Big 12 Daily Fever: The OU-Nebraska Rivalry Should Happen Every Season

Posted: Nov 06, 2009

Berry Tramel of 'The Oklahoman' writes this week about something that just seems obvious to most college football fans: the Oklahoma-Nebraska game should happen every year.

The Big 12 decided to go with a "balanced" schedule model when the league formed, so the great rivalry between the Sooners and the Cornhuskers goes on two-year breaks because they are in different Divisions. With the tradition of this matchup (the 'Game of the Century' in 1971 and the Tom Osborne-Barry Switzer battles in the 80s), it just makes too much sense for the wellness of the conference to have big-time rivalry games played each season.

While this year's game doesn't have the usual national significance, it's still a matchup between two brand names of college football who have a ton of respect for each other. The above article references the SEC model where the Tennessee-Alabama game stays on the schedule every season, while letting the other Division games rotate. We agree that the Big 12 should look into making this change.

Tramel concludes his on-the-money column:

"Oklahoma and Nebraska played every season from 1928 until 1998. Seventy straight autumns, from Calvin Coolidge's administration to Bill Clinton's.

And an uncommon thing happened. The best parts of sport thrived. Sportsmanship. Dignity. Competition. And the best football games you've ever seen.

Let not such honor take two-year hiatuses, just to satisfy some scheduling model.

Bring back Oklahoma-Nebraska every year."

Of course, the real answer is to move Oklahoma and Oklahoma State to the Big 12 North. That way they will play every year and give this great conference the much-needed divisional balance it needs in football.

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