Above Image Credit: Sports Business Journal

When: Saturday, Oct. 12, 3:30 PM EST

Where: Cotton Bowl (Dallas, TX)

Channel: ABC/ESPN+ (check your listings, click here for more ESPN+ info)

The Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners bring their long-standing, Red River Rivalry to the SEC for the first time ever this Saturday afternoon.

New Conference, Same Rivalry

The SEC is the new home of the iconic rivalry between these former Big 12 teams. The only thing that hasn’t changed is the yearly meeting between these teams and the spirit they uphold for it.

This Saturday will mark the 120th Red River Rivalry game. Texas leads the series with an all-time record of 63-51-5.

Oklahoma won last year’s meeting 34-30 after surviving a 2nd half comeback by the Longhorns. During that time, Dillon Gabriel was Oklahoma’s QB, and Quinn Ewers was the main man in Texas. Things have changed since then.

Gabriel transferred to Oregon and is now their quarterback. Ewers sat out the two and a half games with an injury, and Arch Manning has been living up to the family name in his absence.

Texas Back on Top

The Longhorns are now sitting on top of the AP polls after the string of shocking upsets this past Saturday. They might’ve had a bye week, but Alabama losing to Vanderbilt was the push the team needed to get back at #1. Talk about bouncing in and out of the top spot.

There is no doubt that Texas has a lot to show to not just the SEC but to all of the college football world, and they plan to make more statements the way they’ve been playing.

Plus, with Ewers set to return to the field, Texas will look to keep their run at the top going. This will also be a great opportunity for him to get back into the Heisman conversation now that the odds have changed after all the madness on Saturday.

Red River Rivalry: Final Prediction

Ewers will have a lot of catching up to do after Manning kept the team riding high. Make no mistake when I say that he is still in his prime.

The offense is also top-notch compared to Oklahoma’s offense. The only person they would have to watch out for is Sooners DL R. Mason Thomas, who is tied for the most sacks in the SEC.

Oklahoma will probably start with Michael Hawkins, Jr., instead of Jackson Arnold. Hawkins came into the QB mix after replacing Arnold in the loss to Tennessee almost three weeks ago. He started against Auburn two weeks ago and gave Oklahoma their first conference road win.

Putting him in a historic, high-pressured game like this will test this true freshman’s meddle and field performance. The best way Oklahoma can win is making sure offensive tacklers Michael Tarquin and Jake Taylor protect Hawkins from Colin Simmons. He leads Texas with four sacks and is quickly emerging as one of the top freshman defenders in the nation.

Texas has never lost to Oklahoma whenever they were at the top of the AP polls. I don’t believe they plan to start on Saturday.

Final Score: Texas 38, Oklahoma 14