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Texas vs Oklahoma: 5 Players Who Must Step Up for Longhorns Football

By Tyler Brett

Oct 10, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Charlie Strong celebrates with the golden hat trophy after a victory against the Oklahoma Sooners during Red River rivalry at Cotton Bowl Stadium. Texas beat Oklahoma 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 10, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Charlie Strong celebrates with the golden hat trophy after a victory against the Oklahoma Sooners during Red River rivalry at Cotton Bowl Stadium. Texas beat Oklahoma 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 10, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Charlie Strong celebrates with the golden hat trophy after a victory against the Oklahoma Sooners during Red River rivalry at Cotton Bowl Stadium. Texas beat Oklahoma 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 10, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Charlie Strong celebrates with the golden hat trophy after a victory against the Oklahoma Sooners during Red River rivalry at Cotton Bowl Stadium. Texas beat Oklahoma 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /

It’s time once again for the Red River Showdown. Texas football limps into rivalry week unranked with a 2-2 record looking to upset No. 20 Oklahoma (2-2) yet again. They are heavy underdogs heading into this game and will need big-time performances from players on both sides of the ball to get this win.

There are plenty of distractions swirling around the Texas program right now. Changes on the coaching staff, rumors of Charlie Strong being on his way out, and mounting injuries all loom over the Longhorns’ locker room. However, this is rivalry week. Beating Oklahoma can go a long way to curing some ills on the Forty Acres.

Last season, Texas similarly came into the Red River Shootout struggling but rose up to take down the Sooners. The Horns were just 1-4 last season coming into this matchup while Oklahoma was ranked No. 10 in the nation. Despite the lopsided odds, Texas came through in a major way, riding the emotion of the game to win 24-17 in arguably the best played game of the Strong era.

This year, they will need a similarly great effort to get the win. Oklahoma is riding the momentum of a 52-46 win over TCU last week and are installed as an 11-point favorite for this one. Neither defense has been particularly stout so far this season, so fans should prepare themselves for a shootout in Dallas.

If Texas can win consecutive RRS games under Strong, it will go a long way to silencing some of the critics (at least temporarily). It certainly won’t be easy, but here are five Longhorns that must step up for Texas to beat Oklahoma.

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