Husker-Sooner rivalry renewal surface oriented at best

A Lincoln Journal Star blog entry on Thursday revisited the possibility of a home-and-home series between former Big 8 rivals Nebraska and Oklahoma, which would take place in 2020-2021. That is, if it even takes place at all.

Nebraska athletic director Tom Osborne said Thursday that the home-and-home proposal remains a possibility but until there is resolution to Big Ten Conference scheduling requirements are going to be, firming up a commitment is going to be iffy. The Big Ten currently requires eight conference games but that number could increase to 10 at some point. The Big 12 requires nine such games.

Interestingly enough, the 2021 season would mark the 50th anniversary of the Game of the Century in a game that pitted No. 1 Nebraska vs. No. 2 Oklahoma. The reigning National Champion Huskers won their 21^st consecutive game in beating Oklahoma 35-31.

I should be excited about the possibility, except I’m feeling lukewarm. After all, eighteen times, both carried top-10 rankings into their matchup. Twelve times, the winner went on to a national title. That’s just the tip of the iceberg.

This traditional college football rivalry, however, lost its significance in 1996 with the forming of the Big 12 Conference. This was due to the split-division nature of the Big 12 that scheduled the Cornhuskers and Sooners to meet only twice every four years. Prior to the beginning of Big 12 play in 1996, the Cornhuskers and Sooners had met for 71 consecutive seasons.

However, it should also be dually noted that Oklahoma didn’t even as much as lift a finger to keep the rivalry afloat. In all fairness though, the rivalry carried more significance for Nebraska than Oklahoma.

After the Sooners fell on hard times between 1994-1998 late in the Gary Gibbs era and then under Howard Schnellenberger and John Blake, Nebraska rose to prominence by winning three National Titles. At that time, Johnny Come Lately programs like Kansas State and Colorado became bigger obstacles for the Huskers than Oklahoma. I know I speak for at least some Husker fans but while I despised the Sooners, I actually gained some respect for them after listening to a large segment of Colorado and Kansas State fans become overly arrogant about their program’s newfound success after eons of insignificance. My reasoning became, well since Oklahoma has won National Titles, at least they have reason to be arrogant.

For that reason, Oklahoma remained the center of whom Nebraska viewed as a rival while the Sooners already had Texas and Oklahoma State. Therefore, diminishing Nebraska’s rivalry significance for the Sooners.

Granted, Nebraska and Oklahoma playing again is nice for nostalgia purposes but there’s only so many times you can play up the “Stoops and Pelinis grew up together” angle. However, given the transient nature of college football coaches, Bo Pelini and Bob Stoops might not be at Nebraska and Oklahoma when 2020 rolls around.

The truth of the matter is, as great as Nebraska and Oklahoma rekindling their flame sounds good, you can never go back. As much as we want it too, it will not be the same.

It would take a while to rebuild the rivalry, and because of all the changes plus time, that might not happen and it may not have that "Game of the Year" feel it once had.