STILLWATER - Eric Morris didn’t sugarcoat what happened to Drew Mestemaker at Tulsa, and he didn’t sound worried about what comes next.
The Oklahoma State quarterback owned Saturday’s outing as “the most embarrassing offensive performance he’s ever been a part of,” and teammates said he carried that frustration right back onto the practice field this week. Running back Caleb Hawkins said Mestemaker was “Super vocal, he came back on Monday at practice and told us straight up: ‘Hey, that’s unacceptable.
We’re not gonna have a performance like that again. We’re gonna pass the ball better, we’re gonna run the ball better and we’re just gonna get everything in harmony again.’”
Mestemaker’s line from the Tulsa game tells the story. He finished 59% on his passes for 241 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, and Pro Football Focus gave him a 50.9 overall offensive grade - a new career low.
Morris said the issues started early and weren’t all on his quarterback.
“I thought we were a little off early and maybe we’re extra excited right?” Morris said of Saturday’s game.
“We missed some early throws early in the game, and then pressure got to us at certain points where we didn’t protect very well, and some of those throws weren’t Drew’s problem. We had some busts on both sides of the football.
That happens everywhere in America, but those are things that exposed us in the game right?”
The pressure numbers backed that up. PFF said Mestemaker was under duress on 17 of his 54 dropbacks.
In those snaps, he completed 4-of-13 passes for 52 yards and both of his interceptions, with one drop charged to his receivers. His grade under pressure fell to 36.2.
When he wasn’t pressured, the picture looked better. On the other 69% of his dropbacks, PFF had Mestemaker at 61.7, with 25 completions on 36 attempts for 189 yards and a touchdown. His receivers were also credited with two drops on those plays, which would have pushed his adjusted completion percentage to 77%.
Morris also pointed to a lack of explosive production through the air. Mestemaker went 1-of-3 on throws that traveled at least 20 yards downfield, a frustrating outcome after he spent the offseason talking up both his willingness and his ability to push the ball deep.
“Maybe a little antsy early and missed a couple,” Morris said of Mestemaker. “He’s just so accurate, especially intermediate (passes).
I probably would have liked to have gotten a couple shots. They really put an umbrella on the defense.”
The middle of the field was where Mestemaker did much of his damage last season. He completed 65% of his throws between 10 and 19 yards, averaged 12.2 yards per attempt and threw nine touchdowns against three interceptions. On Saturday against Tulsa, he was 4-of-10 on those throws for 63 yards, his lone touchdown and two interceptions.
Last season, Mestemaker was under pressure on 26% of his dropbacks, completed 49% of those throws and finished with five touchdowns and five interceptions. He threw only nine picks across the entire year, which is why the Tulsa game raised questions about how he handles pressure and whether bad decisions can pile up in those moments.
Morris knows the next challenge won’t get easier. Oregon’s edge rushers Matayo Uiagalelei and Teitum Tuioti were the first names he brought up when talking about the Ducks’ defense.
“I mean, you got two guys that have played that much football, long and aggressive and can get after the passer, set the edges in the run game,” Morris said. “They have so much experience up front in their starting four guys. … Obviously (the defense) they’re fast, they react, they tackle well, they create a bunch of issues, and so for us to stay in front of the chains and not be in predicaments down and distance getting in third-and-longs is going to be something key.”
PFF ranked Uiagalelei and Tuioti 62nd in the nation, and the two tied among pass rushers with more than 100 attempts last season. In Oregon’s opening win over Boise State, they combined for 11 total pressures.
Even with the criticism aimed at Mestemaker after Saturday’s loss, Morris said the quarterback has handled the feedback the right way.
“Phenomenal, he’s someone that’s going to take it first,” Morris said. “And I think that just great competitors have that built in them, right?
And Drew is exactly the same, and he’s never been one that’s going to point a finger. And so yeah, I think he took it really well.”
His teammates echoed that confidence. OSU center Tyler Mercer said, “He’s a baller,” and added, “I think he’s gonna respond in the right way.
He’s kept his cool. He’s kept level-headed.
He’s a mature player, a mature quarterback, so he’s been in situations like this. We’ve seen him do well and pass for a lot.
So, I believe in him. The whole team still has faith in him.
The whole team has faith in the team itself. Yes, it was a rough weekend last weekend, but I don’t think that’s a good representation in any of (our) play.”
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