The shortsightedness, she burns.
First off, I disagree with McMurphy’s take. The rivalry isn’t being destroyed by conference realignment. It’s being destroyed by choice. Nobody is stopping those schools from continuing to play each other, except for the two of them. Whether that’s due to sheer pettiness, laziness (OSU has four games scheduled with Arkansas; how hard would it be to drop those for Oklahoma?) or simply a desire to play with a new toy I can’t say, but it’s something they could address if they wanted to.
And while I agree with Solomon’s overall point, I think he’s misjudged those who choose to push regional rivalries aside. They’re greedy, not moronic. They do care, because that’s how they get paid. It’s simply that they’ve convinced themselves that they’re smart enough to have it all — our regional passion and general national interest. A poll of their fan base would let them know they’re off base about that, but how do you tell someone who thinks they’re the smartest person in the room they’re not?
Oh, yeah…
Fuck Mike Gundy and the horse he rode in on.
It does not seem like either Texas or A&M have missed a beat while not playing each other anymore.
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And yet, it fucking sucks, even as someone who’s not a fan of either school. What a bunch of babies these people are.
(Apparently the OSU people aren’t aware that they have no national brand other than that game they play Oklahoma.)
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Not missed a beat by what measure? They’re both still raking in $ and are in P5 conferences to be sure, but what has either program achieved on the field since ATM left the B12?
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Get back to me when we quit playing Auburn or Tech in the name of conference expansion. I hate that Texas-A$M, Kansas-Missouri, Pitt-WVU, Nebraska-OU and many others that have been played for 100+ times are now novelty events, right up there with any out of conference one-off game.
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Yup. That backyard brawl a few weeks ago was likely between two 4+ loss teams and it was fun as hell.
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I’ll sign up to stop playing Tech effective immediately. Garbage program. Blight on the schedule. Too much is made of “but we need to erase the drought”! Why sit through years of bad games to achieve that when better entertainment could be had?
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I enjoy GT cupcake games. Drop a no name game instead.
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A win over Tech is a very, very good day.
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Texas /Arkansas used to be a big rivalry.
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I’m not sure what you mean by “miss a beat”. Sure they have continued on, but ask a Texas fan and they miss that game for sure. I don’t personally know any A&M fans but I assume it is the same.
I guess you could argue that A&M has thrived (as much as a team that averages 8 wins a year can) but that is mostly based around a Heisman winner that upset Bama once and a covid year.
Will be interesting to see if temperatures cool once the 12 team playoff comes around. A lot of the anger from OK state probably stemmed from OK and Texas “Abandoning” the rest of the Big 12, which immediately weakened the conference’s access to the 4 team playoff.
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Miss the game??
Tejas’s fight song has the words “and it’s goodbye to A&M”…
Tejas A$M’s fight song has the words “goodbye to Tejas University, so long to the orange and the white”….
Yeah, they miss the game.
For that matter, the gump’s fight song mentions both UGA and the north ave. trade school,
but not a word concerning the east alabama re-form school.
Thoughts to ponder…
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Nail strikes head.
Hell, we still play Tech. Clempson still plays Sakarlina.
Gators still play FSU. And on and on and on.
I wish they’d dump the whole bowl eligibility thing.
With the 12 team playoff on the horizon, you can afford a loss or maybe 2 and still make the playoff. That might also make a 9 game conference schedule more digestible to some middling conference teams.
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Those teams still play each other for now.
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Conference realignment is certainly screwing up regional passions and rivalries. And yes, the schools could still choose to play each other. But won’t somebody think about those sweet, sweet cupcakes that would be lost if they did?
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Yep. Maybe do something like making ten P5 games mandatory? It’s the Ball State and Kent State matchups that really suck.
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“Fuck Mike Gundy and the horse he rode in on.”
Hey, HEY, hold here………I kinda like horses.
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Gundy’s not wrong. If teams are going to break regional ties to chase more conference money, why are the teams left behind on the hook to maintain a fiction that tradition is still alive? Will it cost them in the long run? Maybe, eventually, but nothing yet indicates viewers are going away.
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Why fuck Mike Gundy? Does he not have the right to be indignant? OSU is just supposed to keep chasing OU after getting screwed? Not sure I’m with you on this one Senator.
Sure the rivalry should continue but this one aint on OSU.
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I will say it again: if they wanted to continue the rivalry, they could. Blaming the end on conference realignment is a cheap way out.
