The Oklahoma State Cowboys have long played second fiddle to their nemesis OU in the Panhandle State. But as far as success on the gridiron goes the Pokes have strung together 17 straight winning seasons under Mike Gundy while being a competitive force in the Big 12. There are some questions surrounding the program ahead of the 2023 campaign, though, after a major collapse last year. The Cowboys won their first five games and six of seven, including a big win over Texas. However, they dropped five of their final six outings when the offense dried up finishing the year on a 3-game slide following a loss to Wisconsin in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. Oddsmakers took notice setting the win total at 6.5.
College Football Season Wins Odds
Regular Season Wins for the Oklahoma State Cowboys
Over 6.5 ( +117 )
Under 6.5 ( -133 )
The thing about free agency ... uh, I mean the transfer portal in college football is that positions of need can be addressed rather quickly. The Cowboys have plenty of needs on both sides of the ball and while Gundy is a master tactician, he still needs talent to win games. OSU welcomes a new QB in Alan Bowman, who played in the Big 12 a few years back, and the defense is a jigsaw puzzle with new coordinator Bryan Nardo in charge of making the pieces fit.
Roster
It’s hard to explain just how dreadful and drastic last season’s collapse was. Following their 41-34 win over Texas, the Cowboys boasted a 6-1 record with their offense producing at least 34 points in every game. The only setback in that span was by three points to eventual CFP participant TCU. Things fell apart starting with a 48-0 drubbing by Big 12 champ Kansas State and the Pokes never recovered. Over their last five games they averaged just over 14 points and failed to score more than 20 points in any game.
The ending to the campaign caused a ripple effect within the roster. Four-year starting QB Spencer Sanders transferred and the team brought in Alan Bowman formerly of Texas Tech and Michigan. Bowman should feel right at home back in the Big 12 with the wide-open style featured in the conference. In 2018 at Texas Tech Bowman completed 69.4 percent of his passes for 2,638 yards and 17 touchdowns. He set a Big 12 record for passing yards by a freshman with 605 in a win over Houston. Injuries derailed his career prompting a transfer to the Big Ten.
Things didn’t work out for Bowman in Ann Arbor being stuck behind Cade McNamara and J.J. McCarthy, but he has a new lease on his career and if he stays healthy the offense will benefit. With a deep corps of receivers the passing game has a good chance of taking off and will be better than what we saw last year. QBs combined to complete a Big 12 worst 55.7 percent of their passes with their 18 interceptions tied for the most. Leading receiver Brennan Presley headlines an experienced group of pass catchers with Wazzou transfer De’Zhaun Stribling an impact player.
In an interesting move Gundy tabbed Bryan Nardo most recently from D-II Gannon University to be his defensive coordinator. The good news is that Nardo has enjoyed success at every level of his coaching career. The bad news is that this is his first stop at the major college level. He’s known for an aggressive, attacking style using five DBs to counter the pass-happy teams in the Big 12. The question remains is there enough talent to make it work?
Schedule
If the Cowboys don’t win at least seven games it’s not the schedule’s fault. They get five Big 12 games in Stillwater and their road contests are against Iowa State, West Virginia, UCF and Houston. So they get the two teams that didn’t go bowling last year and two of the newcomers. They’ll host OU, K-State, BYU, Cincinnati and Kansas. The toughest non-conference tilt is at Arizona State, a winnable game against a rebuilding squad.
Prediction
There are a lot of moving parts with the program from a new quarterback to a revamped defense with a new coordinator. That should cause some concern, but the schedule is forgiving and Bowman can be special back in the Big 12 if he stays healthy. “The years of experience, there’s no substitute for it. You can’t replace maturity and that’s what he brings to the table. That’s why we brought him here,” Gundy said of Bowman. Even with all the questions seven wins looks like the minimum for this group.
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