Drew Mestemaker gave Oklahoma State exactly the kind of night that can flip a season in a hurry.
The Cowboys’ new quarterback carved up No. 6 Oregon for 317 passing yards, added 109 more on the ground and accounted for three total touchdowns as Oklahoma State pulled off a 39-31 shocker Saturday in Stillwater, handing the Ducks a damaging loss and snapping a 21-game skid against FBS opponents.
For Eric Morris, it was win No. 1 in his Oklahoma State tenure, and it came in front of a field-storming crowd that had plenty to celebrate after a long stretch of misery. The Cowboys had gone 1-11 last season, a collapse that cost longtime coach Mike Gundy his job, and they opened this season with a 24-10 loss to Tulsa in Morris’ debut.
Instead of another letdown, Oklahoma State delivered the first true stunner of the 2026 season.
Oregon, the preseason No. 2 and a 23 1/2-point favorite, now sits at 1-1 after taking a serious hit to its national title hopes. The Ducks had already looked shaky in their season-opening home win over Boise State, and they never fully settled in against a Cowboys team loaded with 88 new players.
Mestemaker, who played for Morris last season at North Texas, answered the criticism from his opener with a performance that kept Oklahoma State in control for long stretches. The Cowboys led 24-17 at halftime after he threw for 179 yards and two touchdowns, while also picking up 75 rushing yards on the Cowboys’ first play.
Oregon’s defense did its part early to keep the game close. The Ducks were being outgained 353-101 before halftime, but they flipped the field twice with tipped-pass interceptions. Devon Jackson took one back 96 yards for a touchdown to make it 7-3, and Matayo Uliagalelei picked off Mestemaker at the Oklahoma State 11 and returned it to the 1, setting up Jordan Davison’s short scoring run that cut the lead to 17-14.
The Ducks kept chipping away after the break. Dante Moore, who started 1 of 7, settled in and led Oregon 75 yards on the first drive of the third quarter before finding Dakorian Moore for a 36-yard touchdown to trim the deficit to 27-24. Then, early in the fourth, he hit Evan Stewart on a 38-yard scoring pass to give Oregon its first lead, 31-30.
That edge didn’t last long.
Mestemaker answered with a 75-yard drive and then delivered the play that defined the afternoon, launching himself over defenders at the goal line on a 10-yard touchdown run to put Oklahoma State ahead 36-31. The 2-point try failed, but Sam Keltner added his fourth field goal of the day after the Cowboys’ defense forced a turnover on downs, pushing the lead to 39-31.
Moore finished 14 of 21 for 191 yards after a slow start and two second-half touchdown passes in a game delayed 90 minutes because of weather. But Oregon was beaten badly in the yards column, 554-281, and the Ducks never found enough consistency to avoid the upset.
For Oklahoma State, the result was a sharp response to last week’s embarrassment and a reminder of just how quickly things can change when a new quarterback finds his rhythm and the building starts to shake. The Cowboys had lost 69-3 to Oregon last season, but this time they turned the tables in emphatic fashion.
Oklahoma State’s last win over an FBS foe had come on Sept. 14, 2024, against Tulsa.
In Other News...
Floridas Poll Push Comes Down To One Big Test
The first full AP Top 25 of the young season brought plenty of movement, with Texas climbing to No. 1 after its upset of Ohio State and Oregon and Oklahoma sliding out after losses. Michigan slipped back in at No. 19, while Washington was one of the teams on the outside looking in after a narrow win left enough doubt in the voters minds to bump the Huskies from the rankings. For a program trying to establish itself early, the margin for error is already feeling thin.
Washingtons path back is part of a broader conversation around teams trying to sort out who belongs in the poll and who still has more proving to do. Floridas case is getting the most attention because the Gators have a major test ahead, but the Huskies have their own work cut out for them in the coming weeks if they want to turn a shaky first impression into something the voters can trust. For now, the question is less about style points than whether Washington can put together a performance that leaves no room for debate. [Read more 🡒]
Washingtons 2027 Commits Are Giving Huskies Fans Something To Watch
The early part of the high school season is already giving Washington fans a glimpse at what the Huskies have coming down the line in the 2027 class. Running back Jeremy Adeyanju, quarterback Blake Roskopf and wide receivers Zerek Sidney and Dontay Tyson have all turned in eye-catching performances, a useful reminder that recruiting rankings are only the start of the story once these players hit the field. For a program always looking ahead, those early returns offer plenty to track as the commits keep building their cases.
Adeyanju has been especially productive as a runner and receiver, while Roskopf and Sidney each added another strong outing to their resumes in recent action. Tyson has also been part of the group giving Washington followers a reason to keep tabs on scoreboard updates far from Seattle, with each performance feeding the bigger question of how these future Huskies might fit once they arrive. The competition for playing time does not begin on campus, of course, but it is already easy to see why this class is becoming one worth watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Gophers Just Triggered An Early Warning Sign In ESPNs Ratings
After a second weekend that shook up ESPNs FPI ratings, Minnesotas loss was enough to send its projection sliding, another reminder that early September already carries more weight than it should. The model also kept sorting out the rest of the Big Ten picture, with Ohio State surging after its upset of Oregon and other league teams moving in different directions as the numbers tried to catch up with the results.
For Washington, the bigger takeaway is how unforgiving those early forecast swings can be. Even after a win over Utah State, the Huskies were still sitting in an uncomfortably low spot in the Big Ten pecking order, and the playoff outlook attached to that standing was already razor-thin. It is only Week 2, so none of this is final, but the first warning lights are on for a team that needs the computers to start liking what they see. [Read more 🡒]