Kevin Sherrington

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Once upon a very wild time, downtown Dallas readied for Texas-OU as if it had boiled up ominously out of the Gulf of Mexico. Businesses boarded up windows. Hotels locked doors. And then the night before the game, the heavens rained whiskey bottles, water pitchers and the occasional mattress. Texas-OU was the biggest thing to hit Dallas back in the day, and it left a mark.

The intersection of Commerce and Akard may look less like a candidate for federal relief since police crackdowns muted the party downtown, but the national impact of the Red River rivalry has never been bigger.

Five times already this decade, either Texas or Oklahoma has played in the BCS title game. And the Longhorns are still in the running to make it six.

Question: How does that record rate in the history of this state's greatest annual sporting event?

Answer: The only decade that comes close is the '70s, when the Sooners were winding out the Wishbone, and Earl Campbell regarded any ground ahead of him as eminent domain.

Of course, the '70s were a simpler time. We didn't have the BCS to complain about. Only the polls. But at least we can use them to make a reasonable comparison.

Four times in the '70s – after the '72, '75, '77 and '78 seasons – both Oklahoma and Texas finished in the AP top 10, meaning either might have been a legitimate candidate to play in a championship game. Happened twice in the '50s ('50 and '52) and twice in the '60s ('62 and '63).

In the '80s, it was tough enough just to get one of the rivals going, much less both at the same time.

And the '90s? Neither team finished in the AP top 10 even once. They were lucky the NCAA didn't revoke their histories.

Those unfortunate days are easy to dismiss now, what with the rollicking success of Mack Brown and Bob Stoops. Never in this series have the rival coaches been at the top of their games as often.

Only four times have both programs finished in the AP's top five. The first came in 1950, when Bud Wilkinson won the first of three titles at Oklahoma, and Texas finished third under Blair Cherry. The next came in '72, when Chuck Fairbanks finished No. 2, one spot ahead of Texas, then took a job with the Patriots, leaving Darrell Royal to deal with Barry Switzer.

In the aughts, Brown and Stoops have ramped up the level of play, if not the personal enmity that drove Royal to distraction and early retirement.

They've each finished in the top five on two occasions: '04, when Oklahoma was No. 3 and Texas was fifth, and last year, when the Longhorns and Sooners finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

So what, you ask, does it all mean? Well, it doesn't necessarily mean it'll be a good game today. The Sooners' patched-up offensive line will have difficulty keeping Texas off Sam Bradford, who, given time, still doesn't have the targets he once did.

But even if the Sooners lose, as Stoops reminded us this week, what really matters is where you end the season.

And twice now, Stoops has lost to Texas ('06 and '08) and come out on top in the Big 12.

He's been able to render the Texas-OU score moot on those occasions because of a bad tiebreaker and an unparalleled national perception of both schools that is mutually beneficial.

Losing a game in early October doesn't hurt so much, especially if it's to Texas or Oklahoma. In turn, the reputation of Oklahoma and Texas has helped the Big 12 to more appearances in the BCS title game than any other conference.

And as for the fact that Stoops is 1-3 in BCS championships and the Big 12 is 2-4 overall?

Only the SEC, at 5-0, has a winning record in the title game. Even with all that Brown and Stoops have done, it's the SEC's party every January. Everyone else is just happy to be invited.

And speaking of parties, here's my favorite from the old days: In 1967, a man in a red shirt was plucked from a ledge on the ninth floor of the Adolphus the night before the game. He reportedly told police he was simply trying to string a banner that read "Beat Hell Out of Texas" across the street to the old Baker Hotel. He was about to attempt the leap when cops intervened. Just another blatant example of the Man keeping a brother down.

By decades, the number of times both Texas and Oklahoma have finished in the AP top 10:

2000s (5)

2001: UT 5, OU 6

2002: OU 5, UT 6

2004: OU 3, UT 5

2007: OU 8, UT 10

2008: UT 4, OU 5

1970s (4)

1972: OU 2, UT 3

1975: OU 1, UT 6

1977: UT 4, OU 7

1978: OU 3, UT 9

1960s (2)

1962: UT 4, OU 8

1963: UT 1, OU 9

1950s (2)

1950: OU 1, UT 3

1952: OU 4, UT 10