Defenses beware, Oklahoma State doesn't have one No. 1 receiver. OSU has three 'NFL receivers.'
- Aug 31, 2024 Updated 9 hrs ago
Tyler Waldrep
OSU Sports WriterSTILLWATER — Good luck to the 11 defensive coordinators tasked with identifying Oklahoma State’s top receiver this season, much less stopping him.
Senior Brennan Presley made his case to be the No. 1 option early as he was targeted or carried the ball on 6-of-10 plays during Oklahoma State’s opening possession.
Although he wasn’t as involved on the second drive, it was Presley who scored the Cowboys’ first touchdown of the season after catching the ball two yards short of the end zone. Presley finished the game with 35 receiving yards on a team-high seven catches and one four-yard carry.
“It means a lot because we also feed off each other,” Oklahoma State receiver De’Zhaun Stribling said. “Seeing Brennan go making plays out there, I want to make sure that I can do the same thing also. And so does (Ra)Shod (Owens) also in a way. So we just feed off of each other, try to get moving as a collective, as a unit and that is the whole goal, just to keep firing and no hiccups.”
Oklahoma State's top trio certainly did that, combining for 16 catches, 199 receiving yards and two touchdowns in Saturday's 44-20 win over back-to-back FCS champions South Dakota State.
Oklahoma State wide receiver Brennan Presley, right, hauled in a team-high seven receptions in Saturday's opener.
Daniel Shular, Tulsa World
“We’d be draped on somebody man-to-man, and those wide receivers would just snatch the ball out of our hands," South Dakota State coach Jimmy Rogers said.
That performance likely wasn't a surprise to Rogers who praised Oklahoma State for having three "NFL receivers" earlier in the week ahead of the game.
Stribling, who suffered a season-ending injury four games into last season, felt like time slowed down the closer it got to kickoff on Saturday. Eventually, Stribling started to feel “antsy” for his long-awaited return to Boone Pickens Stadium and leaned on his fellow receivers to keep his nerves in check.
“It was just more of proving it to myself again,” Stribling said of his performance on Saturday. “You know, I haven't played in a long time, and going out there today and catching some balls made my confidence come back and prove it to myself that I still can do this.”
He should feel confident after finishing the game with a team-high 83 receiving yards in the process of seeing eight targets, which put him second behind only Presley, who finished with nine targets and one carry.
Stribling made arguably two of the three most memorable catches in the game starting with his first, a 7-yard gain that saw him drag his toe just inside the sideline to set up Presley’s score on the next play.
Oklahoma State wide receiver De'Zhaun Stribling returned to the field after suffering a season-ending injury four games into last season.
Daniel Shular, Tulsa World
Then, in the third quarter, Stribling caught the second-longest pass by an Oklahoma State player on Saturday when he hauled in an overthrown flea flicker from Alan Bowman for a 27-yard gain.
“That was actually a two-high open shell,” Bowman said. “So, it should have really been Rashod up the middle, but like I said those guys (South Dakota State) are sound. … All week that’s probably going to be Rashod, probably going to be Rashod, we get there, then there’s three guys on Rashod, one on Strib so I thought he was going to lift it a little more, but obviously with three guys on Rashod he had to kind of dip underneath so I just kind of at least give him something he (Stribling) can touch and then (him) making a great play and coming down with it.”
Not to be outdone, Owens made his case loud and clear when he hauled in a pass from Bowman 33 yards downfield and ran the rest of the way for a 58-yard score.
He finished the game with three catches for 81 yards on five targets. Despite picking up most of his yardage on one play, Bowman looked his way often on critical downs, targeting Owens twice on third down and once on fourth down when he hauled in a six-yard catch to move the chains.
“Brennan Presley is very quick,” Stribling said. “He has a good change of direction. The way he can snap down, throw his hips down, get in and out of brakes is beautiful, you know, beautiful. Rashod, the way that he can use his body to his advantage, hold off the defenders. He can block very well. … The way he can run routes and shoo people from the ball. He also has sneaky speed, he’ll sneak up on you because he’s running, you might not think he's moving fast, but he’ll run right past you. So we just each bring something different, and it’s just beautiful when it all clicks and it all goes together.”
Oklahoma State wide receiver Rashod Owens finished Saturday's season opener with the team's longest play, a 58-yard touchdown reception.
Daniel Shular, Tulsa World
