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OU vs. Nebraska football: Did the 'Big Bang Theory' start Cornhuskers' demise?

ryan aber, oklahoman
·4 min read
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LINCOLN, Neb. — OU renews one of its oldest rivalries Saturday with a trip to Memorial Stadium to face Nebraska (11 a.m., Fox).

The game won’t have the same prominence Sooners-Cornhuskers used to have when it was played on Thanksgiving week with a Big Eight title often on the line, but there are still plenty of storylines surrounding this one.

Here’s the week’s edition of Four Downs, taking a closer look inside the game:

More:Why OU football's win at Nebraska in 1972 was 'like a volcano exploding' for Sooners

First down: Sooner in the crosshairs

Offensive tackle Wanya Morris: The Sooners’ offensive line has been uneven through the first two games. Nebraska has had plenty of defensive issues, but Saturday is still a significant step up in competition for OU. Morris has missed the first two games but is expected to return against the Cornhuskers. The Tennessee transfer drew rave reviews in preseason camp after a disappointing first season in crimson and cream in 2021. If Morris can be the player he was expected to be, that would go a long way toward solidifying things up front for the Sooners.

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Second down: Number to know from 'Big Bang Theory'

96: Number of combined conference championships between the two. The Sooners are first all-time in the Football Bowl Subdivision with 50 conference titles, while Nebraska is second with 46. The Sooners or Cornhuskers won or shared Big Seven/Big Eight titles in 44 of the conference’s 48 years (1948-95) and combined for nine Big 12 championships (the Sooners won seven of those) from 1996 until Nebraska left the league in 2011.

Nebraska hasn’t won a conference title since winning the Big 12 in 2009.

One internet conspiracy theory, espouses the thought of a “Big Bang Theory” curse on the Cornhuskers.

The show aired an episode in Nov. 2, 2009, called “The Cornhusker Vortex” centered around Nebraska football. The Cornhuskers have had six losing seasons since then, after having just two in the 45 seasons before the episode aired.

OU football vs. Nebraska: Which version of the Cornhuskers will the Sooners see?

Third down: Three questions with Kaden Helms

Freshman tight end Kaden Helms is the only Nebraskan on the Sooners’ roster. He starred at Bellevue West.

What’s it going to be like playing in Lincoln? It’s definitely going to be a surreal moment. Growing up, my whole family were big Nebraska fans. I went to some of the games as well. It’s definitely going to be a fun moment to be on the opposite side of that. It’ll be good.

How many family and friends will you have there? We get four tickets per game, but our teammates can give away tickets. Right now, I think I’m at 24 tickets right now. A lot of the guys from Florida and Cali, they don’t have family come to these midwestern games a lot. They’ve been a big help in getting me tickets. It’s been a good process so far.

You’re one of two freshmen tight ends on the roster, with Jason Llewellyn. What’s that relationship been like? Me and Jason are really good friends. I think he committed before me and he kind of texted me here and there to see where my head was. We started talking more and more after that and I slowly committed after that. We’ve had a relationship built since before I was committed. I wouldn’t say it’s a competition, it’s kind of who fits best in what system we’re trying to run through the week. Because we obviously have different playing styles.

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Fourth down: Wild prediction

Sooners score a special teams touchdown: Under Jay Nunez, the Sooners have become more aggressive in returning kicks. Marvin Mims has three punt returns so far, averaging nearly 20 yards per return. It’s only a matter of time before Mims breaks one, or Billy Bowman breaks off a long kick return. Here’s saying it happens Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

Carlson:Why Brent Venables says Marvin Mims is epitome of an OU football player

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Nebraska football: Did 'Big Bang Theory' start Cornhuskers' downfall?