Pressure to Win.  It's homecoming in Cowtown, so my office building had a tailgater lunch yesterday and invited everyone to wear their OSU crap.  I, of course, wore OU garb.  I was talking with some non-OSU coworkers about why OSU people are never happy: wins aren't big enough and losses are the end of the world.  OSUers have been deeply depressed all week about the loss to the Cheesers, even though winning out would likely keep them in the hunt for the Big Televen title and maybe the national championship.  Losing...no matter how good the effort, is not acceptable to Cowtowners.

I'm glad I went to OU, where the first loss of the season means it's probably September and is acceptable if the effort is there.

You wouldn't think a loss was acceptable if you read this board. I guess you didn't read it after the Toledo game. You would have thought the world was coming to an end.  

I did read this board after the Toledo game, and I was one of those who questioned if OU would win more than three games this year.  The loss was not acceptable because it lacked effort; the play-calling by the coaching staff was bland and predictable, and the execution by the players was so-so.  Based on the way the team (coaches and players) performed that night, it really did look bleak.  But things have gotten better, mainly because the coaching staff is calling plays that take advantage of the players' strengths.  In fact, there was general acceptance of the Marshall loss because of the play-calling and the execution by the players.  Solich's decision to go for two was questionable but not insane.  If Tressel had made the same decision with the same result, the OSU faithful would still be bitching about it. 

Pataskala,

This tradition pre-dates RichRod. And I'm not even a Wolverine fan. I haven't done it yet, but I've thought about purchasing a t-shirt for every an o$u opponent and wear it the day before they meet an o$u.