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We continue our Countdown to Kickoff today with another special moment in a classic Bedlam matchup. Football fireworks lit up the sky in Stillwater on the night of November 27, 2010, and an unsung tight end wearing number 82 came through in the clutch to help seal the deal in Stilly. On this day in one of the most memorable Bedlam games of all-time, James Hanna delivered the Oklahoma Sooners a breathtaking win in a wire-to-wire thriller against the Cowboys.
The game was close throughout, but the fourth quarter was absolutely bonkers. Four touchdowns were scored in the last 90 seconds between the two rivals who seemingly never grew tired from going back-and-forth all night long. In a game that would decide which team advanced to the last-ever Big 12 Championship Game (when the conference still observed basic mathematics), few if any touchdowns were bigger that entire season than Hanna’s 11th-hour jaunt to the end zone in Stillwater.
With OU hanging on to a razor-thin lead at 33-31 with 3:17 left in the game, another unheralded hero — senior wide receiver Cameron Kenney — took a deep touchdown pass of his own to the house, and after the extra point OU, up 40-31, could breathe a little easier, right?
Of course not. The resurgent Cowboys answered right back within seconds with a touchdown of their own and again cut the Sooners’ nine-point advantage back to within a layup.
Then came one of the most iconic moments in Bedlam history.
Up 40-38 with 2:44 to go, then-sophomore quarterback Landry Jones connected beautifully on a play-action deep lob to his tight end Hanna, who took care of the rest with ease. Most of us had no idea James Hanna had that extra gear until that evening. So, thanks for bringing that out, too, Pokes.
On that glorious Saturday evening in the year 2010 — the last season the Nebraska Cornhuskers (whom the Sooners defeated the week after in another fitting classic) — were conference peers with their old friends from Norman, Bedlam delivered in a storybook Oklahoma road victory: Sooners 47, Cowboys 41.
Oh, and the best part about this particular Bedlam? It fell on my birthday. Cheers, James Hanna, and Boomer Sooner!
You can check out full highlights of the epic game here. Or you can choose to experience a slightly different, rather awesome recap below from North Korea, thanks to the brilliant minds over at The Solid Verbal.