Oklahoma State enters fall camp with a wide receiver room that looks a lot different from a year ago, but it also looks built for the offense it wants to run.
That matters in an Air Raid system, especially with a transfer quarterback in Drew Mestemaker who already knows what this passing game can look like. The Cowboys brought in 14 receivers, and the staff made sure this group wasn’t just deep - it was familiar. Eight of those receivers have college experience, and three of them were with Mestemaker last season at North Texas.
That kind of continuity can go a long way when a new coaching staff is trying to get an offense rolling. Eric Morris and his staff clearly treated receiver as a priority in the portal, and the result is a room with size, speed and enough variety to give the quarterback options.
The most obvious headliners are the North Texas trio. Wyatt Young arrives as the most proven target in the group after leading the Mean Green with 70 catches for 1,264 yards and 10 touchdowns.
He topped the team in every receiving category. Miles Coleman, at 5-6, profiles as a slot option and brings 47 catches for 550 yards and three touchdowns from last season.
Terrence Lewis adds another productive piece after playing in 12 games and finishing with 11 catches for 184 yards and three scores, good for 16.7 yards per catch.
That trio gives Oklahoma State something valuable right away: receivers who know the offense, know the staff and know the quarterback. Chemistry should not be a problem.
The Cowboys also added two players with power conference experience. Justin Bowick comes over from Illinois and gives OSU a 6-5 frame that makes him a natural red zone threat.
Chris Barnes, who played at Wake Forest, brings speed and versatility, including the ability to handle kick returns. Barnes is listed at 5-7, while Coleman is 5-6, so the Cowboys have real depth in the smaller-receiver category as well.
At the same time, the room is balanced out by size. Six receivers are listed at 6 feet or taller, including Young, who stands 6 feet and looks like the favorite target for Mestemaker. Bowick’s size gives him a clear edge in certain situations, and Barnes adds a different kind of weapon altogether.
There are also younger names in the mix. Oklahoma State has two true freshmen and two redshirt freshmen on the roster, with the redshirt freshmen already in Stillwater last season but not earning letters. Under the new age-based eligibility rule, that gives them a path to compete for playing time.
The top of the depth chart looks fairly settled. Young, Barnes, Bowick and Coleman appear to have strong cases based on production and fit.
That leaves a handful of spots still up for grabs, and Lewis will get a chance. So will Akron transfer Israel Polk, Ohio transfer Rodney Harris II and true freshman Jabarie Thornton, who comes in with a strong high school résumé from La Vega High School in Waco, Texas.
That makes receiver one of the most interesting battles in camp. The Cowboys have their core pieces in place, but the last few spots are still very much open.
In Other News...
Oklahoma State Is Still Alive For An In-State Recruit Fans Need
Recruiting in-state always matters in Stillwater, and Oklahoma State is still in the mix for one of the biggest names in the next wave. Kamieon Compton-Nero, the top-ranked athlete in the Class of 2028 and a standout from Owasso, is among the programs top 15 targets, a sign the Cowboys remain firmly in the conversation for a player who has already drawn attention on both sides of the ball.
Compton-Nero has put up eye-catching numbers as both a quarterback and a defensive player, which only adds to the intrigue around how he might be used at the next level. For Oklahoma State, the appeal goes beyond talent alone: the staff is tracking a local prospect who could become a major piece in the future, even with a quarterback room that already includes one 2027 commit and two true freshmen on campus. [Read more 🡒]
NCAA Twist Could Reopen Several Oklahoma State Careers
A federal judge in Colorado has thrown a fresh wrinkle into the NCAAs eligibility rules, ordering the association to declare eligible all high school class of 2022 athletes who used up four seasons of eligibility this spring. The ruling comes amid legal challenges to the NCAAs newer age-based "five-for-five" standard, and it has immediate implications for several student-athletes who suddenly have another path to keep competing.
For Oklahoma State, the decision touches three players and could reopen careers that looked finished at the end of the spring. The bigger picture for the Cowboys is obvious: roster planning, scholarship management and even offseason expectations can all shift when athletes who seemed out of eligibility may be able to return for another college season. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State May Have Found A Breakout Answer In The Secondary
Eric Morris has spent his first months reshaping Oklahoma State with an avalanche of transfers, nearly 90 in all, as he builds a roster that looks very different from the one he inherited. The group includes quarterback Drew Mestemaker and former UCLA linebacker Isaiah Chisom, but one of the quieter additions could end up mattering just as much on the defensive side: Vincent Holmes, a safety who arrived from Washington looking for a reset.
Holmes was once a four-star recruit, but his time in Seattle never really took off, leaving him with little game action and a lot to prove. In Stillwater, he is trying to turn that pedigree into production in Skyler Cassitys 4-2-5 defense, where the structure gives him a real chance to push for a starting safety role and carve out the kind of breakout opportunity that never came before. [Read more 🡒]