Why Bedlam is Important to Oklahoma WR Drake Stoops

Even though the 2022 version of Bedlam doesn’t carry the national spotlight of years past, it’s still a rich, historic rivalry in the state of Oklahoma. Anything can happen.

OU-OSU will ironically air in ABC's primetime spot at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, but that's about the only thing adding anticipation to this year's matchup. The Sooners sit at a disappointing 5-5, while the No. 24 Cowboys are limping towards the finish line with a 7-3 record. The importance of the matchup goes beyond just this season, though.

While the all-time record is the most lopsided of any in-state or long-time rivalry (90-19-7, Oklahoma leads), the last two decades have produced some highly entertaining contests. The Sooners had previously won six straight matchups before Oklahoma State’s last-second win in Stillwater a season ago.

Last season’s Bedlam loss was right around the time things started going bad for Oklahoma. The Bedlam loss meant OU missed out on a Big 12 Championship appearance, and the next day, Lincoln Riley was heading to USC.

Now, a year later, the Sooners have to find that same motivation to play, but for different reasons. The stakes aren’t nearly as high as last year’s top 10 matchup, where each team had just one loss. The stakes are high because of the significance of the matchup and the timing of conference realignment. Every matchup between the two schools is one closer to the final one.

After Riley’s move and Brent Venables’ arrival, Oklahoma’s roster overhaul was somewhat unfathomable. Heading into the annual in-state rivalry this weekend, many Sooner stars have no tie to the Bedlam matchup, and for several, it’ll be a first-time occurrence.

“For some it’ll mean a little more because maybe they did grow up in this state,” Venables said Tuesday. “And we’ve got a lot of guys that have never played in this game. A bunch. But it is your rival. We’ve been talking about — it’s been brought up in the media because we’re still going to the SEC, right, in a few years.

”It’s been talked about a little bit, so our guys are certainly aware that we only may play a couple of more times. But I do think that the juice and the edge and understanding what’s at stake here in this state. A long history and series and the tradition. Again, every year is a little bit different, right?”

On a team full of transfers and freshmen, Bedlam is just a story to a good portion of this OU team. Certain players that have grown up rooted in the rivalry, though, like Drake Stoops, can remind the current Sooners of Bedlam’s importance.

"Bedlam's crazy,” Stoops said. “I remember growing up watching it. Getting to go to a few. It's always this time of year. Freezing weather. Fans going crazy. But to play in a few has been a blessing and being on the right side of it couple of times. Last year they got us. It's definitely been a rivalry I'll remember.

”It was very similar to OU-Texas. Maybe not the same magnitude. But it's the in-state rivalry. So it's a big deal to a lot of people. I know it's a big deal to me and a big deal to this team. So we're gonna put our best foot forward."

Over the last decade, Bedlam has produced some of the most improbable finishes and points that lit up the scoreboard. With Bob Stoops being Oklahoma’s head coach for 18 years, and the entirety of 2000s, Drake has seen nearly every finish in the book: blowout wins, shocking upsets, heartbreaking losses and everything in between.

“I don't remember the exact first one," Drake Stoops said. “I've been to pretty much all of them since I could walk."

Though he couldn’t quite remember his first ever Bedlam experience, it wasn’t hard to recall his favorite.

“The one there where Blake Bell threw the touchdown pass to Jalen Saunders. That one — or the one here with overtime, when Brennan Clay broke a couple of tackles to score and win the game. That one was pretty cool for sure. Those two are my favorites."

While the game carries less national implication than years past, the tradition and history behind Bedlam is enough to make each matchup meaningful — especially if the series is nearing its last days. As Stoops recalled heroes of Bedlam past, there’s still a few more matchups for legends to be born on both sides.

For Oklahoma State, it means keeping an outside chance at the conference championship game alive and beating the Sooners in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2001-02. For Oklahoma, it would mean clinching a bowl berth and adding a top-25 rivalry win to a season with very few positives. It would finally be momentum to build off of.

"It's really important,” Stoops said. “I mean, just getting in the win column in general is very important. And I think that's our emphasis, just putting our best foot forward and going out there and working our hardest to get that win. And then especially being Bedlam, in-state rivalry, it's a big deal to a lot of people. So it's definitely important that we go out there and try and win."

Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the AllSooners message board community today!

Sign up for your premium membership to AllSooners.com today, and get access to the entire Fan Nation premium network!

Follow AllSooners on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest OU news.

Get your OU tickets from SI Tickets HERE.

Add us as a preferred source on Google