The 29-year-old finds himself drawn back into his fiery collegiate football days at Oklahoma.
Key Takeaways
- During Texas’s 34-3 victory over Oklahoma, Texas players Anthony Hill Jr. and Barryn Sorrell planted a Texas flag through a Baker Mayfield Oklahoma jersey at midfield.
- The gesture was fueled by memories of his electrifying and trash-talking years at Oklahoma, serving as symbolic payback for past rivalry wounds.
Baker Mayfield, the fiery former Oklahoma Sooners quarterback, remains in the crosshairs of the Red River Rivalry even years after leaving college.
During the recent Texas vs. Oklahoma game, which saw the Texas Longhorns dominate with a 34-3 victory, a notable moment of rivalry-fueled drama unfolded.
Two Texas players—linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. and edge rusher Barryn Sorrell—decided to send a message.
They took a Baker Mayfield Oklahoma jersey, laid it at midfield, and planted a Texas flag through it, clearly referencing Mayfield’s infamous 2017 flag-planting after beating Ohio State during his college career.
Texas players plant a flag on Baker Mayfield’s jersey (?) at midfield post game pic.twitter.com/nwiJfrn99q
— College Football Report (@CFBRep) October 12, 2024
Mayfield, currently quarterbacking for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was asked about the incident after leading his team to a big win over the Saints in Week 6 of the NFL season.
True to his unapologetically brash persona, Mayfield responded,
I’ve been rent-free in their heads for almost a decade now.
www.on3.com
It was a classic Mayfield retort, a direct acknowledgment of his status as a key figure in the longstanding rivalry between Texas and Oklahoma.
Baker Mayfield on Texas players planting a Texas flag on his jersey at midfield yesterday:
— College Football Report (@CFBRep) October 13, 2024
“Just a kid from Austin, Texas that went to Oklahoma, won his last two Red River games and being rent free in their heads for almost a decade.”
pic.twitter.com/ma6Io14K34
The actions of the Texas players were fueled by memories of Mayfield’s years as a Sooner, where he was both an electrifying player and a relentless trash-talker.
Despite his NFL journey taking him far from the college gridiron, Mayfield’s antics during his time at Oklahoma clearly still resonate.
For Texas, this flag-planting moment seemed to be a form of symbolic payback—a reminder of past rivalry wounds they hadn’t forgotten.
Baker Mayfield is baking right now, so far today:
— Christopher Mathis 🎙 (@thechrismathis) December 24, 2023
– 10/12 for 97 yards and 1 TD pass
-2 rush attempts 8 yards#GoBucs
pic.twitter.com/hIv1exENev
The Red River Rivalry remains one of college football’s most intense and storied matchups, and Mayfield’s name has become a permanent part of its folklore.
Whether it’s Mayfield waving the Oklahoma flag years ago or Texas players trying to one-up him in 2024, the spirit of competition between the Sooners and the Longhorns lives on—often symbolized in dramatic fashion, with Mayfield still very much at the center of it all.
In Case You Didn’t Know
- Baker Mayfield started his collegiate career as a walk-on at Texas Tech in 2013.
- He then transferred to Oklahoma in 2014, where he played until 2017.
- He was selected first overall by the Cleveland Browns in the 2018 NFL Draft.
