JD PicKell: Evaluating whether Bedlam Series is gone forever

Another rivalry has fallen victim to conference realignment after Oklahoma and Oklahoma State decided not to renew Bedlam after OU heads to the SEC. Although it’ll be gone once the Sooners make the jump, On3’s J.D. PicKell thinks it might not be done for good.

PicKell losing the 112-year rivalry will sting in the short-term, but cited another important rivalry we’re now getting back. When Texas A&M jumped to the SEC, its series against Texas ended. Now that the Longhorns are joining Oklahoma in the SEC, they’ll play the Aggies again.

That’s why PicKell is holding out hope that Bedlam will return down the road.

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“I don’t think this rivalry is done for good because we saw this same sort of thing happen when Texas A&M left for the SEC,” PicKell said on On3’s “The Hard Count” this week. “Now, obviously, Texas going back to the SEC, so I guess that’s sort of a problem solved. We’re going to see Texas and Texas A&M play because they’re in the same conference.

“Now, I don’t know how Oklahoma State and Oklahoma get it done, but I genuinely believe whether it’s in 10 years, whether it’s in 20 years, whether it’s in five years, I think we’re going to see this game played at some point in the future. So, is it gone forever? I don’t think so. But the fact that it’s gone for the foreseeable future after 2025, breaks my heart.”

JD PicKell: ‘I get it, you’ve got to get a bag’

One of the biggest criticisms about realignment is the “money grab” aspect. PicKell acknowledged that money is an important part of college sports and it makes sense why Oklahoma is moving to the SEC — even at the expense of Bedlam.

However, taking away rivalries is a major down side to realignment, and PicKell said the game is more than just teams facing each other. Rivalries are personal, which is what makes them so great.

“I get it, you’ve to get a bag,” PicKell said. “That’s kind of what makes this thing run is dollars and bills. Cash rules everything around me. … That’s how this thing goes. I get it. However, what we as college football fans love so much is the rivalries, the traditions. The fact that your dad and your best friend’s dad went to school together and the guy that they don’t like went to Oklahoma State or went to Oklahoma, whatever it is, and for that reason, that rivalry means so much to you. Even more so, maybe your parents went to Oklahoma and one went to Oklahoma State. You get what I’m saying here? There’s so much more than just the logos that are a part of this. And we’re going to get some really fun matchups when Oklahoma does leap to the SEC.

“Don’t get it twisted, I can’t wait to watch Oklahoma-Auburn and watch Oklahoma-Alabama and all that. But for this series that’s gone on for 112 years to not continue because of some greenbacks? Come on, y’all. We’re better than this. We’re so much better than just canceling a rivalry because Benjamin Franklin says so. I understand he calls a lot of shots, but we’re better than this. We need to protect the piece of college football that’s special, that’s magic. The fabric of it. Because if we start just listening to the greenbacks, we’re going to end up like professional sports and that concerns me.”

PicKell: ‘For the foreseeable future … Bedlam [is] listed as doubtful’

PicKell wrapped up his thoughts about the end of Bedlam by talking about who might have made the decision. He said fans who immerse themselves in college football weren’t behind the move. Instead, it was done by people with much different backgrounds.

“The people making these decisions are the NBA types,” PicKell said. “They are the people that went to law school that wear a suit and tie every day to work. They’re not the people that are out there for four hours before the game tailgating. They’re not the people that live and die by how their team does on Saturday. That’s not the kind of tempo they’re running over there.

“Again, I get it. I get that money calls the shots. But for people that aren’t like you and me that are embedded into what college football really is, for them to be the ones that are deciding how this thing goes, I don’t love it. The fact that Bedlam’s not continuing breaks my heart. We’ll see it again someday soon. I truly believe that. But for the foreseeable future past 2025, Bedlam [is] listed as doubtful.”