a noise vacuum.

That could enhance a Bedlam Series that is lacking in pageantry, but not in drama. Not when the game is in Stillwater.