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![Image Taken at the Iowa State Cyclones vs Oklahoma State Cowboys Football Game, Saturday, October 23, 2021, Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, IA. Bruce Waterfield/OSU Athletics](https://okstate.com/common/controls/image_handler.aspx?thumb_prefix=rp_primary&image_path=/images/2022/11/10/51624634030_f9d57d4f51_o_lC3XU.jpg)
The Oklahoma State Cowboy football team returns home for a matchup against Iowa State on Saturday's "blackout" game at Boone Pickens Stadium.
![]() ![]() The Oklahoma State Cowboy football team returns home for a matchup against Iowa State on Saturday's "blackout" game at Boone Pickens Stadium.
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![]() If you can’t consistently and effectively run the ball, you can’t sustain drives or protect leads. It’s a lot harder to impose your will on your opponent. When you struggled to hold your ground, you quickly switch from the aggressor to the passive party. Oklahoma State is reeling, fresh off of back-to-back losses across the Kansas border. In just a couple of weeks, the Cowboys went from Big 12 favorites wielding one of the most potent offenses in the country to getting blanked by Kansas Starte and lapped by Kansas. What happened? OSU couldn’t consistently and effectively run the ball. That only got worse with the loss of starting running back Dominic Richardson for the Kansas State game and the loss of a dual-threat quarterback like Spencer Sanders for the last two weeks. His ability to command attention from the defense has helped cover those warts all year. Although injuries along the offensive line and elsewhere have been a big contributor, the Cowboys’ rushing attack has been subpar all season, especially by the standards of Mike Gundy’s best teams. Heading into the final three games of the regular season, OSU ranks ninth in the Big 12 in rushing offense at 138 yards per game and ninth in yards per carry at 3.7. If those placements and averages hold down the stretch they’ll each account for the Pokes’ worst efforts since 2015. OSU has failed to net 200 rushing yards in a single game so far this year. The last time OSU didn’t reach that mark in a season was 2002. That 2015 OSU team also put up points in bunches early behind a talented QB and star-studded receiver corps. But it was so inept at rushing the ball that Mike Gundy had to pull Mason Rudolph off the field in the red zone in favor of JW Walsh, an extra rusher. The Cowboys have had both skills covered when Sanders is on the field to at least keep defenses honest. But with a limited or absent Sanders, OSU managed just 1.8 yards per carry in the blowout in Manhattan and a slightly better 3.2 in Lawrence. Without Sanders, there’s no apparent fix available for OSU’s rushing woes unless coaches can figure out a way to scheme around those deficiencies, a tough task in mid-November. Neither Garret Rangel or Gunnar Gundy can manufacture first downs with their feet to the extent that Sanders can. “I continue to say that, but regardless, it’s a fact: We have to find ways to rush the football and maintain some on-the-ground yards,” said Gundy on Monday. “Then we’ve got to improve in the running game. We’ve got to commit to more of it and play harder up front and be gap sound and slow down the run. That’ll get us back on the field offensively and then find a way to stay balanced.” Both this Cowboy team and the 2015 Pokes enjoyed a hot start and sputtered down the stretch. OSU rattled off five straight to start this season and was a blown lead away (due in large part to running game woes) from starting 7-0. That 2015 team did one better, starting 10-0 before its loaded late-schedule collapse and a 10-3 finish. Ground gains won’t get much easier on Saturday with Iowa State leading the Big 12 in rushing defense, as well as scoring defense and total yards allowed. But regardless of who they are facing, if the Cowboys don’t get something figured out on the ground, and fast, their final record could look much worse. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() ![]() STILLWATER, Okla. – Oklahoma State kicker Tanner Brown is one of 20 semifinalists for the 2022 Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award, it was announced Thursday by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission. Hoops Preview: TV Info Projected Lineups and Series History for OSU and Southern Illinois11/10/2022 ![]() Southern Illinois might not be the biggest brand name on the Cowboys’ nonconference schedule, but the Salukis shot 43% from 3 the other night. Oklahoma State hosts Southern Illinois on Thursday in Gallagher-Iba Arena. Here is how to watch, stats and a look at the series history between these squads. Viewing InfoTime: 7 p.m. Thursday Team Stats
Projected Starters
Series History (SIU leads 4-2)These teams haven’t played since the First Round of the NIT in 2008, a game SIU won 69-53. Terrel Harris led the Cowboys in scoring that day, putting up 20 off the bench. James Anderson was the only other Cowboy in double figures with 13. Before that, the last time OSU played the Salukis was in the 2005 NCAA Tournament, a game the Cowboys won 85-77. Ivan McFarlin dropped 31 in that Second Round game. The Cowboys would go on to fall in the Sweet 16 to Arizona.
