Everyone has their own pregame ritual. Walk thru any parking lot on the way tot the way to the stadium and you will run the gamete of everyone’s own idea of what makes a great pregame. The smell of brats, steaks with that special seasoning…martinis, margarita’s and beer…or iced tea…horse shoes, throwing the ball around….it’s just makes for a great time. My pregame ritual is simple….get into the stadium with the least amount of headaches and traffic even if it means getting to the game 3 hours early. Ask anyone who knows me and they’ll tell you it is best I don’t deal with traffic.

Nothing compares to the traffic inside the tunnel at the Cotton Bowl. The players, band, Bevo and Boomer Sooner all make for a busy place where a lot of things you don’t realize happen — happen. It’s one of my favorite things, just to sit in the tunnel and watch the game before the game. This week the Freshmen played like Freshmen for the first time this year and having seen the Oklahoma tactics before the game, I can see why. All things being equal — isn’t as much fun as when Stoops and Co. try to intimidate the younger horns. It’s really fun to watch because both teams do it depending on the year and the mojo they have going. Guys like Blake Gideon aren’t affected but others have to be like wow.

First, Bob Stoops comes out early to the field and that’s not normal in most years but I feel like he was trying to win pregame this year as well. The Longhorns all came out to the field after arriving in two’s and three’s….just to walk around the field like they do for every game. The Sooners all came out together like a band of intimidators in full uniform without the shoulder pads and it looked like a remake of the movie 300. They were jumping around and I could just tell by the body language of the other players that they had taken note of the situation and were tip toeing back to the locker room. Stoops made more field appearances this year than in the past three years. The Sooners definately had a plan to intimidate the FReshmen and this year it worked. It’s the game before the game and it happens every year. You can count on the Oklahoma band to stop in front of the Texas locker room and play boomer sooner loudly and Texas does the same thing. the only one who gets everyone out of the way is Bevo. By the time the teams come out of the tunnel to start the game their has already been the pregame contest.

I’d just tell Oklahoma one thing — it might have worked this year but looking into David Ash’s eyes there in the fourth quarter — he will remember it all and next year the same tactics will not work and you can bet Bob Stoops won’t be on the field near as much next year. Next year maybe you might want to get there early like I do and watch the pregame for the game that is the infamous Cotton Bowl Tunnel.