'Christmas In October': Texas Superfan Attends 40th-Consecutive Game Against Oklahoma

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Many college football fans mark this day on their calendars: Texas Longhorns vs. Oklahoma Sooners. The dubbed "Red River Showdown" has become a tradition nationwide and, in particular, for one fan who said he has attended this game each year for the last 40 years.

University of Texas at Austin graduate Kirk Williams showed off his pride Saturday at the Cotton Bowl in his 40th-consecutive game that pits the Longhorns against the Sooners.

Tens of thousands of fans filled the seats for the 113th edition of the Red River Showdown. For Williams, the bands and the crowd, the scene is all too familiar -- in a good way.

"It's like Christmas comes in October," said Williams. "But it also happens to be my 40th-consecutive Texas-OU game."

It's a day his wife refused to let slip by, organizing a celebration of sorts that included pins of Williams as a UT Austin Silver Spur. His consecutive-games streak dates back to his freshman year at the university.

"These are my family, my buddies, my wife, my kids," said Williams. "Because really, you win the game before the game is kicked off."

In the crowd celebrating with Williams was former Texas linebacker Kyle Richardson. He played in the rivalry game in the mid-90s and explained what it's like to come out of the tunnel and onto the Cotton Bowl field.

"It's an unbelievable experience. It's intense," said Richardson. "When you come out of the OU side, all the OU fans, as a Texas player, are booing, yelling, throwing things at you. And then once you cross the 50-yard line, all you here is Texas fans."

Williams said his favorite memory from his 40 years of attending the rivalry game came in 1994 -- Richardson's freshman year -- when Texas stopped Oklahoma on the 1-yard line for the win.