Oklahoma State’s matchup with Texas Tech on Saturday is getting the full College GameDay treatment, and that meant Nick Saban had a chance to weigh in on the Cowboys’ offense and quarterback Drew Mestemaker.
The Cowboys enter the game at 6-3 overall and 4-2 in Big 12 play, while Texas Tech comes in at 8-1 and 5-1. Oklahoma State is not in the AP or USA Today Top 25, but it is sitting at No. 25 in the College Football Playoff rankings, which is what put this game in the national spotlight.
With Texas Tech at No. 12, it is one of two Top 25 CFP matchups in the Big 12 on Saturday. The other pits No.
2 Utah against No. 23 Arizona.
Kickoff for Oklahoma State and Texas Tech is set for 8:30 p.m. on ESPN.
During the GameDay preview, Saban didn’t hold back on Mestemaker.
“This guy can spin it,” Saban said. “He's athletic. he processes [information] quickly, he gets the ball out of his hand and when you can score points like that you can beat anybody.”
That kind of praise carries weight coming from Saban, who retired after the 2023 season with a 292-71-1 career record. His head-coaching run began at Toledo in 1990, and he finished with seven national championships, including six at Alabama.
Mestemaker has been central to Oklahoma State’s offensive surge. The Cowboys are averaging 43.9 points per game this season after putting up just 14.2 per game last year during a 1-11 campaign. That 29.7-point jump, per OptaStats, is the biggest year-over-year improvement in points per game by any FBS team over the last 30 seasons.
The Austin, Texas, native has piled up the numbers to match the eye test. He has already set an Oklahoma State record for consecutive 300-yard passing games, and he owns the longest active FBS streaks for 200-yard passing games at 24 and 300-yard passing games at eight.
He has thrown for 2,952 yards with 29 touchdowns and eight interceptions, ranking second nationally in passing yards and first in touchdown passes. Earlier this week, he was named a Maxwell Award semifinalist.
Mestemaker’s production has also put him in the early NFL conversation. After leading the nation in passing yards at North Texas last season with 4,379 and finishing second in FBS with 32 passing touchdowns, he’s now being talked about as a candidate to be the first quarterback selected in the 2027 NFL Draft in April.
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