None of the Alabama teams OU played were as good as the 2018 team that crushed OU and Alabama's 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017 champions were even better than the 2018 Bama team.
OU lost to Namath and Jordan in the 1963 Orange Bowl, beat a good Bama team (10-3) in 2002, a bad Bama team (4-9) in 2003 and upset a very good Bama team following the 2013 season in a game that was poorly played by Bama (2 picks, 3 fumbles and 7 sacks) for whatever reason(s) one may apply. Bottom line is Alabama is the gold standard these days with 5 championships over the past 11 years and the SEC has 11 championships in the past 17 years (since 2003).....as OU stays below a championship level due to yearly defensive issues.
But by all means, let's keep chirping over the 3-2-1 series lead.
I understand all that. I'm old enough to have watched every play of all six games. Was on the sidelines for the tie.
But I was just trying to make a point to those who claimed that OU wasn't close to Bama. I'd say that is likely temporary. There are ebbs and flows. Bama has been terrific since Saban arrived. But Bob beat him, when he had a much better team. And OU was missing key skill guys when they beat us two years ago. We'd lost OUr best running back early in the year. We lost OUr best receiver who was a 1st round pick and tried to play, which only hurt us.
Ohio St kicked OU pretty good in 2016 in Norman, and had "the best DL ever" in 2017 and were at home. OU beat them soundly, and outplayed them worse than the score showed. We dominated the first half, but were only tied starting the second half.
Both Ohio State and Alabama have more high draft picks than we have for the last decade. But we're 1-1 against both, beating better talent in both wins. OU is absolutely beatable. But when we have all OUr guys, we are capable of beating any team in the country. Still are.
That Alabama team that OU beat in 2013 by two touchdowns, was number one in the country all season, and whose only prior loss came on the 100 yard field goal return to Auburn, who ended up being national champions.
That OU team wasn't as good as Bama. We lost soundly to Texas. Got killed by Baylor, and with OUr third quarterback, pulled out a miracle win to OSU in Stillwater, to earn the Sugar Bowl. Alabama IS the gold standard, I agree. But we're still good enough to beat them, whenever we match up. Sometimes, even when we don't have all hands on deck, as was the case in that SB.
