No. 1 Texas plays Oklahoma at 2:30 p.m. Central on Saturday, Oct. 10, in Dallas, and the game is on ABC, so you do not need a ticket to be in the room. Austin, Texas has at least five organized watch parties: a brewery lawn in the southeast, a downtown hotel's rooftop pool, an East Austin padel club, a Brazos Street patio and a Domain-area bar with a Texas Exes wristband deal. Austin Texas Things has not been to any of them. Everything below comes from each venue's own listing or a tourism-board listing, read Friday, Oct. 9, and the prices and times are theirs, not ours.
The Cotton Bowl game is sold out through the school, per Texas Athletics, so the cheap way in is a screen. Each party below sets its own entry rules. Only the Fairmont's listing states a price; the other four do not, so confirm before you drive.
Illustration: AI-generated scene, not a photo of any venue below.
What time is Texas vs. Oklahoma, and what is the weather doing?
Kickoff is 2:30 p.m. CT at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, per Texas Athletics' game page, which lists the broadcast as ABC. ESPN's game page has the Longhorns ranked No. 1 and 4-0 (1-0 SEC) against a 2-2 Oklahoma team that is 0-1 in the SEC, and the AP preview ESPN links says the Sooners are unranked with two losses. Those records are as of Oct. 9.
For the outdoor options, Open-Meteo's hourly forecast for Austin, pulled Friday afternoon, shows about 86° at noon, 89 to 90° from 2 to 4 p.m., and a 0% chance of rain through 7 p.m. Feels-like temperatures run a degree or two above that. Shade is the thing to plan around, not rain.
Where can I watch Texas–OU in Austin on Saturday?
Five places, in the order they open.
| Where | Area | Hours listed | What the listing says | Price listed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar Door, 201 Brazos St | Downtown | Noon start | "Tailgate Watch Party," DJ Sean Masters, giveaways, drink specials (Cedar Door's Instagram) | Not stated |
| Fairmont Austin rooftop pool, 101 Red River St | Downtown | 12–6 PM | DJ pregame 12–2:30, tequila pop-up 12–5, two 80-inch TVs | From $60 adults, from $30 ages 3–12 |
| Padel39 East Austin, 4716 E 5th St | East Austin | 1–6:30 PM | 20-foot LED screen, 40 TVs, DJ, food vendors, drink specials | Free |
| Meanwhile Brewing, 3901 Promontory Point Dr | Southeast Austin | Kickoff 2:30; taproom opens at 9 AM Saturdays | Turf seating in front of an LED screen, food trucks | Not stated |
| Little Woodrow's Domain Northside, 11420 Rock Rose Ave #130 | The Domain | 2–6 PM | Texas Exes Austin chapter party; 15% off drinks with the wristband the group provides | Not stated |
Sources: Visit Austin's Fairmont listing, Visit Austin's Padel39 listing, Meanwhile's event page, the Texas Exes event page, Cedar Door's Instagram posts. We checked that all five are listed as open businesses on Google Places on Oct. 9, which tells you they exist, not that the party is happening.
Which one is right for how you want to watch?
You want a lawn, a beer and a food truck: Meanwhile Brewing. Per its event page, seating is on the turf in front of a large LED stage screen, and the taproom is open with the brewery's beers and "game day specials" from its food trucks: Side Eye Pie's Frito Pie pizza, a Distant Relatives pitmaster platter, and a "Smash Oklahoma"-style burger from Songbird. It is all-ages, and the page says to arrive early for a spot. It lists an RSVP button but no price. Google lists it at 3901 Promontory Point Dr., 78744, open from 9 a.m. Saturdays. The page does not mention shade, so bring a hat.
Meanwhile's page says seating is on the turf in front of the screen and to "arrive early to grab your spot." For a 2:30 kickoff, treat 1 p.m. as the time to be in line, not 2:15. That is our read of the page, not a number the brewery gave.
You want a pool and a skyline: the Fairmont Austin. The hotel is turning its rooftop pool into a watch party from noon to 6, per Visit Austin: a DJ from 12 to 2:30, a Verdadero Tequila pop-up from 12 to 5, and the game on two 80-inch TVs. The listing says adults 13 and up pay from $60 and kids 3 to 12 from $30. It does not say what that includes, so ask before you buy. It also does not say whether you can swim, so we are not telling you to bring a suit.
Illustration: AI-generated scene, not a photo of the Fairmont.
You want free and loud: Padel39 East Austin. Visit Austin lists a free party from 1 to 6:30 p.m. with a 20-foot LED screen, 40 TVs, a DJ, three food vendors and what it calls "game day padel activations." One flag: the ticket link behind that listing carries a different opponent in its web address, which suggests the page was copied from an earlier event. The text on the listing itself is about Oklahoma. We would check Padel39's own page or call before you go. Google shows the club open 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturdays at 4716 E. 5th St.
You want downtown and early: Cedar Door. The Brazos Street patio bar says on Instagram that its first "Tailgate Watch Party" starts at noon Saturday with DJ Sean Masters, giveaways and drink specials. We read that from the posts, not a full event page, so the details are the bar's and unconfirmed by us. Google lists Cedar Door at 201 Brazos St., open 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Saturdays.
You want a Longhorn crowd and a discount: Little Woodrow's in the Domain. The Texas Exes Austin chapter lists a 2 to 6 p.m. party there. Drinks are 15% off if you show the bartender the wristband the group's representative provides, so find the rep first. The listing page's organizer label reads "Asheville Chapter," which looks like a platform glitch, but the event title and text name the Austin chapter.
What if I still want to see Austin FC tonight?
Saturday has a second kickoff. Austin FC hosts Nashville SC at Q2 Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Central, not the 8:30 that shows in Eastern time on the club's schedule page. We covered the bag rule, the lots and the Red Line in our Austin FC guide. If you are going to both, the Cotton Bowl game is a 2:30 start and the Q2 gates are listed at about 6, so the only thing to watch is the clock if the rivalry game goes long.
Skipping both? Our weekend guide has the Oktoberfest, the $25 ballet and Pumpkin Nights.
What to know before you go
- Go early, for a seat, not for the game. The game is at 2:30. The venues with DJs and pregame start two and a half hours before.
- Call about price. Four of five listings give no cover or ticket price. A venue that says nothing is not necessarily free.
- Parking and drive times are on you. We did not get drive-time data, so we are not claiming any. Cedar Door and the Fairmont are both downtown, a few blocks apart, if you want to look at both before choosing.
- Kids: Meanwhile lists all ages. The Fairmont lists a child price. The others do not say.
FAQ
What time does Texas play Oklahoma on Saturday? 2:30 p.m. Central, Saturday, Oct. 10, at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, on ABC, per Texas Athletics' game page.
Is there a free Texas–OU watch party in Austin? Padel39 East Austin's Visit Austin listing says admission is free, 1 to 6:30 p.m. Check the venue directly, because the listing's ticket link points to a page with a different opponent in its address.
Can I swim at the Fairmont watch party? The listing does not say. It describes watching "poolside" on two 80-inch TVs. Ask the hotel at 512-600-2000 before you pack a suit.
Where can a Longhorn fan get a drink deal? Little Woodrow's Domain Northside, per the Texas Exes Austin chapter's listing: 15% off drinks with the chapter's wristband, 2 to 6 p.m.
This desk publishes twice a day, morning and afternoon, on what is actually open, actually happening and worth the trip. If the party you pick is not what its listing said, tell us on Instagram at @austintexasthings and we will fix this page.
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