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The Herald Scotland
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Oklaoma, John Mateer gambling story latest SEC rivalry saga
Or two: somewhere in these amber waves of grain and purple mountains of majesty, is a Texas fan who spent time investigating the rival team's quarterback, found his Venmo account, saw the alleged "inside jokes" and dumped them in the social media world of shoot first, aim second. And away we go. "My previous Venmo descriptions did not accurately portray the transactions in question," Mateer wrote on X. "But were instead inside jokes between me and my friends." Which, of course, means absolutely nothing in the social media sewer of guilty until we say you aren't. We don't know if Mateer gambled on college games, and was twice dumb enough to pay off bets via Venmo with memo lines that read - I swear I'm not making this up - "sports gambling." We don't know, and frankly the NCAA will never know unless the benefactor of those two Venmo payments ("Richard Roaten") drops dime. Or maybe - and I'm just spitballing here - Mateer and his friends played a stupid joke as freshmen, and word eventually got out. Because if there is no there there, the exposure of it all is the story here. The Iron Bowl. The Egg Bowl. The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. Welcome aboard, Red River Rivalry. You've finally earned your SEC stripes. It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a wonderful day in the neighborhood, won't you be my ... rival. To be fair to the SEC, this fun OU/Texas sideshow less than two weeks from the start of the season doesn't hold a candle to Harvey Updyke and "I got too much Bama in me." Or Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer refusing to attend SEC media days for fear of being served legal papers from a hoity-toity attorney who just happened to be a huge Alabama fan. The visual of media hovering around a speaker phone to hear Fulmer say he can't discuss legal proceedings gave new meaning to media days carnival. Or a fired Tennessee assistant coach faxing ball plays to Florida coach Ron Zook days before the annual rivalry game. Or Hugh Freeze's - ahem - exposed log of calls to "massage therapists." All of those wild and true stories originated and were exposed, in one form or another, from the rival school. Or in Updyke's case, from sheer stupidity. Which brings us all the way back to Mateer. You'd have to be pretty dumb to not only gamble on games, but pay off bets using one of the world's largest payment apps. With, you know, a memo explaining exactly what you did. Because when you're balancing your checkbook (Google it, kids), you need to know where that cash went. "I have never bet on sports," Mateer wrote on X. "I understand the seriousness of the matter but recognize that, taken out of context, those Venmo descriptions suggest otherwise. I can assure my teammates, coaches and officials at the NCAA that I have not engaged in any sports gambling." There, that should do it. Especially considering the NCAA's ever-evolving stance on gambling, once the ultimate sin of amateur sports. That's sarcasm, everyone. Because now you can gamble on your phone inside stadiums during games. Heck, LSU and Caesar's Sportsbook signed a multiyear sponsorship agreement in 2021 for - again, I swear I'm not making this up - naming rights to the Caesar's Sportsbook Skyline Club at Tiger Stadium, and signage displayed throughout the stadium. The SEC just last year began distributing weekly injury reports for games because, you know, fans need the info. So yeah, if Mateer did gamble on games (allegedly), you better believe they're going to throw the book at him, baby. But have no fear, Netflix will turn it into a three-part series glorifying the unfairness of it all, so Mateer will at least recoup some of the lost wages. And somewhere above the fruited plain, from sea to shining sea, a Texas fan will get a 10-gallon belly laugh. Then take the Longhorns and lay the points in the Red River Rivalry. Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X at @MattHayesCFB.
USA Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Oklahoma gambling allegations? You have to go a long way to shake SEC rivalry tree, bub
There are two ways to look at this sexy and potentially salacious gambling story mere days from the start of the college football season. One, Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer gambled on sports, despite his public denial. Or two: somewhere in these amber waves of grain and purple mountains of majesty, is a Texas fan who spent time investigating the rival team's quarterback, found his Venmo account, saw the alleged 'inside jokes' and dumped them in the social media world of shoot first, aim second. And away we go. 'My previous Venmo descriptions did not accurately portray the transactions in question,' Mateer wrote on X. 'But were instead inside jokes between me and my friends.' Which, of course, means absolutely nothing in the social media sewer of guilty until we say you aren't. We don't know if Mateer gambled on college games, and was twice dumb enough to pay off bets via Venmo with memo lines that read – I swear I'm not making this up – 'sports gambling.' We don't know, and frankly the NCAA will never know unless the benefactor of those two Venmo payments ('Richard Roaten') drops dime. Or maybe – and I'm just spitballing here – Mateer and his friends played a stupid joke as freshmen, and word eventually got out. Because if there is no there there, the exposure of it all is the story here. The Iron Bowl. The Egg Bowl. The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. Welcome aboard, Red River Rivalry. You've finally earned your SEC stripes. It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a wonderful day in the neighborhood, won't you be my … rival. To be fair to the SEC, this fun OU/Texas sideshow less than two weeks from the start of the season doesn't hold a candle to Harvey Updyke and 'I got too much Bama in me.' Or Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer refusing to attend SEC media days for fear of being served legal papers from a hoity-toity attorney who just happened to be a huge Alabama fan. The visual of media hovering around a speaker phone to hear Fulmer say he can't discuss legal proceedings gave new meaning to media days carnival. Or a fired Tennessee assistant coach faxing ball plays to Florida coach Ron Zook days before the annual rivalry game. Or Hugh Freeze's – ahem – exposed log of calls to "massage therapists." All of those wild and true stories originated and were exposed, in one form or another, from the rival school. Or in Updyke's case, from sheer stupidity. Which brings us all the way back to Mateer. You'd have to be pretty dumb to not only gamble on games, but pay off bets using one of the world's largest payment apps. With, you know, a memo explaining exactly what you did. Because when you're balancing your checkbook (Google it, kids), you need to know where that cash went. 'I have never bet on sports,' Mateer wrote on X. 'I understand the seriousness of the matter but recognize that, taken out of context, those Venmo descriptions suggest otherwise. I can assure my teammates, coaches and officials at the NCAA that I have not engaged in any sports gambling.' There, that should do it. Especially considering the NCAA's ever-evolving stance on gambling, once the ultimate sin of amateur sports. That's sarcasm, everyone. Because now you can gamble on your phone inside stadiums during games. Heck, LSU and Caesar's Sportsbook signed a multiyear sponsorship agreement in 2021 for – again, I swear I'm not making this up – naming rights to the Caesar's Sportsbook Skyline Club at Tiger Stadium, and signage displayed throughout the stadium. The SEC just last year began distributing weekly injury reports for games because, you know, fans need the info. So yeah, if Mateer did gamble on games (allegedly), you better believe they're going to throw the book at him, baby. But have no fear, Netflix will turn it into a three-part series glorifying the unfairness of it all, so Mateer will at least recoup some of the lost wages. And somewhere above the fruited plain, from sea to shining sea, a Texas fan will get a 10-gallon belly laugh. Then take the Longhorns and lay the points in the Red River Rivalry. Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X at @MattHayesCFB.
