The 2009-2010 College Basketball season us underway and the Big 12 got off to a fast start with a perfect 16-0 record on the first weekend. Only the Big East,at 17-0, had a better opening.

               This season the Big 12 welcomes back seven of the ten members of last year's All-Big 12 First and Second teams. Five of the league's seven major award winners return.  With that in mind, ESPN The Magazine,  ranked eight of the Big 12 teams among the top 50 in the nation in its preseason poll.  The three top ten teams (Kansas-Texas and OU) are more than any other conference has in the preseason national rankings.

               Since 2002 the Big 12 has had more NCAA regional finalists than any other conference and double the amount of all but one league.  The Big 12, over the last two years and during the last seven seasons (since 2003) have had the nation's best winning perecentage in NCAA competition. In the last eight years the Big 12 has had 20 teams reach the NCAA Sweet 16. Only one national conference has sent more teams to that level of post season play.

                It promises to be another exciting season of hoops in the Big 12.

          This OU football season wasn't supposed to be like this. How could it be like this? The Mighty Sooners began the year playing in the BCS National Championship game. It started the 2009 season ranked number three in the nation and favored to win a fourth consecutive Big 12 Championship. 

          Any why shouldn't they have been? This was a team that scored an all-time college football single season record 716 points in 2008. They had the returning Heisman Trophy winner, Sam Bradford, who had thrown for 50 touchdowns. The best tight end in college football, Jermain Gresham,and their best offensive lineman, Trent Williams joined Bradford in returning for this season instead of going for the big money in the NFL.. This was a team last season that had not one but two 1,000 yard rushers in DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown. This was an offense that set a new NCAA standard wtih five straight games of putting up 60 points or more at the end of 2008.

          Now they are still looking to try and become bowl eligible (that's a miniumum of six victories) as they play their 10th game of the season when the host Texas A&M this Saturday at 6pm. For the first time since 2005 you can't find the Sooners ranked in any of the Top 25 national college football polls.

         So what happened? Well, first, inuries. I mean INJURIES!  Gresham lost before the season even started after a fluke non-contact knee injury.  Bradford with a third degree shoulder separation in the first half of the first game of the season. Then there were all the issues with a young, rebuilt offensive line and a new corps of receivers.

          It was tough to lose to three nationally ranked team on neutral or away fields ( BYU-Miami-Texas) by a total of  five points but it was humiliating to lose 10-3 at Nebraska. Lose to a team that had lost its last two home games to Texas Tech (31-10) and to lowly Iowa State (9-7). Lose to a team that OU held to a total of seven first downs, 180-yards of total offense, forced 11punts and allowed only one third down conversion out of 14 --and that was by penalty!  The three points marked the first time in Head Coach Bob Stoops 11 seasons at Oklahoma that his team did not score a touchdown.

       So what happened to the Sooners season that began with such high expectations? Number one - Injuries. Number two inferior offensive linemen and receivers. Number three stupid, untimely, undisciplined penalties.  They all showed up in the loss at Nebraska. Two more starters, senior defensive end Auston English and senior left guard, Brody Eldridge were both lost for the season. There were again key dropped passes. There was a school record tying five interceptions by red shirt freshman quarterback, Landry Jones. And there were 9 penalties for 64 yards.

       Gone are all the major 2009 season goals --an unbeaten season, another Big 12 title, another chance at the BCS National Championship game. What's left? The opportunity to win its final three games (Nov. 14 vs. Texas A&M; Nov. 21 @ Texas Tech; Nov. 28 vs. OSU). That could possibly get the Sooners to the Cotton Bowl, back to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas where this season all began back on September 3rd.

     Back when there was so much hope and so much hype.

             For the 85th time this Saturday, Oklahoma plays Nebraska in one of the great rivalries in all of college football. The game will be the Sooners first trip to Lincoln, since 2005. It will be my first trip back to Lincoln, since 1980. That was my first time around at KTUL-TV when I was also hosting the Oklahoma Football Replay show with Coach Barry Switzer.

            I've had some great memories of those games between the Big Red of the North and the Big Red of the South. Coach Switzer was 12-and-5 in his games against the Cornhuksers and in those 12 wins, eight of them came in the final two minutes of the game.

            My personal favorite?  1976. This was the game where the term " Sooner Magic " was born.  OU had a young team and was a big underdog at Nebraska. In Coach Switzer's book, "Bootlegger's Boy" he tells the story of having his team captain, defensive back, Scott HIll give the pre-game prayer.  Hill said, "Please, dear Lord, don't let any injury or harm come to any player. And please, please, please dear Lord, please don't let the best team win."

            They didn't.  Even though Nebraska led by as much as 17-7 the young Sooners fought back. With three minutes left ot play on a bitterly cold afternoon OU had the ball back on its own 16-yard line with three minutes to play.  A 50-yard halfback pass by Woodie Shepard to freshman Steve Rhodes got it into Husker territory . A couple plays later came the play that truly was "Sooner Magic".  The "Hook and Lateral Play" -Quarterback Dean Blevins hit Rhodes on a short pass who then pitched the ball to halfback Elvis Peacock who took it down the far sideline before being knocked out at the three.  Oklahoma scored the wining touchdown with thirty seconds left to play to win 20-17. It wrapped up a fifth straight win over Nebraska and a fifth straight Big 8 Championship for the Sooners.

          Sooner Magic !