Oklahoma State’s quarterback room has a clear No. 1, but the real battle in Stillwater is for the job behind him.
New head coach Eric Morris arrives with a well-earned reputation for offense, built through stops at Incarnate Word, North Texas and a brief stint as offensive coordinator at Washington State. His air raid system has already produced results, and Cowboys fans saw the latest version of it last season when Morris and quarterback Drew Mestemaker guided North Texas to a 12-2 finish and a trip to the American Conference championship game.
Now Morris and Mestemaker are together again at Oklahoma State, where the Cowboys are trying to bounce back from a 1-11 season that ended with Mike Gundy’s dismissal. Mestemaker, the former North Texas quarterback who led FBS in passing yards last year, is firmly in control of the offense.
Morris made that plain in his first post-practice media session, even describing how much ownership Mestemaker has taken during the summer.
“When we did some player-run practices this summer, we allowed him to script the whole practice and put his spin on some stuff,” Morris said. “So then receivers are sending back a play designed by Drew that scored a touchdown saying, ‘Coach, we should probably put this in.’”
Morris also pointed out that having Mestemaker back for another season is something he hasn’t had often. He said it was the first time since Cam Ward that he had the same quarterback in consecutive seasons, though that came at two different schools. Ward started for Morris at Incarnate Word in 2021, then transferred to Washington State after Morris moved on to become the Cougars’ offensive coordinator.
Behind Mestemaker, Oklahoma State has three quarterbacks on the roster. Grant Jordan, a redshirt senior, brings experience from Yale and UMass. The other two are freshmen: Broderick Vehrs from Basha High School in Gilbert, Ariz., and Luke Tepas from Barrington High School in Barrington, Ill.
Jordan threw for 1,938 yards and 22 touchdowns at Yale in 2024, and the race to be the primary backup appears to be between him and Vehrs.
“Grant is a seasoned veteran,” Morris said. “He's played football, he's been around it, he's installed, super smart, continues to get better.
Then Brody's [Vehrs] a guy I think that's right on his tail right now. I mean, a young guy that got all those reps in the spring.
So, yeah, I mean, I think we'll give them a ton of reps in scrimmage live situations to see who can put it all together for us.”
Oklahoma State’s quarterback situation looks dramatically different from a year ago. Eight different players attempted at least one pass last season, with Zane Flores leading the group with 1,490 yards. None of those quarterbacks are on the roster now, and Flores has transferred to Iowa State, where he is set to back up Arkansas State transfer Jaylen Raynor.
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