Lincoln Riley: Changes at Texas are 'Not Drastic'

NORMAN — Texas looks different under Steve Sarkisian than it did under Tom Herman.

How much different, Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley isn't quite willing to divulge.

"There’s some small differences," Riley said Tuesday at his weekly press conference. "I mean, they have new coordinators. It's not totally different. It's not like they went from air raid to triple option. It’s not drastic. There’s small things, you can tell, they favor in their scheme."

The No. 6-ranked Sooners (5-0) and No. 21 Longhorns (4-1) are coming off Big 12 Conference victories last week and are pointed toward another classic showdown at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.

OU is a 3-point favorite, but that's of no concern to Riley.

"It's a week we always look forward to every single year," Riley said. "Excited that it’s here. ... We never take for granted because you appreciate it every single year."

Riley said he appreciates the scope of the OU-Texas rivalry, and he always has enjoyed the intensity of it, even before he became the OU head coach.

"It's one of the first things that crosses your mind," he said. "When Bob (Stoops) hired me seven years ago, it was one of the first things that crossed my mind, that I get to coach in this game."

The stadium will be full on Saturday, unlike last year's COVID-reduced crowd.

"The ride in and the atmosphere was totally different," Riley said. "Both teams were in a different place. We were both down a lot of people. We were a shell of ourselves — both teams. Everything about it felt different until we kicked off.

"It’s a heavy hitter, man. It was different until it got kicked off, and then from kickoff until the interception that ended it, it was pretty much the same."

As for the Longhorns, this game will tell how much progress they've made in Year One under Sarkisian, the former Alabama assistant and head coach at Washington and USC who was hired to replace Herman.

Critics say he had to fix the "Country Club Culture" that manifested in Mack Brown's final seasons and has been pervasive and obtrusive ever since.

"It’s so hard year to year to say it’s way better or way worse," Riley said. "I don’t even attempt that. I’m not in their locker room. ... This is a good football team.

"This game’s always had tremendous teams and tremendous players. … You can throw the records out the door. … Both teams are gonna be hungry to play and you typically see both teams’ best on this day."