SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK
A number of historic college football rivalries have fallen victim to conference realignment, including the one between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State that stretches back to the start of the 20th century. One of those schools was willing to revive it, but it doesn’t sound like they’ll be facing off in the near future after the offer was turned down.
There are some college football rivalries that can be traced back close to 140 years thanks to teams that have been playing each other on a regular basis since the end of the 1880s. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State “only” have around 120 years of history between them, as the first meeting between those schools transpired on the gridiron in 1904.
The Sooners walked away with a 75-0 win in a contest that set the tone for the series that was held on an annual basis every single year between 1910 and 2023.
However, it’s been on hold since 2023 (a game where #22 Oklahoma State upset its #9 rival with a 27-24 win) after Oklahoma, a founding member of the Big 12 that had belonged to the conference since it was formed in 1890, defected to the SEC.
The Bedlam Bell that’s awarded to the winner of the showdown has subsequently remained in Stillwater for the last couple of years, and it will seemingly stay there for at least a few more after the Cowboys reportedly made it clear they have no interest in reigniting the rivalry.
Oklahoma State turned down Oklahoma’s offer to bring back Bedlam
There are plenty of college football rivalries that featured teams that have been fairly evenly matched over the decades, but the one between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State falls firmly on the other end of the spectrum; it wasn’t for Alabama’s dominance of Mississippi State, the Sooners would be responsible for the most lopsided rivalry the sport has to offer thanks to their 91-20-7 record in the series.
It’s safe to assume Oklahoma’s winning percentage would have only continued to rise if Bedlam had continued after 2023 based on the current state of Oklahoma State’s football program.
You also have to imagine that was a factor in the latter’s decision to decline to renew the rivalry, as Tulsa World reports the Cowboys essentially left the Sooners on read after receiving an offer to do so, saying:
“OU tried to keep OSU as a non-conference opponent and reached out as recently as a few months ago. But [Oklahoma athletic director Joe] Castiglione said the interest from Stillwater remains minimal, so he moved on with other scheduling endeavors.”
It’s kind of hard to blame Oklahoma State for not signing up for a game that has resulted in a loss around 80% of the time, but that’s still not a great look.