It’s official: OU-Texas will kickoff at 11 a.m. Oct. 7

It’ll be another morning kick in Dallas for the 119th edition of the Red River Rivalry.

By Eli Lederman

| Sep 25, 2023, 11:28am CDT

By Eli Lederman

Sep 25, 2023, 11:28am CDT

It’s official: the latest edition of the Red River Rivalry between Oklahoma and Texas is set for an 11 a.m. kick off on Oct. 7 inside the Cotton Bowl. The Week 6 meeting between the 14th-ranked Sooners and No. 3 Longhorns will be broadcast on ABC.

Here’s what you need to know:

This fall will mark the 119th meeting of the rivalry game that began with a 28-2 Texas win in Austin, Texas on Oct. 10, 1900.
The Longhorns own the advantage in the all-time series with a 63-50-5 record in 118 previous meetings with OU. Last season’s 49-0 Sooners defeat snapped a four-game OU win streak against Texas.
Oct. 7 represents the 29th and final Red River matchup in the Big 12 era before the schools enter the Southeastern Conference in 2024. The Sooners are 17-11 against Texas since the Big 12 formed in 1996.
The Red River Rivalry will continue in the SEC regardless of which permanent scheduling format the conference settles on after 2024. OU is the designated home team for the SEC-edition of the rivalry game next fall.

What the game could mean for the Sooners

If OU takes care of business Saturday as a 20-point favorite (per Bovada) against Iowa State (6 p.m., FS1) in Week 5, the Sooners will be 5-0 walking into the Cotton Bowl. Texas should be the ultimate litmus test of the promising start OU is off to this fall.

On paper, it’s the toughest game in a relatively light conference slate for the Sooners in 2023. OU’s Big 12 title championship aspirations can likely afford midseason defeat. A win over Texas would send the Sooners into their Week 7 bye with the biggest hurdle on the way to the Dec. 2 title game already cleared.

It shouldn’t be a repeat of last season’s scoreless blowout. Imagine how much a first Red River win for Brent Venables would turn up the dial on the expectations around Norman this fall.

What the game could mean for Texas

Unbeaten through four games with a decisive win on the road at Alabama, Steve Sarkisian could make a case that the Longhorns should be the No. 1 team in the nation. OU will be the latest and perhaps fiercest challenge (depending on how you view this iteration of the Crimson Tide) Texas faces as it works to construct a College Football Playoff resume.

Downing Saban and Co. in Week 2 added fuel to the Longhorns’ fire. They still have some way to go before proving that Texas is truly back. Another opportunity will present itself against the Sooners on Oct. 7.

Eli Lederman reports on the University of Oklahoma for Sellout Crowd. He began his professional career covering the University of Missouri with the Columbia Missourian and later worked at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette before two years writing on the Sooners and Cowboys at the Tulsa World. Born and raised in Mamaroneck, New York, Lederman grew up a rabid consumer of the New York sports pages and an avid fan of the New York Mets. He entered sportswriting at 14 years old and later graduated from the University of Missouri. Away from the keyboard, he can usually be found exploring the Oklahoma City food scene or watching/playing fútbol (read: soccer). He can be reached at [email protected].