Red River ravaged: Depleted Oklahoma to be even more shorthanded vs. arch rival Texas

It is going to be David vs. Goliath at Red River this year. While Oklahoma will play the role of David to Texas' Goliath, does Brent Venables' team even have a slingshot? With Deion Burks being ruled out, OU will be down its top five receivers for this neutral-site rivalry game in Dallas at the State Fair of Texas. Seth Littrell will have to make chicken salad out of chicken mess starting a true freshman QB.

Although the Sooners offense has looked far better with Michael Hawkins Jr. running it over Jackson Arnold, Texas has been the best and most consistent team in college football this year because of its defense. It may be all about the combination of Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning running Steve Sarkisian's offense, but Pete Kwiatkowski's defense has been the separating factor for them all year.

Yes, Hawkins can move quite a bit as a dual-threat playmaker, but who is he going to throw the ball to? I think Texas' secondary could get exposed, but will any receivers be open. The only way Oklahoma wins is if Texas turns the ball over a ton, Venables' defense shows up big time and Littrell puts Hawkins in advantageous situations to succeed from a play-calling perspective. It may be a laugher.

But if I know anything about this rivalry, it is that anything and everything can happen in Red River.

Oklahoma will be down its top five receivers vs. rival Texas in Red River

While both teams are still alive to make the College Football Playoff, they are different ends of the spectrum. When it comes to Texas, the Longhorns are the only undefeated team left in the SEC this year. After Red River, the Longhorns have to host juggernaut Georgia at DKR with Texas A&M coming up later in the season. Texas should still make the College Football Playoff with a 10-2 (6-2) record.

As for Oklahoma, the Sooners have an absolutely brutal schedule. I would argue that is even harder than Georgia's. It has to be as daunting as what two-loss Florida has to navigate. Even if OU were to lose Red River, the Sooners will not be eliminated from playoff contention. They will have multiple opportunities to pick up signature wins the rest of the way. The problem is OU may not be any good.

Truth be told, I don't know how much we are going to learn from this game from an Oklahoma perspective in a loss, similarly to that in a Texas win. However, should the results flip and OU comes out on top, then we will have some serious things to discuss. It would be the best win of the season for any team if Oklahoma proved victorious. With a loss, we have to wonder how far will Texas slide?

For so many reasons, it would be one of the biggest upsets of the season if Oklahoma were to win.