Lincoln Riley Says Bedlam ‘Lived up to the Rivalry’

NORMAN — A total of 1,342 yards of offense, 95 points and optional defense sums up best what Bedlam 2018 brought to the table. It was not just everything we’ve come to expect when the two teams meet, Saturday it was a bit more.

“That’s why they call it Bedlam,” said Lincoln Riley. “It lived up to the name, lived up to the rivalry, Tremendous game.”

Tremendous, indeed. There were 13 total touchdowns between the two clubs, a near last-minute lead change, a failed 2-point conversion and drama all the way down to the final seconds.

Oklahoma won 48-47 by the hair on its chinny-chin-chin, stopping OSU with 1:03 left to play in regulation on a 2-point conversion attempt for the lead that turned out to be the deciding play of the game. Which is wild, because the only play bigger than it was the play before it.

“The fourth down play, we decided to play some loose zone there,” said Riley. “The thought was, we felt like we could get some pressure with our rush.”

OSU did it all without the veteran presence of All-American tailback Justice Hill, who left the game early after suffering a rib injury. Still, OSU went blow-for-blow with the best team in the conference.

“Give credit to them,” said Riley. “We got some good pressure on [Taylor Cornelius], but I thought he was outstanding. I thought he threw the ball as well as I’ve seen him throw it on tape. I thought they played really well.”