For UCF, this is the kind of road trip that tells you plenty in a hurry.
The Knights are heading to Stillwater, Oklahoma, for a noon kickoff against No. 18 Oklahoma State, and they’re doing it for the first time ever. It’s the second straight week UCF (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) has drawn a top-25 opponent on the road at noon, and this one comes against a Cowboys team that has flipped its script fast under new coach Eric Morris.
Oklahoma State is 3-1 overall and 1-0 in Big 12 play after finishing 1-11 last season, and Matthew Postins, the publisher of Oklahoma State Cowboys on SI, said the change in tone around the program has been obvious.
Postins pointed to Morris as the driving force behind the reset, crediting him with bringing in portal talent, changing the mood in the building and giving the fan base new energy. He said Morris is “very systematic in how he approaches things in terms of program building,” adding that he is “patient but willing to push” and “adapts quickly, something Gundy struggled with late in his tenure.” Postins also said Morris “puts a premium on offense but hires the right people on defense and stays out of their way,” and noted that the coach “buys into a run game even though he runs the Air Raid.”
The Cowboys’ defense is one reason the record looks the way it does. Postins said the unit can be deceptive if you only watch the West Virginia game, but he stressed that Oklahoma State has been strong against the run in other spots, including against Oregon and Tulsa. He described it as “perhaps one of the best fundamental tackling teams I’ve seen in a while,” with linebackers and corners doing a strong job finishing one-on-one tackles and the front four keeping runners bottled up inside.
That front four is also the group Postins flagged as the biggest challenge for UCF. He said there are no stars on the line, but Oklahoma State rotates as many as 12 defensive linemen per game, which has kept the group fresh.
He pointed to its work against Oregon quarterback Dante Moore in Week 2 and a four-sack, eight-tackle-for-loss effort against West Virginia. The rotation, he said, allows defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity to trust every player on the unit.
UCF’s run game, which showed well against Houston, could still run into a wall if Oklahoma State brings the same edge discipline and tackling it has shown against FBS competition. Postins said the Cowboys don’t give up contain, force runners back inside and have generally made it hard for opponents to find easy ground yards.
The biggest question on the other side of the ball is Oklahoma State quarterback Zane Flores, whose turnover count has climbed quickly. Postins said Flores has seven turnovers in four games - two interceptions against Tulsa, one against West Virginia, two more against Oregon and two lost fumbles - compared with nine total last season. He said some of that is a byproduct of volume, but “some of it is on him,” and added that Morris has made it a point of emphasis this week.
Those giveaways are part of why Oklahoma State’s offense has not been as efficient as it wants to be. Postins said the Cowboys are having trouble on third down and in the red zone, where they have six touchdowns in 17 trips against FBS opponents and have settled for eight field goals. He said Morris has become more conservative as a play-caller because of those issues and wants more production on first and second down to make third downs easier.
Postins also said the Cowboys can be vulnerable when an opponent finds the right balance on defense. He noted that Oklahoma State’s big plays against West Virginia came after the Mountaineers sold out against the pass early, then got hurt when the secondary was banged up. Teams that can stay balanced, he said, are the ones that can cause real problems for the Cowboys.
Stillwater itself is part of the test. Postins called Orlando “a sneaky-tough place to play,” but said Stillwater is different because “there’s nothing sneaky about that venue.”
He said the game will be sold out, the fans will be close to the field and the sideline sits less than 20 feet from the stands. “It is going to be LOUD,” he said.
For UCF, the formula is straightforward. Postins said Oklahoma State needs a fast offensive start, a clean turnover battle and early stops on defense.
If the Cowboys protect the ball and get rolling quickly, they’ll be in good shape. If they don’t, he said, giving UCF extra chances on the road is a bad way to invite trouble.
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