![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() Thanks for stopping by – here’s your daily dose of Oklahoma State sports news. OSU Bullets• Believe it or not, OSU still has some semblance of a path to Arlington • Cowboy Basketball announced the signing of their four-man recruiting class yesterday – the Cowgirls announced their class also • What a question for Cowboy Football – even if Spencer Sanders is available, what quarterback should the Cowboys be playing?
• Apparent on Saturday in Lawrence was the real reason for the loss – and it wasn’t missing the fifth-year quarterback • This Iowa State fan does a pretty good job explaining the emotion around OSU-Iowa State games:
• Pete’s ready for the blackout Saturday:
Non-OSU Bullets• Action beats overthinking This was kind of interesting – a newsletter I read polled readers about what they did with their extra hour from daylight savings time:
With young children, seems like the Mandevilles would fall into the “socialized” category. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() A quartet of high school basketball prospects made it official with Oklahoma State on Wednesday. Oklahoma State announced the signings of Brandon Garrison, Jamyron Keller, Justin McBride and Connor Dow here on the fist day of the early signing period. That group of four ranks 12th nationally in 247Sports’ team rankings, which is good for third in the Big 12. ESPN has OSU’s class at No. 15 while Rivals has it at No. 16. Here is a breakdown of each prospect. Brandon GarrisonHeight: 6-9 Boynton on Garrison: “Brandon is the state’s best prospect. He’s very accomplished having already won a state championship and a gold medal as a member is the USA U18 team in summer 2022. Brandon is a great rebounder and maybe the best passing post player in the country. His impact will be a great one from the moment he arrives in Stillwater. Brandon has been developed by a host of great coaches in both high school and AAU.” Jamyron KellerHeight: 6-1 Boynton on Keller: “Jamyron is a junk yard dog, blue collar type player. He has a level of toughness that has almost always translated to success in Stillwater. As a lead guard, Jamyron can make plays for himself and for his teammates. An aggressive ball hawking defender, Jamyron’s presence will be felt on both ends of the floor. Jamyron comes from a strong and close-knit family and has great coaches in mentors in basketball all of his life.” Justin McBrideHeight: 6-7 Boynton on McBride: “Justin’s game has really taken off over the past six months. He really has attacked his body and elevated his athletic ability as a versatile forward. Justin can really handle the ball, pass, and shoot very effectively. We are excited about his ability to be a three-level scorer and playmaker for us. His family has had a great impact on him having a high-level work ethic. I can’t wait to work with Justin.” Connor DowHeight: 6-6 Boynton on Dow: “At 6-foot-6 and with a burning desire to improve, Connor is the consummate gym rat. He shoots the best exceptionally well and really has a great feel for the game. He has been coached very well throughout his life thus far. I look forward to coaching Connor and we are excited to welcome him and his family into the Cowboy program.” More from Oklahoma State’s 2023 SigneesJamyron Keller Commitment Q&A ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() We’ve been hoodwinked, bamboozled, led astray, run amok and flat-out deceived — in the words of the great Stephen A. Smith — by the 2022 Oklahoma State football team. Just two weeks ago it was 6-1 after beating Texas, in the driver’s seat to be a Big 12 title finalist and in the darkhorse conversation as a college football playoff contender, but now? OSU is 6-3, coming off two dreadful losses to K-State and Kansas and quickly fizzling down the stretch. Our staff as such is taking a little more pessimistic view of how things will shake out this Saturday with Iowa State coming to town after getting burned betting on the Pokes’ the last two weeks. Here are our predictions heading into the weekend. Marshall ScottScore: Iowa State 31, Oklahoma State 24 Thoughts: In the spirit of the midterm elections, here is a quote from former President George W. Bush: “Fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.” After somehow believing OSU would rebound from a 48-0 thrashing in Lawrence, I’m going to opt to not give the Cowboys the benefit of the doubt until they earn it back. Kyle BooneScore: Iowa State 31, Oklahoma State 20 Thoughts: I was actually rather impressed with what I saw from QB Garret Rangel in his college debut as a starter last week — he was one of very few bright spots in the loss to Kansas — but that doesn’t mean I’d bet on him getting it done this weekend should he start. (Which, to be clear, remains unclear. Spencer Sanders’ status is TBD, and