Big XII Championship Game Preview

Texas will be facing Alan Bowman for the first time since he infamously gave the Horns Down prematurely. Photo: CBS Sports

Outlook

It’s THE title game, folks! Well, maybe not that one. But it’s the game the Longhorns have strived for all season as a goal within their control. Arlington. Horns. Pokes. The final game of Big 12 play for Texas. And a possible playoff berth on the line. We’ve been waiting 14 years for an opportunity like this. Texas will take on Oklahoma State at 11 a.m. CST in AT&T Stadium, or Jerry World as we like to call it. The game will be televised on ABC.

Texas DT T’Vondre Sweat has been a menace all season, and was named a finalist for the Outland Trophy. Photo: FOX Sports

This game matters in so many ways. It can send Texas to the CFP, or at least keep our chances alive. We can go out on a high note, having won bookend championships in our time in the Big 12 conference. This game is about the seniors and the other guys who have been in the program through difficult times. It’s about J Whitt, it’s about Christian Jones. It’s about Jonathon Brooks. This game is also about the players that have come before. Those that have poured their heart and soul onto the field for the Burnt Orange and White, but never had the players or coaches around them to make a run like Texas has made this year. I’m talking about guys like Sam Ehlinger, Roschon Johnson, Joseph Ossai, and Bijan Robinson. The true warriors that we’ve seen come through the program and give everything, never to come away with a championship.

This team has a chance to finally put a trophy up on the mantle (or the north end zone) as a culmination of the culture that has been building within the Forty Acres ever since Bam Bam Sam stepped onto the field (it was pretty dormant for about 8 years until he got here). One win away from dispatching the last of the Hateful Eight, and a 12-1 record - truly remarkable.

Standing in the way is Oklahoma State, and…Alan Bowman?? That’s right - the very Alan Bowman that Ehlinger, Ossai, and Texas defeated all those years ago in Lubbock during his time with Texas Tech (alright 3 years but it feels like forever ago). That same group of Longhorns are also the last ones to defeat the Cowboys - Sark hasn’t gotten past Gundy and will have one final chance to do so. Okie Lite has been a real thorn in Texas’ side since around the time of their last trip to the Big 12 title game, having gone 9-4 against the Horns since 2010. They’re one of several teams that I don’t think Texas fans will miss upon our exit to the SEC.

Now as far as the matchup goes, it heavily favors our Longhorns. This is NOT the same Texas team from last year or the year before that lost to the Cowboys. This is a team with athletes, stars, and studs all over the field - with a punishing defensive line and a dynamic offense that will always be able to move the ball. T’Vondre Sweat really is one of the best players in America and he is getting his due recognition for that. He leads a nasty, nasty group that has rendered opposing rushing attacks almost completely null and void for the majority of the season.

Oklahoma State will attempt to lean on their own run game and presumed Doak Walker winner Ollie Gordon II. This is probably a bad call with T Sweat and Murphy staring at you across the line of scrimmage. But their other option is to air it out with Bowman, who sports 10 TDs to 11 INTs on the year…yikes.

It doesn’t get much better for the lesser orange team on the defensive side of the ball. They have poor ranks in both rushing and pass defense. We’ve got a quarterback with NFL weapons all over the field, and a running back room that seemingly adds depth with every game. Good luck attempting to contain any part of that.

Don’t overthink this one.

Come Saturday afternoon, I expect to see a repeat of the scenes from September:

Get ready for some deja vu as Texas celebrates a Big 12 title in the icy whites on Saturday. Photo: Vasha Hunt, Associated Press

Prediction

Texas rolls to its first conference title since 2009 and will be a Louisville win away from a CFP berth. Now, will we see a 70-3 beating such as Joel Klatt and Colorado suffered at the hands of Vince and the boys in 2005? Probably not - but I don’t expect a 13-12 slog like the one over Nebraska in ‘09, either. This one should be over about midway through the second half, and hey - maybe we get Arch Manning some more playing time?

Texas 38, Oklahoma State 17

Hook ‘em