Oklahoma State football report card: Mike Gundy, offense fail in situational awareness
Jenni CarlsonOklahoman
For a brief moment in the fourth quarter, Oklahoma State made a game out of the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. You almost wondered if the Cowboys could stage another big rally in a Valley of the Sun bowl like they did a year ago against Notre Dame.
But it wasn’t to be.
Wisconsin 24, OSU 17.
For much of the night, the Cowboys struggled. The report card reflects a few positives from the late rally and a lot of problems from the rest of the game.
Gumption: A
Very little went right for the Cowboys during the first three quarters as Chase Field in Phoenix. The offense was ineffective, and the defense struggled to overcome the Badgers’ pounding, physical style. But the Cowboys hung in there. They didn’t let the game get too far out of hand, and early in the fourth quarter, the offense got in the end zone on a Garret Rangel flip pass to Ollie Gordon and cut the Wisconsin lead to 10 points. The OSU defense followed with a three-and-out, then the offense put together a long drive that ended with a field goal. Wisconsin’s lead was down to seven. Another three-and-out by the defense, and OSU had a chance at another comeback for the ages. Even though Wisconsin came up with an interception to ice the victory, you have to appreciate that the Cowboys didn’t lay down when that would’ve been easy.Offensive awareness: D
Late in the first half, the OSU defense was spent. It needed a chance to regroup, but the offense stuck with its up-tempo, no-huddle style. I get it ― that’s what the Cowboys do ― but when your defense is almost begging for a break and you aren’t moving the ball at all? Why not take an extra 10 or 20 seconds before each snap? Coaches have to be aware of such things. Then again, they didn’t make sure the offense knew the situation at the end of the first half either. The Cowboys desperately needed to run out the clock and get to halftime, and on third-and-21, Gordon ran a draw play and bounced it toward the sideline. A draw was unlikely to get a first down in that situation, but instead of staying in bounds, Gordon went out. It stopped the clock for Wisconsin and forced OSU to punt. OSU averted disaster on Wisconsin’s ensuing possession ― the Badgers ran out the clock ― but why hadn’t someone on the coaching staff drilled into every offensive player’s head that they were not to go out of bounds under any circumstance? That’s bad football.
Situational awareness: F
After the game, Cowboy coach Mike Gundy was asked if he might make any staff changes during the offseason. A reasonable and legitimate question after the way the season went. But rather than saying something like, "We're disappointed in the season, but staff changes are not something we're going to talk about now," Gundy hinted that he might revoke the reporter's future access for asking the question. It was a bad look. Instead of being angry about how this season went, Gundy was angry someone noticed and asked about it. I take back what I said: it wasn't a bad look, it was a horrible look.Inexperienced defenders: B
A pretty darned good night for some inexperienced Cowboys. The transfer-portal departures of Mason Cobb, Jabbar Muhammad and Thomas Harper left the OSU defense thin behind the line of scrimmage, but the Cowboys got good performances from the likes of Lamont Bishop, Cam Smith, Lyrik Rawls and Trey Rucker. Bishop, replacing Cobb at linebacker, was second on the team with nine tackles, including two for loss. Smith, a cornerback, and Rawls, a safety, each had five tackles. Rawls forced a fumble on a sack. Rucker, though, might’ve been the biggest surprise. In the first few minutes of the game, he had a pass breakup on a deep throw, a touchdown-saving tackle on a long run, then intercepted a pass in the end zone. It was Rucker’s first game action of the season, and he was phenomenal.Veteran swansongs: A
While the defense relied on several inexperienced players, it got a couple of big performances from two veterans who might’ve been playing their final games as Cowboys. We know Brock Martin is, and the OSU defensive end had five tackles, two for loss and one quarterback hurry. He was disruptive all night. So was Jason Taylor II. While the Cowboy safety said after the game he isn’t sure if he’ll return to OSU or go to the NFL, Tuesday may well have been his last at OSU. If it is, Taylor went out with a bang. He had a game-high 12 tackles, eight solo and 1.5 for loss. He made a couple that saved touchdowns. Both Taylor and Martin have been model Cowboys. It was fitting that they finished well.
Run game: F
Listen, it looks like Gordon and Jaden Nixon are pretty good tailbacks. Deondre Jackson, too. But they had very little room to do anything Tuesday night. Few holes to hit. Few seams to find. The offensive line had a tall task, going against a big and tall Big Ten defensive line. But this has been an issue throughout the season. You can’t rush for 52 yards and average 2.0 yards a carry and expect to win many ball games. The offensive line has to improve.Field surface: F
The playing surface put down at Chase Field was a disaster. Sod was laid on top of a tarp over the baseball field used by the Arizona Diamondbacks, which I’m sure is a totally acceptable way to do things. But in some places, the seam had a noticeable gap between the sod. Players were slipping throughout the game, and it only got worse as the game went on. That isn’t good for game quality, but with a surface that dicey, someone could have really gotten hurt. That’s an unnecessary risk to the players.
