The Oklahoma Sooners are exploring innovative strategies to enhance college football by potentially revitalizing their historic rivalry with the Oklahoma State Cowboys, known as the “Bedlam” series. This initiative aims to preserve traditional rivalries and foster community engagement, even as conference realignments have disrupted longstanding matchups.
**Reviving the Bedlam Series Through Spring Games**
Oklahoma State’s head coach, Mike Gundy, has proposed organizing a spring scrimmage between the Sooners and the Cowboys. This game would alternate venues annually and generate revenue through ticket sales, which could be shared between the two programs. Gundy envisions this as a way to maintain the Bedlam rivalry, offering fans continued engagement and supporting Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) opportunities for players. citeturn0search2
**Conference Realignment and Its Impact on Rivalries**
The recent moves of Oklahoma and Texas to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) have led to the discontinuation of certain traditional rivalries, including Bedlam. Such shifts have prompted discussions on preserving these historic matchups, which are integral to college football’s rich tradition. citeturn0search7
**Potential Benefits for College Football**
By adopting Gundy’s proposal, the Sooners and Cowboys could set a precedent for other programs facing similar challenges due to conference realignments. Maintaining these rivalries through creative solutions like spring games could enhance fan engagement, uphold traditions, and provide additional platforms for player development and exposure.
**Looking Ahead**
While discussions are in the early stages, the collaboration between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State to preserve their rivalry could serve as a model for other schools navigating the evolving landscape of college football. By prioritizing tradition and community engagement, such initiatives have the potential to enrich the sport and strengthen its cultural significance.
The Oklahoma Sooners are one of the few teams that have decided to get rid of their spring football game during the offseason. And, it makes all the sense in the world when you think about this new world of college football with NIL and the portal.
Nebraska was the first one to really cancel its spring game after head coach Matt Rhule said it wasn’t worth it. He mentioned that other teams see the film on his players from the spring game, and then the spring transfer portal opens, and other teams poach those players and offer them more money. And, I imagine that’s how a lot of coaches feel.
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The Sooners did the same thing, but now there is an idea being floated out there, one that could help them a ton, and it’s being thought of by maybe their biggest rival. What if, they took an old rivalry that they don’t play anymore, and they played that team in an exhibition game during the spring to raise money for NIL?
“[We should] play a home and home in the spring against them,” Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy said. “Charge $25 a head. They can use it for NIL. We’ll use it for NIL. If they don’t want to do two in one spring, we can do one here this year, one there next year, and split the gate.”
And, while a lot of Sooners fans have strong feelings about Gundy, mostly bad feelings, you have to admit — it’s an intriguing idea. It helps keep a rivalry still alive that is as old as time, connecting the two in-state fan bases in a way they no longer have due to the Sooners moving to the SEC and the Pokes staying in the Big 12.
Now, whether this gets done or not is a different story, but it’s certainly something both schools should think about.
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