Nothing, really, had changed the way Switzer saw it. Sizing up the mere 13-year gap between Oklahoma victories at KSU Stadium, Switzer shook the hand of an adoring Kansas State fan, signed his hat and uttered the words that the Sooner Nation has longed to hear.

"Ya'll had a good run," Switzer said.

Oklahoma's Barry Holleyman wraps up Mike Ronsick during a point after attempt in the first quarter.(AP)

Never mind that Bill Snyder had made Kansas State the greatest turnaround story in the history of college football over the past 12 seasons. Never mind that in that same time frame Oklahoma had suffered Switzer-induced NCAA probation and tried four coaches since Barry used to treat the Wildcats as a punching bag.

None of that counted. When No. 8 Oklahoma beat No. 2 Kansas State 41-31 Saturday it was no mere surprise. It was the return of Sooner Magic, the phrase coined by Switzer during their reign of national terror in the 1970s and 1980s.

"This is no upset," Switzer said after watching the Sooners, a nine-point underdog, snap Kansas State's 25-game home winning streak. "Oklahoma was the best football team."

Sounds familiar, it just has been a long time coming. The Sooners (6-0, 3-0 in the Big 12) aren't just a quaint revival in line for a Big 12 South title as they were last season. They are national championship contenders. In consecutive weeks they have hung a combined 104 points on Texas and Kansas State (6-1, 2-1). Two teams in front of Oklahoma lost Saturday, Kansas State and Ohio State. It should be ranked in the top five in both polls Sunday.

The season couldn't be playing out any better for the Sooners. The start is Oklahoma's best since 1987 when it last won (under Switzer) a conference title. No. 1 Nebraska comes to Norman in two weeks.

"National championship," Oklahoma tight end Trent Smith said, "that has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

If you really want to get retro consider an Orange Bowl of rebuilt, retooled programs from the 1980s that have rehabbed themselves this season -- Miami vs. Oklahoma. Miami-born and raised Joe Castiglione, the Oklahoma athletic director, might already be dreaming it. Long ago, Castiglione made a promise to friend Bob Epling, the current Orange Bowl chairman.

"I said, 'Bob, I don't know when, but one of these days I'm going to bring a team to the Orange Bowl,'" Castiglione said.

At halftime, Epling and Orange Bowl president Sherrill Hudson had swarmed the Oklahoma assistant coaches' box and Castiglione practically congratulating them on the victory. By leading 31-14, Oklahoma had scored more points in the opening half than any opponent had in a game at KSU Stadium since 1990.

"Bob came up and said, 'I remember you saying that about the Orange Bowl,'" Castiglione said. "That's when he hugged me."

Kansas State rallied in the second half but as a sign of the new Oklahoma, the Sooners held firm. Quarterback Josh Heupel continually survived Kansas State's relentless blitz to throw for 374 yards and two touchdowns. At the same time he no doubt rocketed up the Heisman charts having thrown for a combined 649 yards and three touchdowns in the last two weeks.

"Josh Heupel is as good a football player as there is in the country, in my opinion," Oklahoma offensive coordinator Mark Mangino said. "It's subjective but still, it's my opinion."

Kansas State might grudgingly agree. Defensive coordinator Phil Bennett sent six, seven and eight players on blitzes. The defense sacked Heupel four times. But when plays had to be made, Heupel stood in and took the inevitable shots just to get the ball away.

Antwone Savage was the third option when Heupel found him on a short out pattern in the third quarter. Savage dodged linebacker Monty Beisel and defensive back Jerametrius Butler and turned the pass into a 74-yard touchdown pass, the longest of Heupel's career.

The play was the eventual game winner. It gave Oklahoma a 38-14 lead that was enough to survive a 17-0 second-half run by the Wildcats. With the game almost in hand, the Sooners seemed like they were almost saluting Switzer. They ran the option for the only time Saturday before Tim Duncan's field goal that gave Oklahoma its final 10-point lead with 3:27 to play.

"They're not as talented as we were," Sooner said of his old teams. "They don't have the physical talent. They don't have any first-round picks but they will have."

True, the names don't roll off the tongue. The Boz, the 'bone and Barry are all things of the past. But the country soon will have to deal with names like J.T. Thatcher who returned a kick 93 yards to set up a touchdown. They'll memorize the name of sophomore safety Roy Williams who had an interception to set up another score.

"It was a great feeling," Williams said. "After I got my interception, I looked to the sideline and I see Coach Barry Switzer right in my face saying, 'Good job.' That was a good feeling having one of the greatest coaches in college history say good job to you."

There will be those that pile on Kansas State and its easy schedule. Snyder is now 1-18 against top 10 teams. But in the end, Saturday was about the disruption of one program's success and the resurrection of another program.

Switzer stayed as low-key as he could. But even from the press box it was clear he still cared. His jaw was set, he paced. If someone would have placed a headset on him, he would have started calling plays.

By winning, Oklahoma collected back-to-back victories over top 10 teams for the first time since his Sooners did it in 1986. The coach who ran that powerhouse, smiled, rubbed the Super Bowl ring on his left hand and knew he had contributed some small part once again on Saturday.

"I used to watch Jamelle Holieway, Keith Jackson, Tony Casillas and Barry Switzer coaching," said Smith, a native of Clinton, Okla. "I would sit in the south end zone with my grandfather and father and watch OU just dominate people. We'd leave in the third quarter ... hear the crowd roar and say, 'Oh, they must have scored again.' "

Smith's wasn't the only flashback.