Oklahoma State’s latest surge is doing more than keeping the Cowboys in the Big 12 race. It’s giving Eric Morris and his staff something they badly needed on the recruiting trail: a winning pitch that actually lands.
That was on display as Oklahoma State hosted a strong mix of visitors during its 57-24 win over Colorado. The group included commitments in the Class of 2027, along with other prospects the staff is trying to flip for 2027 or keep in play for classes beyond that. With Homecoming in Stillwater, the place was packed with alums, fans and students, and the atmosphere clearly made an impression.
Rivals spoke with several recruits who were in attendance, and the feedback on the experience was strong across the board. The game mattered, sure, but so did the scene around it. For a program trying to rebuild its recruiting footing, the timing couldn’t have been better.
One quote in particular tied it all together.
“It’s definitely great to be recognized by a playoff contender - and that plays a part in my recruitment because I love to win, so them being a contender definitely gives them a leg up,” Crandall (Texas) running back Darrik Ward Jr. said to Rivals.
That kind of reaction is exactly what Oklahoma State is after right now. Morris said something similar after the Cowboys beat Oregon in Week 2: winning changes the way a program is perceived. And lately, the Cowboys have given recruits plenty of reason to look twice.
They are back in the conversation for the Big 12 Championship game in December in Arlington, though they still need some help to get there. As long as they keep stacking wins, the opportunity remains alive. More importantly for Morris, the momentum is real enough that recruits are noticing.
The turnaround is striking when you look at how quickly things unraveled before Morris arrived. In 2023, Mike Gundy led Oklahoma State to the Big 12 Championship game, where the Cowboys lost to Texas.
Then came a stunning collapse: a 3-9 season in 2024 with no Big 12 wins, followed by a 1-11 campaign in 2025. Gundy was fired after the Week 3 loss to Tulsa.
Morris took over a program that had gone 4-20 across those two seasons and had dropped 18 straight Big 12 games. He opened his tenure with a road loss to Tulsa, but since then the Cowboys have gone 5-1. The only defeat in that stretch came against ranked Houston by three points.
Oklahoma State’s rise showed up in the AP Top 25 as well. The Cowboys returned to the poll this week at No. 24 after a one-week absence, and the Big 12 now has six ranked teams for the first time since 2012.
That’s the kind of backdrop that can matter in both recruiting and the transfer portal once the season ends. For Morris and Oklahoma State, the message is simple: winning has put the program back in the conversation, and that one recruit’s comment hints at how much that can matter.
In Other News...
Steve Lutz Has An Early Oklahoma State Guard Decision To Make
Steve Lutz has spent the early stretch of preseason trying to figure out how his newest Oklahoma State team will come together, and the guard rotation is one of the first real decisions on his desk. Lutz believes he has his best offensive group yet as he works toward getting the Cowboys back to the NCAA Tournament, but after a pair of scrimmages, he is still sorting out how much responsibility to hand true freshman Anthony Felisi. The young guard has already flashed the kind of defensive energy that can make a coach lean in, while also contributing enough on offense to stay in the conversation.
The bigger question is how Felisi fits once the roster is fully available and the experienced guards settle into their usual roles. Oklahoma State has depth at the position, which makes every minute a little harder to win, and Lutzs choice will depend as much on health as it does on trust and timing. Felisi has given the staff reasons to keep watching closely, and the early read on his role could say a lot about how Lutz wants this team to play once the games count. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Faces One Last Chance To Answer A Growing Concern
Oklahoma State gets one more preseason test before the games start counting, and it comes in a tough setting against Wisconsin at the Kohl Center. The Cowboys have already worked through two exhibition tuneups, and they have at least seen encouraging production from guard Kashie Natt as they continue sorting out roles and rhythm ahead of the regular season.
Wisconsin brings its own momentum into the matchup after winning both of its preseason exhibitions, though this will be its first chance to see a power-conference opponent this fall. For Oklahoma State, the backdrop is simple enough: another live look at where the roster stands, another chance to sharpen the details, and a final exhibition spotlight that will be easy to follow on B1G+, the Cowboy Radio Network and the Varsity Network app. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Has New Names Pushing For Bigger Roles After Colorado
Oklahoma States rout of Colorado did more than keep the Cowboys in the Big 12 race, it also gave a few lesser-known names a chance to show where they fit as the season gets late. The win was big enough to strengthen the teams standing for the conference title chase, but the more interesting follow-up has been how the staff can now sort through who earned a larger say in the rotation after that performance.
Braydon Nelsons rise is one of the cleaner examples of that momentum, and William Mason added to it by scoring his first touchdown while carving out more snaps through his special teams work. LaDainian Fields helped the defense with interceptions, Lawson came up with a key play, and the depth chart still has a few questions attached to it, including the status of Ayo Adeyi, making this one of those weeks where the box score only tells part of the story. [Read more 🡒]