USA Today
14-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
No love lost: Top five SEC football rivalries that fuel the South's football obsession
No love lost: Top five SEC football rivalries that fuel the South's football obsession Every game during the year is important for Southeastern Conference teams hoping to make the postseason. However, certain dates on the schedule just mean more. SEC rivalries run deep as the Red River that separates Texas and Oklahoma, with each team looking to mark another victory on the calendar. Most importantly, programs are looking to achieve bragging rights for the next year. Rivals in the SEC are not to be played with, as friendships, relationships, and marriages are put on the line depending upon the results of the contest. All jokes aside, there is nothing like a Saturday on rivalry weekend in the South. From fans waiting to break out the cigars in the Alabama-Tennessee "Third Saturday In October" to a golden cowboy hat awaiting the winner in the Red River Rivalry between the Sooners and Longhorns, traditions in SEC rivalries are rich and unique. The real question remains: What are the top five contests filled with the ultimate amount of bad blood, bragging rights, and tears in the league? 1. Iron Bowl - Alabama vs. Auburn Although these two conference powerhouses do not crack the top 10 of most-played rivalries in the SEC, there is no denying the true spite between Auburn and Alabama. Both teams met for the first time on the gridiron in 1892, where the Tigers defeated the Crimson Tide 32-22. After the eras of legendary head coaches Paul "Bear" Bryant and Nick Saban, Bama holds a 51-37 overall record over Auburn. Beyond the wins and losses is a hatred that runs so deep that a man poisoned 130-year-old oak trees at Toomer's Corner in 2010 because the Tigers celebrated a win. Not to mention, Crimson Tide fans treat every loss to their in-state rival like a state of emergency. That is exactly why there is no rivalry in the country like the Iron Bowl. 2. Red River Rivalry - Oklahoma vs. Texas If you were to look up the definition of hate in a dictionary, chances are the Longhorns and Sooners would be at the top. Called the Red River Rivalry for the border that separates the schools, the battle for the gold-plated cowboy hat signifies state superiority. Beginning in 1900, the matchup between the programs is hyped every single year, and for good reason. The Longhorns hold a 64-51-5 overall advantage over the Sooners, but Oklahoma has battled back in the series to win seven contests in the last decade. It's called a border war for a reason, as every single matchup sees a split stadium ready to burst at the seams for any advantage one team has over the other. The "Horns Down" motions do not help matters, which is just another sample of the absolute loathing these two schools have for one another. 3. The Egg Bowl - Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State Well, if in-state hatred is what you strive to see on the last Saturday of the regular season in the SEC, look no further than the state of Mississippi where you will find the third-oldest rivalry in the league. The battle for the Golden Egg Trophy between Ole Miss and Mississippi State has been filled with historic moments and displays of distain for the opposing colors. The Rebels boasts a 66-46-6 record over the Bulldogs, but you can throw all records out the window when it comes to the battle for that shiny egg. Between fights on the field, fans battling in the stands and legendary moments like the missed extra-point after wideout Elijah Moore's infamous leg-lift celebration in the endzone that cost Ole Miss the 2019 matchup, the Egg Bowl is a November tradition unlike most. 4. World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party - Georgia vs. Florida What would a SEC rivalry list be without the greatest cocktail party on the planet? Well, Georgia-Florida games are just that. The war between the Bulldogs and Gators has been honed "The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party" for a reason, as fans fill the parking lot outside of TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida, to indulge in some beverages before entering the stadium to display what they think of their rivals. This rivalry is not for the faint of heart. While Georgia holds a 56-44-2 record over its rival, the Gators dominated the majority of the early 1990s and mid-2000s. The blood that runs through the veins of those that fill the stands and the players, coaching staff and members of the program, are the only common ground Florida and Georgia will find. That might even be a stretch. 5. Lone Star Showdown - Texas vs. Texas A&M Many college football fans considered themselves blessed that the Lone Star Showdown returned last season. The battle for in-state supremacy between Texas and Texas A&M dates back to 1915, and up until 2011, the two faced each other every year. Since the establishment of this rivalry, the Longhorns boast a 77-37-5 overall record over the Aggies, while also claiming seven victories in the last 10 matchups. Like others on this list, this hatred runs deep in every sport and on a daily basis for fans. It is not just a game to residents in the state, it is a lifestyle. With Texas completing the program's first season in the SEC in 2024, there are sure to be more insanely competitive and hostile contests between the two for the foreseeable future. Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Dylan on X: @dylanmflippo.