Mike Gundy hasn’t committed to riding Rangel again this week.) Whether it’s Rangel or Sanders, though, I’m just not convinced this team has the goods. Iowa State is a top-10 team in the sport in stop rate defensively and gets an OSU team that has been rendered stunningly one-dimensional with a porous running game. Even worse, OSU’s receivers have been on the whole rather disappointing. OSU is an underdog this weekend and I think that should be the case given what we’ve seen the last few weeks. Kyle CoxScore: Oklahoma State 23, Iowa State 17 Thoughts: I just have a feeling that the Cowboys will find a way to survive an ugly one at home, but with these two offenses — assuming Spencer Sanders will be limited or absent — I’m taking the under. The only saving grace for the Cowboys is that Iowa State has been the worse offense in the Big 12 all year, regardless of injury. A flash-in-the-pan win against the league’s worst defense (West Virginia) isn’t enough to convince me that the Clones can move the ball. Regardless of who takes snaps, OSU still has a playmaker or two that can find the end zone. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() STILLWATER — After two woeful weekends in the Sunflower State, the Cowboys return home this weekend for a game against Iowa State. Oklahoma State players were available to the media after the Cowboys’ Tuesday evening practice. Here are three things that stood out. TacklingIt’s been a rough two weeks for the Cowboys’ defense, allowing a combined 85 points to Kansas and Kansas State. OSU’s D was always going to take a step back this year without Malcolm Rodriguez, Devin Harper, Kolby Harvell-Peel, Tanner McCalister, Jarrick Bernard-Converse and Tre Sterling, but one area the Pokes were supposed to be pretty good in is the pass rush. After leading the country in sacks last season, the Cowboys brought back Collin Oliver, Brock Martin and Tyler Lacy. But OSU didn’t record a sack against Kansas or Kansas State. The Pokes rank sixth in the Big 12 in sacks this season. But OSU’s inability to get to the quarterback spurs from their inability to stop the run, according to Oliver. “Stop the run — I’m gonna say this until the wheels fall off, we just can’t stop the run right now,” Oliver said. “Once we do that, we’re gonna earn the right to rush the passer and life’s gonna be a whole lot easier for us. Stopping the run is the big key.” The Cowboys’ past four opponents have averaged 244.5 yards rushing a game. Some of that has to do with run fits, and some of it has to do with tackling. Mike Gundy said the Cowboys missed a lot of tackles against Kansas, a team that ran for 351 yards on the Cowboys. It’s been a point of emphasis this week. “It’s a mixture of both, the want to bring somebody down and the technique — wrapping and rolling,” Oliver said. “We’re just not harping on that in game like we do in practice. We work on it all practice, and then in game it flops. Just keeping that consistency up and going out there and getting guys to the ground, it’s gonna be a big emphasis this week.” After Freak Injury, Langston Anderson Gets First Catch of SeasonWhether it’s his long, muscular frame or his four-star pedigree, there is a lot to like about Langston Anderson, but injuries have derailed his college career to this point. Anderson was set to start the Cowboys’ Fiesta Bowl-winning 2021 season at the X receiver opposite Tay Martin. But in warmups for the Cowboys’ season-opener Missouri State, disaster struck. “Almost done with pregame, the game was about to start in, I think, like eight minutes,” Anderson said. “Then I run one more fade, my receiver coach throws it to me, I catch it. All I did was walk. I just feel something pop. My adrenaline is going. I’m like, ‘It’s not that bad.’ Then like five minutes later it started to hurt real bad.” That kept him out the entire season after he missed a lot of time in the 2020 season with injury, as well. He had three catches for 61 yards against Kansas this past Saturday, his first catch since the McNeese State game in 2019 — a 1,154-day gap. “It’s a blessing,” Anderson said. “First of all, I gotta give thanks to God. It was just good being out there. I mean, things didn’t go the way we wanted, but it was just good being part of the team, getting back out here, just doing things like that.” OSU Quarterbacks Get Secret Service Treatment in Field StormingsThree teams have stormed the field against Oklahoma State this season — a weird sign that the Cowboys are at least doing something right. The Cowboys’ offensive line has made a habit of making sure its quarterbacks get back to the locker room safely. It started this season in Fort Worth. With a sea of purple students flooding onto the field, Hunter Woodard and Taylor Miterko each had a hand on Spencer Sanders shoulder pads, getting him to the tunnel secret service-style.
