Two weeks ago, Oklahoma State’s upset of Oregon did more than change the mood around the program. It also gave Eric Morris something he badly needed on the recruiting trail.
Morris said after that win that he felt his program was behind with the Class of 2027. He knew beating a nationally ranked Oregon team that had reached the College Football Playoff in each of the past two seasons would help. He also knew the timing mattered, and the Cowboys have given him even more to work with since then.
Oklahoma State is now on a three-game winning streak, its first since the start of the 2024 season. The Cowboys are also unbeaten in Big 12 play, and that first conference victory ended an 18-game league losing streak. For a team that entered the year carrying a long list of burdens, a lot of that weight has started to lift.
Now the Cowboys head into their bye week, and the timing lines up perfectly with a new national ranking. Oklahoma State is No. 19 in the AP Top 25, its first appearance in the poll since Week 4 of the 2024 season. Morris and his staff will use that break not just to get healthy, but to get back on the road and catch up with Class of 2027 targets.
That ranking matters because it gives Morris something real to sell. For the last nine months, he has been asking recruits to buy into a vision. Now he can point to results.
The Cowboys’ recruiting position still has room to grow. Per 247 Sports, Oklahoma State has the No. 14 class in the Big 12.
The group includes 12 commits, with two four-star players among them. That’s a step forward from Morris’ Class of 2026, which he pieced together after taking over in December and which did not include a four-star prospect.
Morris doesn’t build around star ratings the way outsiders do. He cares about what players show on film and in person.
But recruits know what Oklahoma State has been through. Before Morris got there, the Cowboys were 4-20 over their previous two seasons, had dropped 18 straight conference games and were coming off a 21-game losing streak against FBS teams after falling to Tulsa in Week 1.
The Oregon win, with more than 100 recruits on campus for official visits, gave Morris another line he can use: winning is the best recruiting tool.
And right now, he has both the results and the ranking to back it up. With UCF coming on Oct. 10, the bye week gives Oklahoma State a chance to recover physically while Morris works the recruiting trail.
For the Cowboys, that’s a useful stretch. For their head coach, it may be the perfect one.
In Other News...
Kansas State Suddenly Has Bigger Concerns Than One Road Loss
Oklahoma States latest surge has looked a lot different from the uneven start that had this season feeling far less certain just a few weeks ago. The Cowboys are now part of a small group in the Big 12 trending the right way, with recent results and sharper play separating them from a league field that has started to sort itself into winners and worry spots.
Kansas State is on the opposite side of that divide, and the Wildcats are suddenly dealing with more than the sting of a road loss. With West Virginia and TCU also among the teams showing clear issues, the conference picture is beginning to harden, and for Oklahoma State that matters because momentum in November can shape everything from confidence to the rest of the race. [Read more 🡒]
UCFs Big 12 Road Suddenly Looks Tougher Than Fans Expected
The Big 12 road for UCF picked up a little more weight on Saturday as Houston finished its nonconference slate with a 42-28 win over Georgia Southern and moved from No. 25 to No. 20 in the AP poll. Oklahoma State also made a statement, handling West Virginia 41-24 to secure a spot in the Top 25, while Georgia State bounced back from its loss to UCF by beating Northern Illinois 35-14 behind a strong day from quarterback Taron Dickens.
For the Knights, that matters because the league trip they thought might offer some margin for error now looks a lot tighter. Houston is climbing, Oklahoma State is suddenly in the rankings, and the results around them suggest UCF will keep seeing teams arrive with more confidence and more hardware attached to the matchup, especially after the kind of performances that can reshape a September conversation in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Jaylen Warren Just Gave Oklahoma State Fans A Big NFL Reminder
Week 3 offered Oklahoma State fans another reminder of how much NFL talent has come through Stillwater. Jaylen Warren was the headliner, turning in a strong showing for Pittsburgh in a tight win over Cincinnati, while Chuba Hubbard and Ollie Gordon II were among the other former Cowboys in action across the league. It was one of those weekends when the orange-and-black pipeline felt especially visible, with familiar names popping up in different games and different roles.
The list of former Cowboys did not stop there, either, with Justice Hill, Malcolm Rodriguez, Tyler Lacy, Tay Martin and Tylan Wallace also active or dealing with injury situations during the week. Teven Jenkins absence was part of that broader picture, a reminder that these NFL returns are not always clean or linear even when the former Cowboy talent is easy to spot. For Oklahoma State supporters, the bigger takeaway is simple enough: the program keeps producing players who matter on Sundays. [Read more 🡒]