Texas Longhorns vs. Oklahoma Sooners Early Preview: Keys to the Game

The Texas Longhorns will take their annual trip up north to the State Fair of Texas in Dallas to combat the Oklahoma Sooners in the Red River Rivalry at the famed Cotton Bowl on Oct. 11.

Last year's game between the two wasn't much of a game at all. The Sooners booted a field goal to score first late in the first quarter, and then Quinn Ewers and the Longhorns would go on to dump 34 unanswered points on the team.

Tight end Gunnar Helm led the way with 91 receiving yards and a touchdown, and Quintrevion Wisner's 118 rushing yards included a 43-yard score as the Longhorns boldly defended their No. 1 ranking with a monumental performance last year.

How Can Texas Repeat That This Year?

After the big win last year, Texas pulls ahead in the all-time series against the Sooners, with a 64-51-5 record, and with the high expectations for Steve Sarkisian's squad, No. 65 could very much be on the horizon in the 2025 season.

But as much as Texas will be gunning for a national championship, Oklahoma will be looking for redemption from last year, and here is how the Longhorns can leave Dallas with the Golden Hat Trophy for the second year in a row.

Pound the Ball

The Longhorns run game accounted for 177 yards on the ground against Oklahoma last year, with Wisner's 118 leading the way.

Oklahoma very clearly did not have an answer for the ground attack in the 2024 game, and with Wisner returning to the Horns for 2025 and a much more mobile quarterback under center, there is no reason that the Burnt Orange shouldn't equal that yardage amount, with 200 yards rushing sure to give way to a couple of rushing scores and just enough offense to down the Sooners on rushing alone.

Contain the Quarterback Keeper

Arch Manning is not going to be the only quarterback in this game with elite rushing skills. New Oklahoma signal caller John Mateer scrambled for over 800 yards and 15 touchdowns in the 2024 season with Washington State. Keep the Sooners off the one-yard line, and the rest should take care of itself for the Horns.

Force Turnovers

Obvious? Yes.

Crucial? Also yes.

The Longhorns were able to force not one, but two fumbles out of the Sooners last year, taking more and more points off the board with each capitalization of OU's mistakes, allowing the blowout 31-point win they claimed.

The 2025 Red River Rivalry is currently set for Saturday, October 11 at 2:30 P.M.