Oklahoma State’s NIL picture in the Big 12 looks a lot different depending on where you set the frame.
According to data gathered by NIL-NCAA.com, the Cowboys are projected to spend an estimated $22.1 million on football in NIL money for 2026, which places them at No. 40 nationally. That total leaves Oklahoma State in the bottom half of the power conference schools overall, but the Big 12 story is more nuanced.
The site’s statistical editor, Patrick O’Rourke, a CPA based in Washington, DC, uses a wide mix of sources in building the estimates, including the NCAA, the U.S. Department of Education, universities sponsoring intercollegiate athletic teams, athletic conferences, academic and government studies and media coverage. He also uses data from the annual Equity in Athletics Act (EADA) survey.
Within the Big 12, Oklahoma State lands in the conference’s top six in NIL spending. The problem is the top of the league has a clear outlier.
Texas Tech is estimated to be spending $33.3 million, the highest figure in the Big 12 and nearly $10 million more than the next-closest conference school. The Red Raiders are also projected to outspend Oklahoma State by $11 million.
Still, the gap looks different once Texas Tech is removed from the equation. On that side of the ledger, the Cowboys are right there with the rest of the conference.
Houston sits second in the league at an estimated $24.5 million, followed by Colorado at $23.2 million, BYU at $23 million and TCU at $22.7 million. Oklahoma State is within $2.4 million of second place, and that spot belongs to a team the Cowboys will face in October.
There’s no hiding the fact that Oklahoma State has work to do. But the bigger takeaway is that the separation between OSU and the rest of the Big 12 outside Texas Tech is manageable. How the Cowboys perform this season could help shape what they have to bring to the table in 2027.
In Other News...
Oklahoma State's Air Raid Is Making A Big Philosophical Shift
Eric Morris grew up in the Air Raid world under Mike Leach, so the passing game has always been his football language. But at Oklahoma State, the head coach is making a notable philosophical adjustment, one that still leans on tempo and volume through the air while giving the run game a much bigger seat at the table. It is a shift he has been building toward for years, not a sudden departure from what made him successful, and it reflects a broader idea that modern offenses do not have to choose between Air Raid principles and balance.
Morris has studied championship teams and taken away a simple lesson: the offenses that win big usually find ways to be dangerous on the ground as well as through the air. He began applying that thinking at previous coaching stops, including Incarnate Word and North Texas, where his teams ran the ball more effectively without giving up the passing production that defined his system. For Oklahoma State, the appeal is obvious. The Cowboys still want the explosive, high-volume offense that fits Morris background, but they are also trying to build something sturdier, something that can travel into tougher games and, in his view, hold up when seasons get decided in the margins. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Got An AP Poll Nod That Will Get Fans Talking
Oklahoma State did not crack the Associated Press preseason Top 25, but the Cowboys still surfaced on the ballot enough to get people around Stillwater talking. They picked up eight votes from three AP panel members, a small sign of respect that usually says as much about curiosity as certainty when a team is trying to build a new identity entering the fall.
Jon Wilner and Dylan Sinn were among the voters who explained their choices, pointing to the additions coming from North Texas and the upside of a group that could be intriguing under Eric Morris. The Cowboys also have no shortage of chances to prove the point, with Oregon, Houston and Texas Tech all on the schedule, and that kind of slate tends to turn preseason goodwill into a real test in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Just Landed A Massive Chance To Change Its Future Backcourt
A major backcourt swing is on the table for Oklahoma State, which has secured a visit from Moussa Kamissoko as the recruiting race around the elite shooting guard starts to take shape. Kamissoko brings the kind of profile that can alter a programs trajectory, with a polished scoring touch and the ability to create for others, making him one of the more intriguing guards in the class.
The Cowboys will have their chance to make a strong impression in mid-September, when Kamissoko comes through Stillwater as part of a busy official-visit schedule. He is weighing a broad list of options before a possible decision in November, and for Oklahoma State, landing him would do more than add talent - it could reshape the look of its next backcourt and give the program a real boost in the recruiting standings. [Read more 🡒]