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Bedlam is ending because OU will no longer be in the conference. So blaming conference realignment for the end of Bedlam is being honest but it isn’t the whole truth. The Big XII plays 9 conference games per year and OSU has an extra P5 game every year through 2037 (except 2030 and 2031) with teams like Bama, Oregon, Arkansas, Nebraska, etc. The whole truth is that Bedlam is ending because OU is joining the SEC and thus will no longer be on OSU’s conference schedule and OSU (a) isn’t willing to play 11 P5 games per season, and (b) isn’t willing to break contracts with other P5 OOC opponents to get back to 10 P5 games that includes OU. I can’t blame OSU for not wanting to play 11 P5 games per season.
I personally think that OSU and OU wind up playing more often than what is being said now.
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Mike Gundy is 3-17 vs OU
OU leads series 90–19-7
Yeah they’re sad to see OU leave up in Stillwater….
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UGA and GT are jus as bad since Eik was President. Honestly Bedlam often creates a more interesting game and most here would be pissed at the loss of UGA/GT.
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I just don’t think the folks in Stillwater are sad to see them leave. If the decision makers wanted to keep OU on the schedule they would have.
Whether us fans agree is a separate issue.
Tech is so bad with no hope in sight I just don’t know… Wouldn’t bother me to play Southern, State, Tech, Kennesaw, Mercer on a rotation at home. Good warm up for the next weeks trip down the road.
The biggest plus is that it would drive the bugs crazy. But really are they the best football program in the state we can play every year? Not sure thats the case anymore.
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I have Okie Lite friends that very much disagree,
I have been saying for a while Ga State and Ga Southern should play and the winner faces GT. The winner of the 2nd round against GT goes on to play UGA. I know it won’t happen.
I am with many here, if GT is dropped let it be clearly on their end not thanks to SEC expansion. I won’t them to hold the blame.
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That was the marquee game for OK State fans every year. Of course the fans and decision makers at the school wanted the game and national attention that came with it. They’ll figure something out soon, and if they don’t, it won’t be for lack of trying on OK State’s part.
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Ask Coach Mullet to stop beating around the bush and explain why they have to be in the same conference to play Bedlam. Georgia and Tech still play after Tech left the SEC.
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Does anyone think the Oklahoma legislature will step in on this?
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Hey, I always kind of liked Gundy. Sure he’s self-righteous sometimes, but not like Dabo.
Plus you gotta like the man who gave us the “I’m a man! I’m 40!” rant. That speech actually turns 15 years old tomorrow – I still remember it like yesterday.
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Gundy is now 44? 47? Does it matter how old he is?
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“Our feelings are hurt, so we won’t play them anymore.”
That’s what it is. That’s all it is. Texas tried to act like they were offended that A&M tried to damage their league and their program by leaving for the SEC and that’s why they stopped playing the game, but then they turned around and did the same thing. It has nothing to do with damage to programs, Oklahoma State is going to end up being just fine without OU and Texas. They’ll probably end up better in wins and losses. Their feelings are hurt, Gundy is a jackass who is sick of losing to OU (I know they beat them this year, but overall I doubt he expects to be able to turn the rivalry), and that’s all that it is. Gundy gets to get a likely annual loss off of his roster and act like it was the other guy who decided to do it. Win.
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It’s like these guys want to remove any reason to watch a game other than playoff implications. Like the idea of a game mattering when it doesn’t affect the playoff deeply offends them.
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Mike Gundy is dumber than a bag of hammers. I wish he had gotten the Tennessee job just so we could get him fired, too.
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I’m real glad he didn’t go to Tennessee. He’d be a major headache.
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“It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it.” -Upton Sinclair
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Every move is made to chase the money of “potential” fans. They already have “real” fan’s money.
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Long as we keep tuning in, they’ll keep pushing us. Ever noticed how every “fast casual” food chain starts out awesome then gets kind of shitty once it’s established? This is that.
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Panera and McAlister’s come to mind. There are plenty of others.
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UGA-GT, #FTM -FSU, USCjr-Clempsun, KY-UL, USCsr-ND. 5 out of conference rivalry games that happen every year. If they can do it why not OSU and OU? If they really want to make it happen, it could easily happen. This all about hurt feelings. I’m taking my ball and going home now.
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IF OU wants the series to carry on then Gundy and OSU should man the fuck up. I’m sure their 19-90-17 all time record against them isn’t a factor in this decision
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These people are betting that even if we stopped playing Auburn or GA Tech every season we’re still going to tune in every Saturday because that’s our team. It will suck if/when those games go away, but these bastards might be right.
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Fuck Oklahoma. Fixed that for you.
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Mr sunglasses & stubby mullett signs $50+ million lifetime contract deal this year & becomes highest paid coach in the B12 but only after failing to winning the B12 championship, nor making a cfp, nor bcs title game, ever. This is well deserved pay after getting leghumped & leapfrogged by Baylor. Then his D coordinator bolts. How about calling out your own conference commissioners for once, just once, for some accountability.
It takes hard work to become a lonely fake cowboy.
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