Why is the Oklahoma-Texas rivalry called the Red River Showdown?

Every year, the Oklahoma Sooners face the Texas Longhorns in the Red River Showdown.

In one of the best rivalries in all of college football, the Oklahoma Sooners take on the Texas Longhorns at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas in what is now known as the Red River Showdown.

This game takes place annually at Fair Park in Dallas during the State Fair of Texas. These bitter rivals have met 116 times to date, dating back to their first meeting in 1900. In 1903 and in 2018, these two teams faced off twice. So as you enjoy the signature game of the early-afternoon window, here is a better understanding of why this rivalry is called the Red River Showdown.

It used to be called something else, but for obvious reasons, there has been a minor adjustment.

Red River Showdown: Why is the Oklahoma-Texas football rivalry called this?

For the Red River portion of the name, that is pretty simple. The Red River forms much of the border between the two states with Oklahoma to the north and Texas to the south. Originally, this rivalry was called the Red River Shootout, but it was rebranded for the 100th game in 2005. That game was sponsored by SBC Communications, and it was called the SBC Red River Rivalry.

The rebranding was brought about to not condone gun violence. The following year in 2006, SBC Communications merged with AT&T Corporation, which has since been the neutral-site affair’s presenting sponsor.

Then in 2014, the AT&T Red River Rivalry was rebranded as the AT&T Red River Showdown. This has been the game’s name ever since.

The Red River Showdown also applies to any time Oklahoma plays Texas in any sport.

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