Oklahoma State’s win over West Virginia told you plenty about where the Cowboys are right now, and the snap counts filled in the rest.
The biggest takeaway came up front, where Oklahoma State finally had its five starting offensive linemen on the field for every snap. Joseph Hanson’s return at right guard let Johnny Dickson III slide back to left guard, and the result was a clean 70-snap night for all five linemen.
That group helped the Cowboys pile up 608 options in yards and, in the second half, completely control the Mountaineer front four. After four games, the cohesion in that unit was obvious.
That stability also raises the next question: what happens if Brayden Nelson is ready for the UCF game on Oct. 10?
At tight end, the answer is even clearer. Morris clearly trusts Kolb, and the usage shows it.
Kolb played 64 snaps, with 36 coming on run plays and 23 on pass plays. The other tight ends combined for 13 snaps.
After four games, Kolb has gone from transfer portal addition to fall camp buzz to a central piece of the offense, and no offensive player has made a bigger leap.
On the defensive side, one of the more notable changes was Phillips getting the start at free safety, and he backed it up. He played 80 snaps, trailing only safety Quinton Hammonds and linebacker Ethan Wesloski, and he came up with the interception that swung momentum Oklahoma State’s way. He gave the Cowboys steady play on the back end all night.
Another player whose role appears to be growing is Chisom. Part of his snap increase came from Oklahoma State opening in a 3-3-5 look and starting him there, but it also reflected the staff trusting him more in the 4-2-5 package.
Even with Wesloski and Tate Romney as the starters, the Cowboys are using Chisom more often in their base defense. He finished with seven tackles on 50 snaps.
The running back rotation was more muddled. Adeyi had worked his way into the mix as an “OR” next to Tre Page III, but that didn’t translate into a heavy workload.
He played just 15 snaps and left at one point after getting shaken up and heading off with trainers. Page, meanwhile, didn’t play a snap.
With Adeyi banged up and Caleb Hawkins becoming more of a focal point in close games, the usage there may not be changing anytime soon.
Barnes’ role is another one to watch. Against West Virginia, his backup on the depth chart, Terrence Lewis, got the start and played 44 snaps to Barnes’ 21.
That could simply mean the Cowboys were easing Barnes back in, and he did deliver a huge catch to open the second half and spark the offense. Still, the snap split stood out given where the two sit on the depth chart.
The defensive front had its own ripple effects. When Oklahoma State was without Iman Oates against Murray State, Enai White started at nose tackle.
With Oates back, neither White nor Oates started because the Cowboys used Jerry Lawson at tackle in their 3-3-5 look. White, who had a solid game against Murray State, was limited to just five snaps against West Virginia.
Only backup defensive end DeSean Brown had fewer.
And then there’s Jackson, whose usage keeps trending the wrong way. He played only nine snaps against West Virginia after getting just four against Oregon.
That’s a sharp drop from 38 against Tulsa and 24 against Murray State. Whether this is about him adjusting to power conference competition or something else, the Cowboys clearly haven’t leaned on him much lately.
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The matchup brings an early kickoff and a TV slot on ESPN or ESPN2, but the bigger question hanging over the game is on the other sideline. UCFs quarterback situation is unsettled after Alonza Barnett III has missed the last two games, and his availability still has not been cleared up, leaving one of the conferences next tests with an important variable still in play. [Read more 🡒]