Eric Morris doesn’t have to look far to find the doubt around Oklahoma State. He can hear it in the questions, see it in the numbers, and feel it in the reality of a roster that has been almost completely rebuilt.
That’s exactly why he’s leaning into a label that fits his group just fine.
“Our mantra this year is we call ourselves some misfits, right?” he said.
“We have a bunch of people from different situations, [and] some are coming off really positive situations where there were great players that got recruited at a high level, [and others] that hadn't gone through that before. I mean, you have guys like Wyatt [Young], Caleb [Hawkins] and Drew [Mestemaker] and they don’t get recruited out of high school.
Then all of a sudden, they have a great season, they produce at a high level, and they have blue bloods all over the country calling.”
The Cowboys are only a few days into fall workouts, but Saturday’s media day in Stillwater already gave Morris a chance to address the biggest storyline around the program: how a massive offseason overhaul will hold up once the games start.
There’s plenty to unpack. Oklahoma State went 1-11 last season, 4-20 over the past two years and has dropped 18 straight Big 12 games.
That slide helped cost longtime coach Mike Gundy his job. Morris inherited a roster with only 13 letter winners back from last year and then added nearly 90 transfers, along with a solid freshman class.
The coach clearly isn’t shying away from the skepticism. In fact, he’s using it.
A big part of that mindset comes from the players he brought with him from North Texas. Nearly 20 former Mean Green players followed Morris to Stillwater after North Texas went 12-2 last season and reached the American Conference championship game before losing to Tulane. Wyatt Young, Caleb Hawkins and Drew Mestemaker were among the examples Morris pointed to, players who weren’t heavily recruited out of high school but broke through and drew major attention after producing at a high level.
Now comes the hard part: turning all that turnover into something that works on Saturdays. Oklahoma State has 25 fall practices to build the foundation Morris wants before the season opener at Tulsa on Sept.
- The Golden Hurricane beat the Cowboys in Stillwater last season for the first time since the 1950s.
From there, Oklahoma State returns home for two straight games against Oregon on Sept. 12 and Murray State on Sept. 19, before opening Big 12 play at West Virginia on Sept. 26.
In Other News...
Oklahoma State Has An Intriguing New Receiver To Watch In Camp
Oklahoma State is leaning into a more pass-heavy look this season under quarterback Drew Mestemaker, and that means camp will be a revealing place for a crowded receiver room to sort itself out. The Cowboys have 14 wideouts in the mix, with a blend of older options and three freshman recruits trying to carve out roles in Eric Morris Air Raid offense.
Among the newcomers drawing notice is Dayvon Standard, a long 6-4 target from Arizona who arrived late and missed spring ball, which usually makes the climb even steeper for a freshman. Still, Morris has pointed to Standard as one of the more intriguing names to watch as camp unfolds, and his size gives Oklahoma State another body at a position where every practice rep matters. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Has A Camp Battle That Could Reshape The Offense
Fall camp is arriving with one of the more interesting position questions on Oklahoma States roster, and it sits at tight end. Head coach Eric Morris spent time outlining the group, pointing to the different backgrounds and skill sets the Cowboys have assembled there and making clear this is more than a one-man race. The appeal, from an offensive standpoint, is obvious: the room offers versatility, and Morris sees each player bringing something useful either in the passing game, as a blocker or on special teams.
What makes the battle worth watching is how open it remains. Morris did not point to a settled answer, which leaves the Cowboys with a genuine competition heading into camp rather than a depth chart already written in ink. Hammond, Green, McFaul, Boydstun and Kolb all have a path to contributing, and the way that group sorts itself out could shape how often Oklahoma State leans on the tight end and what kind of flexibility the offense can build around the position. [Read more 🡒]