No Bedlam Game for Cowboys, But Hogs Could Take Place

Oklahoma won't have a big rival in-state with Oklahoma State that creates chance

(Jerome Miron / USA TODAY Sports)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Big 12 Media Days that started Wednesday usually draws about as much attention around here as the weather, but Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy talked about the difference now in this annual rivalry game with Oklahoma going to the SEC.

"The Bedlam game is over because Oklahoma chose to leave the Big 12. Period," Gundy said when asked about Bedlam. "Do I like that? No. Do I like that conferences have broken up in the past? No, I don't. But I also know that we have to control what we can control, which is conference realignment is there. It's probably still going on. Wherever we all end up and whatever schedule they give us to play, we go play it and do the best we can."

The Razorbacks would provide an interesting non-conference rival for the Cowboys because neither one would have that. The Sooners have a huge rival already in Texas, and that's not going anywhere anytime soon. The money is too big and too good for everybody involved to take that away.

Plus, there's some history involved. For 21 straight years, while the Hogs were in the Southwest Conference, they played the Cowboys. Former coach Frank Broyles wanted it because it was a competitive early match-up that didn't affect what happened in the conference, but often indicated problems with his team.

When the Hogs played in Stillwater in 1978 for the first time in forever, it marked the first time they wore red pants in a game. That was Lou Holtz's idea and considered never doing it again after the Hogs were lucky to come out with a 19-7 game that was played on a sun-swept day with a huge wind blowing and no end zone seats to stop it in an East-West oriented stadium.

These days, it might be a little more competitive, but it would be an early game that could land the Hogs and OSU needed national exposure. It's a game with high potential buy-in from both fan bases. A surprisingly large number of Cowboy fans live in West Arkansas, much more than a lot of people would normally think.

It's also close enough to be convenient for travel both ways. It's a little over three hours between the two campuses, and most fans live a bit closer. In other words, it's roughly the same thing as Little Rock from Fayetteville and can be managed much easier for everybody, including athletics.

Besides, now even "Bedlam" has changed in tenor and tone. Everybody wants to be friends now.
"The Bedlam game has changed," Gundy said. "These players, they all know each other now, like they talk on social media. When I played, I didn't even want to talk to people from OU. We just weren't friends. Now these guys are buddies."

It could be a match-up that benefits both teams. The Cowboys are on the Razorbacks' schedule in 2024 (at Stillwater) and the return trip is in 2027. Don't talk about contracts and all. That's an excuse for an answer that is truthful, but doesn't tell the whole story. Contracts on future schedules are simply the starting point for negotiations to break them.

HOG FEED:

BOASTFUL WORDS BY BIG 12 COMMISSIONER MAKE CLEAR GIANT LEAP TEXAS, OU WILL HAVE TO MAKE IN JOINING ARKANSAS IN SEC

BASKETBALL, BASEBALL HAVE SURPASSED RAZORBACK FOOTBALL IN INTEREST FOR TIME BEING

YOUTUBE RABBIT HOLE PROVES RAZORBACKS WEREN'T BEST TEAM IN ARKANSAS IN 2019

SO MUCH SAID, HINTED AT THE DAY BROYLES, KRAMER ANNOUNCED ARKANSAS MOVE TO THE SEC

COMMON THREAD BETWEEN SUCCESS OF THREE PRO HOGS, DAVONTE DAVIS

ARKANSAS FANS VOICED IRE TOWARD WRONG FOOTBALL COACH PAST THREE SEASONS

WALSH, BLACK SHINE BRIGHT, DISPLAY ADDED SKILLS IN NBA DEBUT WITH BOSTON CELTICS, ORLANDO MAGIC

ARKANSAS TO ENTER SEASON AS HEAVY UNDERDOGS, WHICH FITS PITTMAN'S PERSONALITY PERFECTLY

'HEART OF A RAZORBACK' PHRASE USE TOO OFTEN, BUT ONLY APPLIES TO ONE MEMBER OF TEAM NOW

VAN HORN COULD LOSE AS MANY AS SIX COMMITS TO DRAFT ON SUNDAY

MAYBE BIGGEST OFFENSIVE QUESTION MARK FALLS ON CODY KENNEDY'S SHOULDERS

NFL DRAFT EVALUATIONS SHOW KJ JEFFERSON HAS ROOM TO MOVE UP BY APRIL

SLOP HOUSE: GREG THOMAS, NOLAN RICHARDSON CHANGED CULTURE ACROSS ARKANSAS IN '80'S AT HIGH COST

SLOP HOUSE: THREE 10-2 SEASONS REVEAL DAYS IN SWC WASN'T EVERYTHING SOME REMEMBER COMPARED TO TIME IN SEC

ACTS BY POLITICIANS PRETTY MUCH GUARANTEE ARKANSAS WILL HAVE ROLE IN WHETHER NCAA USE NUCLEAR OPTION

RAZORBACKS NOT GETTING STUCK ON BODY TYPE WHEN RECRUITING WIDE RECEIVERS

FOURTH OF JULY, HOT WEATHER MEANS FOOTBALL STARTING PRACTICES SOON FOR COMING SEASON

DFW RADIO BIT SHOWS WHY TEXAS JOINING SEC MIGHT LEAD TO SOME MISUNDERSTANDINGS

ARKANSAS FOOTBALL SCHEDULE GIVES HOGS BEST CHANCE IN DECADE TO TOPPLE LSU, ALABAMA FOR FINAL SEC WEST CROWN

FORMER RAZORBACK TREYLON BURKS WRAPS UP HONEYMOON, JETS OFF TO TITANS IN BETTER SHAPE

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