A new era at Oklahoma State is bringing a fresh wave of pressure, and fall camp is about to sort out who can handle it.
Under first-year head coach Eric Morris, the Cowboys haven’t even had a live fall workout yet. That changes soon, and a handful of players are walking into camp with a lot riding on every rep, every interview and every mistake.
At quarterback, the spotlight is already scorching. The redshirt sophomore hasn’t taken a meaningful snap for Oklahoma State yet, so the buzz around him is built entirely on what he did at North Texas last season.
There, he led the nation in passing yards and finished second in passing touchdowns. That kind of résumé brings expectations, and now he has to back it up in Stillwater.
Quarterback is the hardest job in sports and the most exposed, and he’ll spend camp as the clear first-team guy while trying to prove he can be the answer for a program that hasn’t had quality quarterback play in a few years.
Up front, another player is trying to turn potential into durability. He spent four seasons at Oklahoma, which made the move to Oklahoma State a dream scenario for the Edmond, Okla., native and Deer Creek High School product.
He was on the Sooners’ roster when they were in the Big 12 and when they moved to the SEC, which ended the Bedlam Rivalry - or, as the source put it, hopefully just put it on pause for a while. His biggest stretch of action came as a true freshman in 2022, when he appeared in 10 games at left tackle.
Oklahoma saw him as a future starter, but injuries cut short each of his next three seasons. Now he’s trying to win a starting job and stay healthy in what is also his final college season.
The pressure is just as real on the edge. Johnson drew attention at Big 12 media days and, even though he was surprised to be asked to speak for the defense, handled it well.
He’s looking forward to being a full-time starter in defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity’s system, and Morris thinks he can fit the scheme. But Johnson has never been a full-time starter.
The four games he started last season were the first starts of his four-year career, and then he got hurt. He’s also one of the last links to the Mike Gundy era and, like Sexton, is in his final season of college football.
He wants to be “the guy” on the edge, but there are players at the position with enough talent to push him hard.
Linebacker brings its own competition. Romney is listed by plenty of preview magazines as the projected starter opposite Ethan Wesloski, and Oklahoma State sees him as a fresh start after his time at Arizona State.
In 2023, he had 52 tackles for the Sun Devils, but after that he couldn’t stay healthy and eventually lost playing time. His challenge now is twofold: stay on the field and hold off UCLA transfer Isaiah Chisom, who arrives after an 84-tackle season with the Bruins.
It’s fair to wonder why Chisom isn’t projected as the starter by most outlets, but Romney will feel that pressure from day one of workouts.
Then there’s the freshman carrying a famous last name. His older brother, Brennan Presley, is Oklahoma State’s all-time leading receiver and now plays for the Los Angeles Rams.
Another older brother, Braylin, also played at OSU and Tulsa, while one of his sisters, Britney, ran track at OSU. Family ties like that come with built-in expectations, and Cowboys fans will notice the name immediately.
That’s a lot for a true freshman to carry, even if the pressure isn’t coming directly from his family or coaches. It will be there all the same when fall camp opens.
In Other News...
One Oklahoma State Freshman Is Pushing For A Starting Role Fast
Eric Morris first recruiting class at Oklahoma State may not have included a four-star headliner, but it still arrived with enough talent to land inside the Top 50 nationally and No. 16 in the Big 12. The 20-player group gives the Cowboys a fresh wave of options, and while running back KD Jones is the classs highest-rated name, the early buzz around camp is pointing in another direction as the staff sorts out who can help right away.
Braeden Presley has emerged as the freshman most likely to force his way into the lineup quickly, thanks to his athleticism and the chance to compete immediately under the new eligibility rules. With opportunity in front of him and a roster spot that looks far from settled, Presley has a real opening to make the kind of first-year leap that can change the conversation around a recruiting class fast. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Finally Has Linebacker Depth But One Concern Still Lingers
Oklahoma State enters fall camp in a much better spot at linebacker than it has been in recent years, with 11 players on the roster for a 4-2-5 defense that only needs two starters in the middle. Ethan Wesloski and Tate Romney are the likely front line options, and behind them the Cowboys have a mix of returning players and transfers giving the position group a more legitimate sense of depth than it has had in a while.
The real question now is how quickly that depth turns into dependable production. Experienced newcomers are part of the competition, and names like Isaiah Chisom, Dallas Winner-Johnson, Trip White and Gunnar Wilson give the staff options, but the Cowboys still need the group to sort itself out once camp reps start stacking up. For a defense built around speed and flexibility, linebacker development and health could end up shaping how steady the entire unit looks this season. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Fans Havent Forgotten How Arizona State Took Control
The last time Arizona State came to Stillwater, the Sun Devils didnt just leave with a win, they left a reminder that Kenny Dillinghams program had arrived faster than most expected. Dillingham took over in 2023 after a 3-9 season and guided Arizona State all the way to the Big 12 championship game in 2024, and the Cowboys saw plenty of that progress up close in a 42-21 loss on Nov. 2.
For Oklahoma State fans, what lingers is how the afternoon unfolded once the game settled in. The first half was competitive enough to suggest a fight, but Arizona State seized control after halftime and never really gave it back, with Sam Leavitt and Kam Skattebo helping tilt the field in the Sun Devils favor while Alan Bowman, Ollie Gordon II and the Cowboys were left chasing the game. [Read more 🡒]