By Jim Vertuno
The Associated Press

DALLAS - Chris Simms came to the Cotton Bowl on Saturday feeling like he could erase a legacy of big-game flops. Instead, he got another Oklahoma nightmare. And he might remember the taunts of "Chrissy, Chrissy" from Crimson-clad Sooners fans for years to come.

Simms and the vaunted Texas offense stumbled and misfired nearly all day as the No. 2 Sooners won their third straight over the third-ranked Longhorns 35-24.

There was plenty of blame to go around, though, as the defense and special teams also made costly mistakes.

A long kickoff return before halftime set up the Sooners' first touchdown and tightened things up, and the defense couldn't stop Quentin Griffin, who ran for a career-best 248 yards. The Longhorns should've known he was coming. He ran for a school-record six TDs against Texas two years ago.

"Oklahoma wore us down," UT coach Mack Brown said. "Three or four key plays changed the momentum."

Simms scored two touchdowns on short runs, but he also had three passes intercepted. The Longhorns failed to get anything going in the second half, letting the Sooners rally from a 17-11 third-quarter deficit with three fourth-quarter touchdowns.

"I woke up today thinking that this was our day," said Simms.

Texas fans thought so, too.

Coach Mack Brown said Simms was playing better than ever. Standout tailback Cedric Benson, who carried the ball only once last year, was now a starter. And the Longhorns were ranked No. 2 in total defense.

Simms looked good early, setting up Texas' first touchdown with a 44-yard sideline pass to Roy Williams. His 1-yard sneak made it 7-0.

And then it started to unravel. Simms started misfiring, throwing two first-half interceptions, one of which killed a promising drive in Oklahoma territory.

Benson, who came in averaging 124 yards a game despite a sore toe, struggled for 54 yards on 22 carries against a rugged Sooners defensive line.

"They've got great speed," Benson said. "I was trying to do anything I could."

Texas (5-1, 1-1 Big 12) could do nothing when it was most critical.

Leading 14-11 in the third, linebacker Derrick Johnson's interception gave Texas the ball at the Sooners 21. A touchdown would have put Texas firmly in command.

Instead, two Benson runs and an incompletion netted only two yards before Dusty Mangum's field goal made it 17-11.

Momentum had shifted. By the time the offense recovered, the Sooners (6-0, 2-0) were up 35-17.

Despite the failures by many players, Simms will likely bear the brunt of this one - again.

He finished 12-of-26 for 156 yards with four sacks, including one on the game's final play. He is 0-4 in his career against top-10 teams with 15 interceptions and no touchdown passes.

Saturday's loss may seal his fate in Longhorns history as a good quarterback who played his worst in Texas' biggest games.

Unlike the tears he shed after last season's loss in the Big 12 title game, Simms was more defiant this time.

"I don't give a damn about my legacy," Simms said. "The only thing I care about is my team and winning games. Nobody in this room wanted to win this game more than me."