Mike Gundy Doesn’t Expect Bedlam to Continue After OU Leaves for SEC
During his Monday press conference, Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy said that he doesn’t expect Bedlam to continue when Oklahoma leaves the Big 12:
“I don’t think it’s a realistic thing that’s going to happen based on the business side of Power 5 conference football. That’s just my opinion. I could be wrong. I’m not getting that from anybody”
If the annual meeting between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State does cease to exist, it will break a streak dating back to 1910. Bedlam is one of the oldest rivalries in college football but also has the most lopsided history among rivals. Oklahoma currently holds a 90-18-7 advantage over the Cowboys and Gundy hasn’t faired well against the Sooners in his time at Oklahoma State, holding a 2-14 record in 16 years as the Cowboys head coach.
If I were Gundy, I would do everything in my power to keep from playing Oklahoma every year. It is the only knock against him in Stillwater in an otherwise illustrious career. If he doesn’t have to beat the Sooners to win the Big 12, then why would he continue playing the game? They will always have the advantage in recruiting, and therefore depth, and more often than not they are just a better team.
Mike Gundy currently has a .683 winning percentage (147-68) which ranks 22nd among active coaches. If you take his losses agaisnt Oklahoma away, his winning percentage jumps to .731 which would be good for 15th among active coaches. My point? Oklahoma State has a top-15 coach, and it might take Oklahoma leaving the conference for Pokes fans to realize that. So if this is the last time that Oklahoma comes to Stillwater, it would be a damn good thing if I were Mike Gundy and I would do everything I could to make that happen.
