Sure, there are other games in the Big 12 this weekend.

Every conference team plays and their games will count just as much in the standings. Those other five games today just won’t get as much attention as the Red River Shootout, especially with No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 5 Texas undefeated.

The league’s other coaches know that and understand it.

“Whenever those two teams play, everybody else takes a back seat,” Colorado coach Gary Barnett said Monday. “If you want that kind of attention, you build your program to that kind of level. Those two teams deserve that kind of attention. That game deserves that kind of attention. The rest of us just need to get to that level.”

Oklahoma and Texas both got through three non-conference games, then the Big 12 openers Saturday, without a loss. This is the third time in four years both teams are undefeated and ranked in the top five when they meet.

There are plenty of implications for the winner: regional bragging rights, front-running status in the Big 12 South and likely the overall conference title. Not to mention the Bowl Championship Series and possible national title.

“There are a lot of good matchups week in and week out. This is one of the marquee matchups, two teams playing at a high level,” Kansas coach Mark Mangino said. “Any rivalry game, when both teams are playing at a high level and with unblemished records, tends to grab the national eye.”

Oklahoma has won four straight in the game at the Cotton Bowl, where the stands are equally split between Sooners and Longhorns fans. The Sooners won 65-13 last year.

“It’s an incredibly exciting atmosphere, and you look forward to the competition of it,” Sooners coach Bob Stoops said.

Oklahoma QB Jason White, above, and Texas QB Vince Young, at right in photo below, will meet in the Red River Shootout today.

Despite the recent dominance, Stoops doesn’t believe the Sooners have a “number” on Texas, which actually leads the series 55-38-5.

“Past success doesn’t guarantee future success,” he said. “You have to go out and earn it every time”

Stoops and Texas coach Mack Brown agree that when you’re competing for conference and national championships, every game is big and a must-win.

“We know how good the Oklahoma program has continued to thrive under Bob Stoops. This Oklahoma team is just as good as the ones of the past three or four years,” Brown said.