The End Of Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State Bedlam Rivalry: One Big College Football Thing

The End of Bedlam: One Big College Football Thing

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Oklahoma State’s thrilling 27-24 win over Oklahoma was a blast.

The emotion, the fight, the excitement, the meaning in the Big 12 race - it was everything the hyped up showdown was supposed to be.

And it would’ve been a whole lot more fun if there weren’t reminders every 30 seconds that this was the last time the Bedlam rivalry game would be played … EVER.

For the rest of our lives. Until the end of the world. No Bedlam. That’s it. Gone. Be devastated.

And yeah, it really does stink. These two should play every year, and of course rivalries are part of what make college football so special.

With OU going to the SEC and Oklahoma State staying put in the newly renovated Big 12, the in-state battle that started in 1914 - and has grown into an annual thrill ride that almost always delivers - isn’t scheduled to continue. But you knew that already, because no one would shut their pie-holes about it.

And it’s being framed the wrong way. The underlying tone was that the loss of this wonderful game was due to realignment, and money, and the death of college sports, and rivalries, and all we hold dear as Americans.

What got lost in the narrative is that Oklahoma and Oklahoma State could totally play each other every year until the end of time if they really wanted to.

But Oklahoma has a killer SEC slate to deal with, and the last thing Oklahoma State needs is a nasty non-conference game. As is the Cowboys are supposed to play Arkansas next year, and at Oregon in 2025, host the Ducks in 2026, and go to Arkansas in 2027, so it’s not like they’re playing all cream-puffs.

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It’s absolutely reasonable to schedule a Western Illinois here and a Murray State there - that matters in the business of college football - but it also means that if everyone wanted to crank up Bedlam, and the will was there, it could happen.

For example, next year Oklahoma State plays South Dakota State on August 31st, and Oklahoma plays Temple on the same day. There. Done. Write a check to the two respective opponents for their time and trouble, and Bedlam is back on.

Oklahoma is playing Houston from the Big 12 next year on the same day that Oklahoma State is playing Arkansas from the SEC. Change around a few contracts, hook up the Hogs and Cougars to play each other instead in an old school Southwest Conference showdown, and there you go. Bedlam.

It won’t happen, of course, just like Texas and Texas A&M didn’t keep their historic rivalry going after the Aggies left for the SEC. And then, magically … 2024, Texas at Texas A&M in an SEC showdown.

It’s not crazy to think that Oklahoma State could end up in the SEC, or these two could meet in a bowl, or they could just start playing each other again.

And maybe, when they do - and they will - it’ll be even more amazing.

- Bowl Projections | CFN Rankings 1-133
- College Football Playoff Top 25 Prediction
- Top 5 Heisman Candidates
- Every Conference, Team Bowl Status