DALLAS -- For a ten-year period, the Red River Rivalry was the place to be for top prospects in the state of Texas. Not anymore.

With Mack Brown and Bob Stoops on opposite sidelines, Big 12 and national titles on the line, the Cotton Bowl was the place to be for recruits like Adrian Peterson, Justin Blalock, Jackson Jeffcoat, Rhett Bomar, Frank Okam, Roy Miller, Sergio Kindle and many others.

Since that time, Oklahoma has held up its end, having been ranked for the annual meeting every year since 2009. Texas, however, hasn’t been ranked going into the game for the last three years.

Jeffrey Okudah of South Grand Prairie (Texas) High, the No. 10-ranked junior in the country, sees it as a team and Big 12 issue.

“… Them being in the Big 12, they aren’t really seen as the powerhouse schools anymore,” said Okudah. “Baylor and TCU are on the way up too though. To maintain one of the big rivalries, and have the nation’s attention, you have to have teams ranked No. 1 or No. 2 or in the top 10. Without that factor, it kind of loses its appeal of watching the game. I grew up watching the game. I know a lot of people used to want to go to that game and the seats were sold out. I saw last week on twitter in a photo of DKR and it was pretty empty before kickoff against Oklahoma State, and I know that’s not really normal with the prestige Texas has. I think it’s just wins and losses. That brings the appeal of the game because everything is on the line, and it’s pretty much an in-state game.”

A successful veteran head coach in the Dallas area agrees with Okudah, but takes it a step further.

“When you look at TCU, Baylor, Ole Miss and Texas A&M, and what they are doing on the field and with the facilities, that has become the buzz of college football, at least in this area,” the coach said. “The people around Oklahoma and Texas are taking away from by their success.”

Another Dallas area coach puts the blame squarely on Texas.

“I think more than anything is the disappointment at the University of Texas, in the state of Texas,” the coach said. “They have been absent, haven’t been a big part of the recruiting and have been following other peoples recruiting of the so-called five-stars. The one thing I have appreciated about Gary Patterson is he goes and does his own evaluations and puts people in the best position to make plays. Players that other colleges may not want on the defensive line or at linebacker, Gary Patterson knows where they belong.”

The successful coach says visibility is needed for Texas head coach Charlie Strong if he is to win over the Texas high school coaches, and the Longhorns return to recruiting at a higher level in-state is paramount to a return to relevancy.

“I think I saw Charlie Strong the first year when he first got hired for a five minute period of time. I have seen Jim Harbaugh in our weight room, drinking coffee and in the weight room watching. I respect that about head coaches. The guys that don’t mind getting around us, and seeing what kids act like on and off the field. The kids you recruit, they have to be a reflection of the head coach and the program being built. I think that’s been kind of lost on the identity at the University of Texas. … I was really proud to go to the state fair and to go visit the Texas staff in Austin, but I really feel like the recruiting in the state of Texas has turned me a little sour. To me, you have got to get out and get amongst the people, and show people you are interested.”

The other factor is Texas A&M’s move to the SEC is still resonating. While Texas and OU struggle and struggle to reassert the place at the top of college football, the Aggies are thriving.

“Texas A&M is having success, but what they did going to the SEC was open up the borders of Texas -- wide open,” a Dallas high school coach said. “Alabama, LSU, Florida have always come to Texas to try and get kids, but when you can say you will be playing in Texas every other year and you will get to see your son here twice, the away games will be on TV because of ESPN and CBS, those doors have opened wide.”

To illustrate, none of the top-20 prospects in Texas are committed to Texas or Oklahoma. Of the nine committed, five are verbals to SEC programs.

This weekend when Oklahoma and Texas take the field, some of the most talented football playing eyes in the state will be focused on games in Tallahassee and Tuscaloosa.