Eric Morris Turns the Page: Oklahoma State Begins a New Chapter with Familiar Faces and Fresh Goals
STILLWATER - Eric Morris isn’t interested in nostalgia. Two games into his tenure as Oklahoma State’s head football coach, Morris made it clear: the past - even a successful one - doesn’t win games in the Big 12.
“This is not North Texas,” Morris said. “And this is the last time I’m gonna talk about North Texas.”
That’s not a slight at the Mean Green, who made serious noise last season under Morris, nearly crashing the College Football Playoff party. But for Morris, the focus has shifted entirely to Stillwater - to the 2026 Cowboys and the identity they’re building from scratch.
And make no mistake, that identity is still very much under construction.
Building a New Culture, One Seat at a Time
The first meeting with his new team wasn’t about Xs and Os. It was about unity. With 106 players in the room - 25 returning from Oklahoma State, 21 from North Texas, and a whopping 61 who weren’t with either program last season - Morris set the tone early.
“All 21 of the North Texas people were sitting on one side, and then we had everybody else over here,” Morris said. “Before I even started getting into anything, I made everybody stand up, and everybody had to sit by somebody that they didn’t know in this room.”
That simple act said a lot. This isn’t a team of two factions.
It’s not Oklahoma State vs. North Texas transfers.
It’s one group, one program, starting from zero.
“We have to continue to build what this room’s identity is gonna be this year,” Morris said. “And they’re (the 21 from UNT) gonna be a big part of it.
But no time will this ever be us vs. them. It’s all about this group individually coming together as a unit starting now.”
Familiar Coaches, Fresh Expectations
While the roster is a mix of new faces, the coaching staff brings a heavy dose of familiarity - at least for Morris. Ten of the 12 position coaches followed him from North Texas.
The only newcomers? Wide receivers coach Nick Edwards, who arrives from Wake Forest, and assistant defensive line coach Mike O’Guin, who joins a room led by former Cowboy Greg Richmond.
That continuity matters - especially when trying to install a new system quickly and effectively.
“I always think continuity in this sport is huge,” Morris said. “It was really important for me to be able to bring the coaching staff over, and you pick up where you left off.”
But Morris isn’t letting his staff coast on familiarity. His message has been clear: don’t assume anything.
“We have to start with a blank slate and assume no one in your meeting room knows anything,” he said.
That mindset is critical, because while 21 players have heard the playbook before, most of the roster hasn’t. The challenge is to teach - not just repeat - and to build trust across the board.
Mestemaker and the Early Install
One player who won’t need much of a learning curve is quarterback Drew Mestemaker, a key figure in Morris’ offense at North Texas. Now, he’s expected to be a tone-setter in Stillwater - not just on the field, but in the locker room and meeting rooms, too.
Morris is counting on Mestemaker and other UNT transfers to serve as cultural anchors this spring, helping accelerate the install process and model the expectations that come with playing in this system.
“These guys know what we do - not only schematically but how we run the program, the standards that we have, the communication styles, what’s expected in the offseason,” Morris said. “We run a tough program in the offseason, and we want things to be extremely hard for them.”
That toughness is by design. Morris believes in pressure-testing his team early, and having players who’ve already thrived in that environment gives Oklahoma State a head start.
“I think any time you have guys that have already bought into that culture, and you have an extra 21 people that ultimately know the way that we think, the way that we operate… Then obviously they’ve had success in this system,” he said. “I think the confidence that they’re gonna bring as we get into the installs and we learn how to communicate with one another, and we learn how to build relationships.”
The Road Ahead
The Cowboys are still months away from taking the field, but the foundation is being poured now - in meetings, workouts, and conversations that have nothing to do with last year’s highlight reel.
Morris isn’t interested in rehashing what happened in Denton. His focus is on Stillwater, on crafting a new identity that reflects the team in front of him - not the one he left behind.
And if his early approach is any indication, Oklahoma State’s rebuild won’t be about the past. It’ll be about a group of players and coaches coming together to build something new, something tougher, and something that just might surprise the rest of the Big 12.