What's your favorite play from Texas-OU?
Give me two. The first was when I was a freshman in high school and traveled to the Cotton Bowl from Houston with my dad, his closest friends, and a dear friend to this day. The second was from my time as a student, and as our guy RT Young explained, it helped a Longhorn become legendary.
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Both changed the complexions of their individual games.
In 2008, the No. 5 Longhorns were in a battle with the No. 1 Sooners. OU had just taken a 14-3 lead thanks to a 5-yard touchdown pass from Sam Bradford and a similar 8-yard pass from Bradford to Ryan Broyles.
Then, the Sooners kicked off, and the shape of the game changed dramatically.
“End zone ahead, folks,” was Brent Musburger’s lasting call. Will Gallagher’s timeless picture of the moment is at the top of this page.
A lasting memory from that game was being there with my dad and also one of my best friends from high school. Just to our right in the Cotton Bowl was someone whose association with the University of Texas we couldn’t quite figure out. His burnt orange T-shirt said “TEXAS SCIENCE.” His mouth was more indicative of Texas a-hole than learned scientific mind.
But in that game we slapped five over and over and over because he was a Longhorn. Science proved it.
That Jordan Shipley special teams touchdown created a different script. Texas just about traded scores with Oklahoma until it became a 35-30 game in favor of the Sooners with 11:42 left in the contest. Texas found a way to make it 45-35 not too long after, but the plan to get there would have been different if Texas wasn’t within four early in the second quarter.
Without a special teams TD from Shipley, who tallied 11 receptions for 112 yards and a score along with his kickoff return, the 2008 result may well have gone Oklahoma’s way.
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My other top moment was from when I was a sophomore in 2013.
Texas runs a unique zero blitz that features the end and the tackle in Chris Whaley dropping back. The OU running back picks up the nickel blitz but Adrian Phillips is still able to break through and hit Blake Bell. As a result, the throw goes behind the crossers and Whaley picks it off to rumble to the end zone.
I ventured into this game alone and left with a lot of friends from the student section surprised that Texas prevailed.
Texas would go onto win this one 36-20, with the image of Whaley’s rumble to the end zone as the memorable moment from this contest.
From there I went back to my hotel in Dallas to celebrate with friends and relish in the fact that amidst the turmoil of Mack Brown‘s final season in Austin, the Longhorns had found a way to top Oklahoma while I was a student. The celebratory Sunday bus ride home with victory on our minds wasn’t so bad either.
This game, as always, is about players making individual plays in key moments in order to create lasting memories inside a spartan stadium.
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What’s your favorite?