But it wasn’t just with Sanders. Kansas had a bit of a delayed field storming this past Saturday. Center Preston Wilson was already halfway to the locker room when he about-faced and went and grabbed Garret Rangel to get the true freshman off the field. “Nobody tells you to do that,” Wilson said. “When you tell a man you’re going to protect him, you protect him. That’s part of it, whether on or off the field. When you tell someone you have their back, that means you have their back. And I told [Rangel] before the game, ‘I have your back, no matter what happens. I’m gonna be with you. I’m gonna make sure you’re taken care of.'” ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. ![]() STILLWATER — Coming off back-to-back losses, the Oklahoma State team hosts Iowa State this weekend at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Boone Pickens Stadium. After the Cowboys’ Tuesday practice, Langston Anderson, Collin Oliver and Preston Wilson met with reporters to discuss the upcoming game. ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. Three Things Iowa State coach Matt Campbell Said Ahead of the Cyclones Game against Oklahoma State11/9/2022 ![]() With Brock Purdy, Breece Hall and Charlie Kolar in the NFL, Matt Campbell’s Iowa State Cyclones predictably took a step back this season, but after a trio of Big 12 losses by 3 or fewer points, they finally got in the win column last weekend. Iowa State is coming off a 31-14 win against West Virginia. Campbell, who has a 49-36 record in Ames, spoke with the media this week ahead of the Cyclones’ game against Oklahoma State, which kicks at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Boone Pickens Stadium. Here are three things he said. 1. Unlike Cowboys, Cyclones Doing Well Injury-WiseInjuries have played a major role in derailing Oklahoma State’s season, but Campbell said the Cyclones are “in a really good place” in terms of health. Iowa State running back Jirehl Brock left the Cyclones’ win against West Virginia with a leg injury after only four carries, but it doesn’t appear to be anything long term for the ISU’s leading rusher. “Jirehl, we’ll see today as we go out to practice, but he was in practice on Sunday and kind of back at it a little bit,” Campbell said. “Where he is, we’ll probably know a little bit more as we go through the week.” Defensive tackle J.R. Singleton has missed the Cyclones’ past two games. Campbell said Singleton has been ill and that he’ll “hopefully” be back this coming week. Singleton has played 232 defensive snaps this season where he has nine tackles and a forced fumble. 2. Cowboys’ Offense Does Same Thing, No Matter the QuarterbackWhich Oklahoma State quarterback the Cyclones will play against Saturday is a mystery. OSU starter Spencer Sanders missed the Cowboys’ game in Lawrence with a shoulder injury. True freshman Garret Rangel started in his place, but Gunnar Gundy has also spent time as Sanders’ backup this season. Regardless of who plays behind center Saturday, Campbell said Iowa State’s preparation won’t change much. “When you talk about a Mike Gundy-coached offense, it’s not changing a whole lot,” Campbell said. “They’ve got great playmakers on the outside. They’re really well coached on the offensive line. They’ve always got a consistent, really great running game. You’ve got to prepare for the total whole. No matter what or who, you’re gonna get a team that’s got elite playmakers at every area, and you’ve got a guy at the trigger position that is well-versed in the scheme. I think that’s the thing that Coach Gundy brings to the table is, you can go through the last 20 years, what they’re doing on the offensive side of the football really hasn’t varied no matter who’s been at quarterback. I think we at least have a global understanding of what we’re preparing for.” 3. Cyclones Coming Off High-Scoring QuarterGoing into this past Saturday’s game, the Cyclones hadn’t scored more than 21 points in their past four games — they scored 21 in the fourth quarter against West Virginia. In that fourth quarter, Iowa State had 136 total yards, including 89 yards on the ground. Scoring on three consecutive drives, the Cyclones marched 94 yards, 64 yards and 34 yards, respectively. For a team that has lost a lot of tight games this season, the Cyclones might’ve found a little mojo in how they finished off the Mountaineers. “The execution was elite in the fourth quarter of the football game,” Campbell said. “From the blocking, to the running, to the quarterback play, I thought we really executed as well as we had all year. Really, in all honesty, the second half of that football game, that’s as well as we’ve played from an execution standpoint and a precision standpoint on the offensive side.” ![]() Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog. |
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