Shortly after getting on board at Oklahoma State, Eric Morris made his attitude toward renewing an in-state football series with Oklahoma clear as the sky: He wants it back.
On Thursday, new Oklahoma athletic director Roger Denny echoed those calls to return Bedlam to its regular-season schedule in an interview with SoonerScoop. The same report mentions Denny hasn’t officially contacted Stillwater regarding the dormant series.
“It’s huge for our state and our fans. If we had an opportunity to do that and do it in a way that doesn’t limit our opportunities down the line, certainly that’s something we’d want to look into.”
It’ll soon be three years since the Cowboys defeated the Sooners 27-24 at home in what’d become the last in-state football meeting between the two schools as members of the Big 12.
Oklahoma has largely ruled the series (90-21 all-time) across the game’s century-plus history. The Cowboys have won two of the final five gridiron meetings, but the Sooners have won 18 times since 2000.
Denny’s comments make it sound like the Sooners, off to an 8-8 start in the SEC, are interested in renewing the series, but only “in a way that doesn’t limit our opportunities down the line,” as Denny said in the interview above. That comment doesn’t inspire confidence, and it really sounds as if they’re more focused on a potential College Football Playoff seat.
Moreover, the game itself doesn’t elicit much interest from either fanbase online:
Oklahoma State isn’t exactly back at full strength, either.
The Morris hire is a seemingly solid start, and the class brought in by the former North Texas coach is promising enough to get excited after a 1-11 finish to 2025. The framework is there for Oklahoma State to become a conference contender, but we’re still miles out from Bedlam being a ticket.
That game, too, would seemingly only come if the Sooners perceived Oklahoma State as a team that wouldn’t hurt their schedule. It’s not about the rivalry anymore, which is a shame considering that Morris appeared especially enthusiastic about the prospect of bringing it back in December.
Renewing rivalries is great, but nowadays it’s tough to tell whether anyone wants to pick up the phone.
