Another wild week in college football brought a fresh shakeup to ESPN’s Football Power Index, and Oklahoma State made the loudest move of all. After a 66-28 rout of Kansas State, the Cowboys surged 13 spots to No. 21 in the Week 11 rankings.
That kind of leap comes with a statement win attached. Oklahoma State didn’t just handle Kansas State - it blasted the Wildcats by 38 points, and the FPI took notice.
The Cowboys’ offense was the driving force, pouring in 66 points and continuing a season-long run that has them ranked third nationally in scoring. When a team is stacking points like that, the model is going to reward it.
The Cowboys’ climb gives them one of the biggest boosts in the latest update, and it leaves them with a chance to prove the performance was no fluke. They’ll try to carry that momentum forward and show the offensive explosion is part of something bigger than one big Saturday.
At the top, Notre Dame held firm at No. 1 after beating Miami in a major showdown. Georgia stayed right behind at No. 2, followed by Alabama at No. 3 and Miami at No.
- Ohio State rounds out the top five.
The rest of the top 25 features Texas at No. 6, LSU at No.
7, Indiana at No. 8, Oregon at No. 9 and Utah at No.
- Tennessee sits at No. 11, with Ole Miss at No.
12, Wake Forest at No. 13, Texas Tech at No. 14 and Louisville at No.
USC checks in at No. 16, followed by BYU at No. 17, Iowa at No.
18, South Carolina at No. 19 and Houston at No. 20.
After Oklahoma State at No. 21, the back end of the rankings includes Oklahoma at No. 22, Nebraska at No.
23, Texas A&M at No. 24 and Missouri at No. 25.
In Other News...
Oklahoma State Just Delivered The Bounce-Back Cowboys Fans Needed
A needed reset arrived in emphatic fashion Saturday, when Oklahoma State buried Kansas State 66-28 and made the game feel out of reach before halftime. The Cowboys poured in 49 first-half points, and the offense had answers everywhere, from Caleb Hawkins piling up 246 total yards and four touchdowns to Drew Mestemaker throwing for 313 yards and three scores despite an interception.
The defense did its part, too, turning the night into a full-team response with three interceptions and steady pressure on the Kansas State quarterback. For a program looking for a jolt, this was the kind of performance that can change the tone around the locker room and the fan base, even if the bigger question is whether Oklahoma State can carry this version of itself forward. [Read more 🡒]
First Real Look At David Taylors Cowboys Starts Here
The first real look at David Taylors Oklahoma State wrestling team arrives Sunday, when the Cowboys open their dual season at Gallagher-Iba Arena against Drexel. It is the kind of early test that quickly reveals where a roster stands, especially for a program that enters the year with national expectations and plenty of attention on how Taylors group will look in live competition.
The matchup is set for 2 p.m. CT and will stream on ESPN+, giving fans a first chance to see the Cowboys in a dual setting rather than just in preseason conversation. Oklahoma State is ranked No. 2 nationally to start the season, so even a November opener carries a little extra weight as the Cowboys begin sorting out how they stack up in the chase ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State May Finally Have The Team To Challenge Penn State
Oklahoma State wrestling heads into the season with the kind of roster that can make the rest of the sport take notice. The Cowboys are trying to build something big enough to challenge preseason No. 1 Penn State, which owns the NCAA Championships record for points, and they have the returning talent to at least make that conversation real. Coach David Taylor and his group have been clear about the approach, too: keep the focus on their own performance and let the results sort themselves out.
The appeal here is not just depth, but the possibility of a lineup loaded enough to produce multiple national champions in the same year. Oklahoma State has brought back proven pieces and added the nations top high school recruiting class, giving this program a mix of experience and upside that few teams can match. The question now is whether all that talent can be turned into the kind of season that puts the Cowboys in position to chase down the standard set in State College. [Read more 🡒]