OFFENSE IS AN OKLAHOMA STATE OF MIND



OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS

2013 Predicted Conference Finish: 2nd

COWBOYS @ A GLANCE:

HEAD COACH: Mike Gundy (entering 9th year /67-35)
STADIUM: T Boone Pickens Stadium (60,000) / Stillwater, OK
2012 RECORD: 8-5
    HOME: 6-1
    AWAY: 1-4
NEUTRAL / BOWL 1-0
2012 BOWL GAME: Yes, Defeated Purdue 58-14 in Heart of Dallas Bowl
RETURNING STARTERS 13
    OFFENSE: 7
     DEFENSE: 6
COWBOY CONUNDRUM’S: Address kicking game & defense...especially DE and corner
KEY GAME: Oct 5th Kansas State in Stillwater. OSU needs this early home win if they are to make a run at the Big 12 Title
2013 vs. OU: Nov. 30 Bedlam - Stillwater, OK

DID YOU KNOW?

That OSU has a 15-8 career record in bowl games? That winning percentage is tops among schools with at least 20 bowl appearances.

TWO’S COMPETITION, THREE’S A CROWD

The Good…

Last year, Mike Gundy surprised everyone by naming true freshman Wes Lunt as the team’s starting QB. Lunt played very well early but injured his leg in the third game of the season, thus opening the door for red-shirt freshman J.W. Walsh. Walsh, evidently sensing a trend, was consequently hurt and was replaced by the guy he had replaced, the aforementioned Lunt. Two games later Lunt, got lit up, suffering a concussion that put him on the shelf. Enter Clint Chelf, (no relation), junior quarterback from Enid, OK. Chelf, listed third on the depth chart behind the two younger QB’s, was frustrated with his being put on the back-Chelf. Feeling sorry for him-Chelf, Clint almost quit the team…a decision that no doubt would have left him second guessing him-Chelf. After talking with teammates, Clint sat him-Chelf down, took a long look at him-Chelf in the mirror and decided that quitting at this point, would be a Chelf-ish thing to do. A few days and a Lunt concussion later, Chelf is suddenly the starter, a status that he retained through the end of the season…and punctuated with a Heart of Dallas Bowl MVP award.   In a matter of weeks the Enid native went from the brink of quitting to having an MVP on his top-Chelf of his trophy case. (OK, sorry.  I probably went a little overboard with the Chelf puns, but sometimes I just crack my-Chelf up)

But success can bring its own set of problems. If Wes Lunt doesn’t bang up his leg and get his bell rung...then there is a pretty good chance that:
-Clint Chelf doesn’t throw for 1,588 yards and 15 touchdowns and win MVP of some bowl I have never heard of.
-J.W. Walsh doesn’t throw for 1,564 yards and 13 touchdowns and I don’t waste 45 minutes of my life trying to come up with Walsh puns
-The Oklahoma State Cowboys don’t have 'too much of a good thing' at the quarterback position

With OSU having three capable QB’s vying for one QB spot…two talented guys were going to be outside the huddle looking in.  It was thought that at least one of the three would transfer...that turned out to be Lunt.

With Lunt unpacking in Champaign, Illinois…the QB battle this fall will come down to the drop-back style of Clint Chelf or the dual threat option style of J.W. Walsh…but if last year is any indication, either one can run Gundy’s system and run it well.

THEY GO BY O-STATE FOR A REASON

The Bad...

 

The Oklahoma State offense has been one of the best in the country over the last few years. The Oklahoma State defense, well, did I mention how good the OSU offense was?

 

The Pokes defense was just plain bad last year no matter the opponent, but when the competition stepped up, the OSU defense checked out...giving up a whopping 47.6 points a game.  Pistols firing?  If so, it was most likely the sound of the OSU defense shooting themselves in the foot.   The Poke defense couldn't get off the field on 3rd downs and rarely took the ball away from the opposing offense...two stats that really don't mean much, unless of course, your goal is to keep the other team from scoring.

 

With the offense that OSU employs, they don't need to have a Steel Curtain type defense in order to win the Big 12...but they will need more than the Jane Curtain type defense they rolled out there last year.

 

The Ugly...

I don't care what shade it is... Burnt, Halloween, Carrot, Princeton, Pumpkin or Tennessee...if it's Orange, then it's ugly. 

 

The schedule is a big bonus for OSU in regards to conference play.  The Cowboys get Kansas State, TCU, Baylor and Oklahoma all at home.  If they can adequately replace the key components of their kicking game; if the defense can force some turnovers and find a way to occasionally get off the field without the accompaniment of the other teams fight song...then OSU should find themselves in the hunt for the Big 12 Championship...a title that might just cause a little Bedlam. 

Just the opinion of one mildly interested guy

The Overweight Armchair Sooner

Buddy Putty