The Red River Shootout is a common name for the annual football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the University of Texas Longhorns. The series is considered one of the greatest rivalries in NCAA football. The name is derived from the Red River that forms part of the boundary between the states of Oklahoma and Texas.

The series began in 1900 and has been played in Dallas since 1912. Dallas was chosen as a "neutral" site since it is situated approximately halfway between Austin, Texas and Norman, Oklahoma - the location of UT and OU, respectively. This also provides both teams an opportunity to showcase themselves for Dallas based alumni and potential high-school recruits of both teams.

Since 1929 the game has been held at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, typically in mid-October during the State Fair of Texas. The designated "home" team alternates from year to year, and ticket sales for the game are split 50-50 between the two schools, with the stadium divided along a line reaching from end zone to end zone.

The game typically has conference or even national significance. Since 1945, one or both of the two teams has been ranked among the top 25 teams in the nation coming into 60 out of 65 games. Texas leads the all-time series 55-39-5 (with a 43-35-4 edge in Dallas), but the game has been dominated by Oklahoma in recent years.

The winner of the game receives the Golden Hat, which is, appropriately, a gold ten-gallon hat, formerly of bronze. The governors of Texas and Oklahoma often place a bet on the game such as the losing governor having to present a side of beef or the winning state governor, who then donates the beef to charity.

Previous results

Rankings based on the Associated Press poll released prior to the game.

See also

• Iron Bowl
• The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party

References

• SoonerStats.com
• Texas, Oklahoma Governors Wager 350 Pounds of Beef]