Oklahoma is refreshed and ready to put its undefeated mark on the line Saturday when the Sooners hit the road for a big-time clash with No. 13 Baylor.
It's the fourth collision between the two programs in just the last three seasons.
At this point, 9-0 Oklahoma knows what to expect when they travel to Waco, TX: a fight.
“I definitely think it’s a big game,” linebacker DaShaun White said. “Every single year we play them, it’s a big game and big challenge. They always got a really good offense, it seems like. This year, they have plenty of challenges. It’s one of those things where we have to respect them every single year because they’re a talented team. This year, they’re talented again.”
While the Bears only have three wins in the 31 all-time meetings between the two programs, all three of those Baylor victories have come in the last decade with many of the games being decided in the fourth quarter.
This is especially true for when the Sooners make the trip to south to Waco and McLane Stadium — a site that has been good to Oklahoma recently, although the wins haven't come easily.
“Honestly, I went there my redshirt year when Baker (Mayfield) was still there,” tight end/h-back Jeremiah Hall said. “Obviously, I was there a couple years ago. But their fans. Every time we play there, they're always sold out. Their student section is actually pretty fun. They're not too disrespectful, but they get you going enough to where you want to talk back. But it's not like super annoying. But yeah, I definitely say the fans. It's kind of close. It's not a huge stadium, but it's small enough to where it feels compact and everybody's against you. So I think that motivates me the most.”
While the Sooners have won each of their last three trips to Waco, the games have all been highly competitive.
In 2015, Oklahoma found a way to outlast the No. 6-ranked Bears behind some classic late Baker Mayfield heroics.
In the 2017 iteration, the Sooners walked in to face a Baylor team in a massive rebuild in the first year under Matt Rhule. Despite only winning one game all season, the Bears gave Oklahoma a scare in a 49-41 OU win.
And then there is 2019 — the comeback.
Down 28-3, Jalen Hurts led the Sooners all the way back in one of the most improbable wins in the storied history of Oklahoma football, capped off by an interception by Nik Bonitto, who said that play spring-boarded his collegiate career.
"I would definitely say that game," Bonitto said, "is a huge reason why I'm as confident as I am today."
In the Sooners' two trips to Waco before McLane Stadium opened in 2014, OU left Floyd Casey Stadium with losses in hand in 2011 and 2013.
Oklahoma had never lost to Baylor before Robert Griffin III's Heisman moment against the Sooners in 2011.
Simply put, in the last decade, Waco has been a difficult place to play for Oklahoma teams regardless of the coach, quarterback, or roster in general.
“It’s one of those things where everybody comes out and plays their tails off against Oklahoma,” White said. “Baylor always schemes it up and dials things up pretty good against us.”
This will be the case again Saturday in what could be the Sooners' final trip to Waco for the foreseeable future, depending on how quickly Oklahoma transitions to the SEC.
The Sooners and Bears kick off at 11 a.m. Saturday.
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