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Up for debate: OSU's biggest win?
Published: 11/25/2009 12:25 PM
Last Modified: 11/25/2009 12:25 PM

I have a question, but not the answer: If Oklahoma State beats Oklahoma, will it be the Cowboys' biggest victory this season?
You could make that case because wins in Norman -- for any opponent -- are rare and because of what is at stake for OSU (a BCS bowl). But it also feels sort of weird that a win over a team that could finish 6-6 would be categorized as the biggest of the season.
Another question: If a victory over OU wouldn't be OSU's biggest win of the season, then what is the biggest win of the season?
The Cowboys have plenty of gutsy victories -- at Texas A&M minus Kendall Hunter and Dez Bryant, home against Missouri after the defense was pillaged in the first half, at Iowa State while dealing with Texas hangover, home against Texas Tech in a game that went down to the wire, home against Colorado with backup quarterbacks at the helm.
But which win deserves to be recognized as the biggest feather in the cap? It's hard to determine because every team the Cowboys have beaten has at least four losses and none is in the BCS or AP top 25.
At the time, a season-opening win over Georgia was huge. OSU got the best of a traditional SEC power in what was billed as the biggest home opener in school history. Some of the luster has been lost since, but, it's not the Cowboys' fault that the Bulldogs are currently limping along at 6-5.
My two cents on OSU's biggest win of the season? So far, it's a home victory over Texas Tech, the only vanquished opponent which is receiving votes in the AP poll. But I could be swayed to change my opinion if the Cowboys secure a Bedlam conquest.
--Jimmie Tramel.
Written by
Jimmie Tramel
Sports Writer



Reader Comments 2 Total
MexiMike (3 years ago)
OU would be OSU's biggest victory and it isn't even close. Three reasons:

1. OU's home record. 56-2, I believe in the Stoops era? For OSU to take another one in Norman would be a feat that virtually no team has been able to accomplish. A victory for OSU would send shockwaves throughout the Big 12.

2. The BCS berth possibility. This game will decide whether OSU goes to the Cotton Bowl or its very first BCS bowl. The Cowboys have been waiting for its opportunity to be looked at alongside the elites in college football and they finally have the opportunity to do so. All that is in their way is this Bedlam game. Win and you're in, lose and you settle for "what could have been."

3. It's Bedlam! It's the in-state rivalry! Throw records out the window because this game determines bragging rights for a year. Every OU fan wants to win so that they can continue their dominance and the "stepchild" chants and every OSU fan wants to win to prove that they belong at the next level.

This game is huge for so many more reasons but either way, to me, it would still be the biggest win for OSU this season by far.
rwhetsell (3 years ago)
I absolutely agree, but would add some comments...

>OU would be OSU's biggest victory and it >isn't even close. Three reasons:

>1. OU's home record. 56-2, I believe in the >Stoops era? For OSU to take another one in >Norman would be a feat that virtually no >team has been able to accomplish. A victory >for OSU would send shockwaves throughout the >Big 12.
You said it later...throw records out the window. OSU has won only 16 times in this rivalry, 8 times at Norman plus 2 more in OKC. Only 6 wins have come in Stillwater. If they are going to win, the odds slightly favor winning AWAY from Stillwater.

>2. The BCS berth possibility. This game will >decide whether OSU goes to the Cotton Bowl >or its very first BCS bowl. The Cowboys have >been waiting for its opportunity to be >looked at alongside the elites in college >football and they finally have the >opportunity to do so. All that is in their >way is this Bedlam game. Win and you're in, >lose and you settle for "what could have >been."
This is the point I think is most critical. For a team to ascend to the next level, it must embrace the spotlight and pressure of being a nationally recognized power. Neither Gundy nor the athletes have done this when the opportunity presented itself, and that means beating a nationally recognized football power in their own stadium, especially when they should be expected to do so. OSU coming in as a 6 1/2 point underdog is a huge sign that they don't have the respect, and might be the only thing that saves them in this moment. I know some of that is due to Robinson's status, but still, OSU is definitely a more solid team. They just need to act like it. OU will come out and punch them in the mouth....the key will be will they stand up and fight or run away scared.

>3. It's Bedlam!
Can't add to that!

>This game is huge for so many more reasons >but either way, to me, it would still be the >biggest win for OSU this season by far.
I think this would be the biggest win that I can remember, b/c it will give them the potential of playing in a BCS bowl, which would then qualify as the biggest game in school history.
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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. In 2007, he wrote a book about Oklahoma State football with former Cowboy coach Pat Jones.

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Tulsa World Sports Writer Kelly Hines joined the World staff in September 2007. She grew up in the Oklahoma City area, was valedictorian at her high school and attended Oklahoma State University. She previously worked at The Oklahoman and KOTV and in the World's web and news departments.

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