'They can both spin it': Gunnar Gundy, Garret Rangel show promise as OSU's backup QBs in spring finale
Scott WrightOklahoman..
STILLWATER — Oklahoma State receiver CJ Tate popped into open field around the 10-yard line and looked back to catch a perfectly thrown pass from backup quarterback Garret Rangel then cruised into the end zone for a 40-yard touchdown.
With maybe 7,000 fans in attendance at Boone Pickens Stadium on Saturday, Rangel to Tate was one of the biggest highlights of OSU football’s spring finale.
While Saturday’s practice was just another day of work for most of the Cowboys, it had some importance for a couple of players — the guys fighting to be backup quarterback to Spencer Sanders.
Rangel, a true freshman early enrollee, and redshirt freshman walk-on Gunnar Gundy competed throughout the spring and will take the battle into the summer and fall to see who will earn the No. 2 job.
“I thought they played well, just with the naked eye,” OSU head coach Mike Gundy, Gunnar’s father. “Obviously, it looks different when I see it on tape, but I thought they played well. I thought they competed, I thought they handled the offense well.
“They get the summer to train and then all through August. Hopefully, if we need one in that position, it’s when we’re ahead, so they can get some actual game experience.”
With Sanders heading into his fourth year as starter — and a possible fifth year in the bank because of the additional eligibility granted by the NCAA during the COVID-19 pandemic — there’s no immediacy to the race to be the Cowboys’ future starter.
But the need to be ready for action by September is ever-present.
Sanders has missed seven starts in the past three seasons, and at least one each year. He’s had a capable backup in previous seasons, first Hawaii transfer Dru Brown in 2019, then four-star recruit Shane Illingworth the past two years.
But Illingworth transferred to Nevada in January, leaving OSU with just two scholarship quarterbacks, Sanders and Rangel, joined by walk-ons Gundy and Peyton Thompson.
While Saturday didn’t provide a full, rowdy BPS atmosphere, it was the first time for either Gundy or Rangel in a pressure situation with thousands of OSU fans watching.
And they handled it well. They each had their miscues, but also hit some longer throws, like Rangel’s TD toss to Tate and a perfectly placed sideline throw from Gundy to Talyn Shettron.
“They’ve both progressed since the spring started,” senior receiver Braydon Johnson said. “They both have accurate passes. They both can run. It’s just exciting to watch them keep competing and see who gets that two-spot.”
Gundy has been in the program longer, having finished his high school career in the fall of 2019 before sitting out a season to reclassify and join the program in January of 2021. He went through spring ball last year as the fourth-teamer and got into the blowout win over TCU in November.
Rangel was a senior at Frisco (Texas) Lone Star High School last fall and arrived in January as the first recruit of third-year quarterbacks coach Tim Rattay.
“Garret, coming in early like he did, soaking it all in, proved he wants to be up here and learn,” sophomore receiver Jaden Bray said. “He wants to learn from Spencer. He’s thrown great balls throughout the spring. Same thing with Gunnar. They look comfortable. They make things happen with their legs when plays break down. They’ve really progressed this spring.”
Neither quarterback did anything significant to separate himself in the race for No. 2 on Saturday, but that’s not what spring practices are for. The job will likely be won in August. But both players have shown development through spring and give the Cowboys talented, if not experienced, options for the backup job.
“They can both spin it,” sophomore receiver John Paul Richardson said. “They’re both football junkies, always watching film. I’ll go in and watch, and those two are already in there. They’re just really good kids and they have really bright futures.”
