Caleb Williams Reflects on Oklahoma's Iconic Texas Rally for the First Time

OU's QB1 spoke publicly about his whirlwind freshman season for the first time this week.

Caleb Williams’ legend was born inside the Cotton Bowl.

Facing their bitter rivals in the Texas Longhorns, the Sooners fell behind 28-3 before Lincoln Riley turned to a true freshman to provide a spark.

Williams relieved quarterback Spencer Rattler, who turned the ball over twice in the first half for the second year in a row. But unlike in 2020, Williams was no stop gap to ensure Rattler could compose himself.

The Washington D.C. native made play after play, igniting the Sooners and powering OU to a 55-48 comeback victory that will be heralded in Norman for years to come.

And while Williams’ performance took college football by storm, his opportunity in the Red River Rivalry was actually of little shock to him and his family.

In fact Williams and his father predicted he would get a chance to shine the night before the contest.

“I’m on the phone with my dad, and there was a certain — there was something in the air because me and my dad felt the same,” Williams said on The Podcast on the Prairie, hosted by Oklahoma teammates Jeremiah Hall and Brayden Willis, on Wednesday. “We said the exact same thing. Me and my dad said, ‘Tomorrow’s probably going to be the day. Tomorrow might be the day.’ We said something close to that.”

Then the next morning, chaos broke loose in the Cotton Bowl.

Texas scored on their first play from scrimmage, and a blocked punt allowed the Longhorns to take control early.

While the Longhorn offense went on a run, Rattler struggled against a motivated Texas defense.

Completing 9-of-16 passes, Rattler struggled to get the offense moving. He threw an interception, but a fumble as the redshirt sophomore tried to make magic happen ultimately proved to be too much, and Riley pulled the plug.

After impressing during spring practice, Williams was confident he’d just need one opportunity to prove he was the right option for the OU offense.

“At this point I’m ready,” Williams said. “Like mentally, physically, I’ve been waiting. You go ask (Justin Broiles). Once I get my shot… And I said this in the summer inside the indoor, me and him talking... I said I’m not letting it go.”

Williams proved to be right.

The true freshman lit up the Longhorn defense, staging one of the most dramatic comebacks in OU-Texas history and unquestionably establishing himself as OU’s QB1.

He finished 15-of-24 passing, throwing for 211 yards and two touchdowns while adding another 88 yards and another touchdown on the ground.

“That was a frickin’ awesome experience,” Williams said. “First thing that I think of is Tom Brady, Drew Bledsoe. First thing I think of. Comeback action. Drew Bledsoe gets hurt. Tom Brady goes in and does his thing. I always think to the moment where Tom Brady is doing this interview and he is explaining the whole situation… When I get my shot, don’t look back.

“That’s basically what Tom Brady was saying. When you get your shot, you only get one shot. Sometimes you don’t even get that. when you get your shot, you take advantage of your shot and you go and do your thing.”

Oklahoma’s comeback against Texas set into motion a seismic transition.

Rattler was a preseason favorite for the Heisman Trophy and was supposed to lead OU’s first National Championship charge since 2000.

Instead, the Williams era began a year early in Norman, allowing the youngster to gain experience that will prove invaluable in his development as a quarterback moving into the next season — regardless of if it’s at Oklahoma or somewhere else across the country.

On that faithful October afternoon in Dallas, a star was born, basking in a moment that won’t quickly be forgotten by one of college football’s legendary rivalries.

“I get chills every time I talk about the game,” Williams said. “Every time. I get chills right now.”

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