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Save Admiral Twin and TU-OSU series
Published: 9/17/2010 10:12 AM
Last Modified: 9/17/2010 10:12 AM

Question: When we're done saving the Admiral Twin, can we start a campaign to save the OSU-TU football series?

Here's my sermon on the subject:

Your favorite player is holding out for more cash. And you know he is going to eventually suit up. So why can't he and his people get in a room with the owner and his people and get something hammered out today?

The next NFL season could be in jeopardy. Owners and players want to make sure they get more than their share of the pie. A lockout could occur, causing fans to miss games or (we saw it in another sport) a World Series. Why can't the suits get behind closed doors today and get this thing fixed?

So let's segue into the future of the TU-OSU rivalry. I read in Bill Haisten's article today that the athletic directors at the respective schools talked about extending the series, but couldn't agree on terms and didn't want to say publicly why they couldn't agree to terms. Everybody allegedly wants the series to continue and they said sweet things (awww!) about each other, but talks reached a can't-always-get-what-you-want impasse, which makes me think Mick Jagger was in charge of negotiations.

OK, fine.

Thanks for trying guys, but maybe it's time to delegate the responsibility of extending the series to someone who can get it done today or sooner.

In fact, I'll do it now.

TU and OSU will play play (and play nice!) every season from now through infinity because it's a storied rivalry and because it makes sense in bad economic times to play a team right down the street.

Here's how the scheduling format will work: Home. Away. Home. Away. Home. Away. Wash and repeat.

That's how it used to be and all it did was create a series that gave people a game to look forward to and something to talk about at the water cooler (a pre-message board discussion forum). Have you seen all the discussion and heated debate generated by the turnpike rivalry this week? That would have been replaced by dead air if OSU was playing Lamar and TU was playing Panhandle State.

TU and OSU fans are getting mad at the media and each other over turnpike rivalry issues this week, including ticket prices and big brother-little brother perceptions. That's good and healthy. Even better, it's not boring. Anything beats boring.

Playing TU is too risky for OSU? Not buying it. Since 1953, the Hurricane has won only 22.8 percent of games in the series. Why wouldn't OSU agree to an annual series -- against any credible opponent -- where history says you win basically eight out of every 10 meetings?

Here's a "what-if" to chew on: What if, after the summer conference shuffling, OU and OSU wound up in different leagues? And what if both schools wanted to continue the Bedlam series, but OU didn't want a home-and-home and offered only a 2-for-1 deal?

Would OSU agree to that? No. And the Cowboys shouldn't. So a great in-state rivalry would die, just like that, and fans would be worse off because of it.

So go ahead and save the OSU-TU rivalry while there is still time and before pride (it caused all sorts of trouble for Bruce Willis in "Pulp Fiction") gets in the way.

If you can't agree to terms just for the sake of being good neighbors, at least do your fans a favor and give them another game they can attend without buying a plane ticket. Of course, $90 might buy you a plane ticket to a faraway campus, but that's a different topic altogether.



Reader Comments 3 Total
BLA (2 years ago)
Agreed. Maybe you should be OSU's athletic director. Mike Holder is T Boone's buffoon with strings. He should go back to coaching golf. While we're at it, can't we get Arkansas to do a home and home. They're not much further down the road and they have an even better winning % against TU, but are too scared to come to Tulsa and play in front of their hoards of alum here.

Next year is TU's year. Experienced and talented, they get shots at OU, OSU, and Boise St.
AYM (2 years ago)
("When we're done saving the Admiral Twin, can we start a campaign to save the OSU-TU football series?") Oh GOD, PLEASE NO!!! I have lived in this town since 1988 and I have got to tell you...I AM SICK OF FOOTBALL!!! I used to be able to watch it, but now everywhere you turn it's FOOTBALL! There ARE other sports, but football seems to be the only one that the media give a real crap about.

We hear about high-school/college football ad-nauseum and their programs receive such a disproportionate amount of funding in comparison to other high-school/college sporting programs...it's really deplorable.

High Schools/Colleges are constantly caught doing things against the rules just so they can get certain players...their coaches are paid far above any other coaches at their schools as well...why, they are JUST COACHES...but because they coach the almighty football sport...they are paid a fortune (if at a winning school).

There is absolutely no reason high schools should have these massive, multi-million dollar football stadiums. Where are the stadiums for baseball, soccer, track & field???

I swear, if I hear the word football one more time...I'll puke!
G-Block (2 years ago)
With the distintegration of the Big XII and the integration of the conference round-robin schedule, OSU should be selective with whom they choose to play for their non-conference schedule. Should Tulsa be in the mix? Probably. It makes sense geographically and economically.

But for whatever reason, I find it hard to get real excited about playing TU every year. It's like kissing your cousin.

Home and home? No. Why would OSU do that when every other non-BCS school gets the same deal: 2 for 1. If TU wants a better deal, they need to elevate their program to reach BCS status.
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Tulsa World sports writer Jimmie Tramel is a former class president at Locust Grove High School. He graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern State University with a journalism degree and, while attending college, was sports editor of the Pryor Daily Times. He joined the Tulsa World on Oct. 17, 1989, the same day an earthquake struck the World Series. He is the OSU basketball beat writer and a columnist and feature writer during football season. In 2007, he wrote a book about Oklahoma State football with former Cowboy coach Pat Jones.

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