By John Shinn

Transcript Sports Writer

Football is the ultimate team sport. Name another sport where as many as 40 players will get on a field or court for either team in a tight game.

But for all the positions on a football team, none measure up to a quarterback in terms of importance.

That will be obvious at 2:30 p.m. Saturday when No. 10 Oklahoma (4-1, 0-1 Big 12) faces No. 19 Texas (4-1, 0-1) at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.

The last nine games in the century-old rivalry illustrate the importance of the position. Those games represent the modern era for quarterbacks for either side. The ability to throw the ball overtook the ability to run the option for both teams.

The Sooners are 5-4 over the last nine years and a major reason for each victory and defeat was the play of its quarterback.

The differences are staggering. Over the last nine meetings between OU and Texas, the average statistics of the winner’s quarterback are: 15-for-27 for 209 yards with 1.6 touchdown passes and .7 interceptions.

The loser’s were: 16-for-26 for 177 yards with .5 touchdown passes and 2.2 interceptions.

The yards are about the same, but whichever quarterback avoids the interceptions is the one celebrating on the trip back up the ramp.

The Red River Rivalry brings with it an atmosphere that solicits incredible amounts of emotion. Fans pound on the bus as it winds through the state fairgrounds. The stadium is split in half between OU crimson and Texas burnt orange.

Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy certainly didn’t have out-of-this-world numbers in his OU-Texas debut last season. He only threw for 108 yards, but he also threw two touchdown passes and wasn’t picked off.

He played like a seasoned veteran.

“I think the most important thing is handling the emotion of a big game, a big rivalry like that,” McCoy said. “I can remember how tough it was just to go in there and play.”

Over the last nine years, some quarterbacks have handled it better than others.