Winning tradition, the feeling of claiming multiple national championships, and euphoric pride in a program all reside in Austin, Texas. Whereas, an attitude of failure, a constant feeling of disappointment, and an overall sense of calamity engulf the football program that calls Stillwater, Oklahoma, its home. The Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma State Cowboys have maintained a football rivalry over the years as members of the Big 12, Big 8, and Southwest Conference. Fans on opposite sides of the vaunted Red River that separates Texas and Oklahoma have conflicting opinions on who is the better football team, and both sides have legitimate arguments. That being said, Texas is definitely better than Oklahoma State historically in football.

It was Tuesday, September 6th, 2016, and Texas had just come off of their thrilling double-overtime victory over then #10 Notre Dame. I was in an enthralling discussion with my First Hour Oklahoma History teacher and baseball coach Mr. Brown over the game, and the overall implications it would have on the College Football Playoff picture, when suddenly a loud voice forced itself into the conversation from the back of room 402 in Piedmont High School in Piedmont, Oklahoma.

“Texas didn’t deserve that win. Texas doesn’t have the history that Oklahoma State has in football, and, quite frankly, it’s not even close.” The voice belonged to Brianna Lake. A rabid Oklahoma State Cowboys fan, she always had something negative to say about ANY other team, but especially the teams that Oklahoma State plays. Her statement angered me, and there was a definite edge in my voice when I responded.

“Brianna, that doesn’t make any sense. The facts CLEARLY show that Texas has more history.” Shouting erupted from the other side of the room, explaining why Oklahoma State was so much better. I remained silent, and nearly everyone in the class told her to stop yelling. Everyone who knows anything about football knew that what she was saying wasn’t true.

It’s not commonly known because of Texas’ recent struggles on the field,  but Texas is second on the FBS NCAA football all time wins list. This shows that Texas has won more games than a lot of other teams, including Oklahoma State who is 64th on the list and a whopping 315 wins behind Texas. In addition, according to Winsipedia, Texas has the seventh highest winning percentage all time. So, not only does Texas have more wins than Oklahoma State, they have fewer losses and ties. Texas has been to more bowl games and won more conference championships than Oklahoma State. Ultimately, the most telling sign of team success has to be national championships, and Texas leads Oklahoma State in that category as well. Texas players have had more success than Oklahoma State players,  with more All-Americans, Heisman winners, and NFL Draft picks. With all of Texas’ team and individual player success in mind, it’s evident that Texas’ history is richer than Oklahoma States’.

On the other hand, Brianna does have a few key statistics to show that Oklahoma State is better, especially in recent years. Over the last 7 years, Oklahoma State has more wins than Texas, and an overall winning percentage that is a few points higher than the Longhorns. The Cowboys have won a conference championship more recently than Texas. They have also been to more major bowl games in the last couple of years, winning the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl in 2012 and getting taken down in the 2015 Allstate Sugar Bowl. The one major statistical category that Oklahoma State leads Texas in is bowl winning percentage, which shows that although Texas has been to more bowls, Oklahoma State has had more success in the few bowls that they have been to. As you can see, Oklahoma State is better than Texas recently.

Through my verbal altercation with Brianna, I have learned a few things. First of all, I learned that you have to look at all of a team’s history, rather that is from 150 years ago or 5, to fully understand and make a judgement on who is better. I learned that if you respond to someone with vehemence in your voice than they will probably not take it very well. I now understand Brianna better, and the degree to which she loves her Cowboys. If I was able to have empathy for her and not have been so sharp in my response to her first statement, then she probably wouldn’t have gotten so mad. Likewise, if more people used empathy in our school and community, then there would be less fights, hurt feelings, and violence. Empathy is necessary for us individually, as a community, as a country, and as humans.