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Texas AD Chris Del Conte says atmosphere at Texas-Oklahoma game is ‘nothing like’ the Iron Bowl, Cocktail Party
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Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte made a bold claim in an appearance on the Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday.
Del Conte was on set with Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione at the SEC’s annual spring meetings in Florida. Texas and Oklahoma won’t officially be members of the SEC until later this summer, but that didn’t stop Del Conte from comparing the Texas-Oklahoma rivalry to some of the SEC’s best.
“Have you been to the Red River Rivalry yet?” Del Conte asked Finebaum. “It’s ridiculous. It’s the greatest thing ever. You may talk about the Cocktail Party, the Iron Bowl, it’s nothing like this game. At the state fair. Because you have 300,000 people, 300,000 people outside.
“The Iron Bowl is awesome, don’t get me wrong. At night, it’s great. Same with the Cocktail Party. But this game is nuts, too.”
After Finebaum said Del Conte was “throwing shade” at the Iron Bowl, the Texas AD did attempt to walk back his comments slightly.
“When your callers come in losing their mind, I was not throwing shade,” Del Conte clarified. “What I was saying was that it’s an unbelievable environment. So you’re already throwing a little sauce on it for no reason.
“All I was saying was that it’s an awesome game.”
Here’s video of Del Conte’s comments:
The Red River Rivalry is an SEC game now, and Texas AD @_delconte is comin’ in hot! pic.twitter.com/Tn50PVIWpo
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) May 29, 2024
Texas and Oklahoma played a classic in the Red River Showdown last season. The Sooners won 34-30 on a last-minute drive led by quarterback Dillon Gabriel. It was Texas’ only defeat during the 2023 regular season.
The 2024 version of the Texas-Oklahoma rivalry will be played on Oct. 12 at the Cotton Bowl, which is located on the Texas State Fair Grounds. It will be the first edition of the Texas-OU rivalry game with both programs in the SEC.
FanDuel has already put out an early line for the game. Texas is currently an 8.5-point favorite and the total has been set at 60.5 points. Nine of the last 11 meetings in this series have been decided by single digits.
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Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
