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STILLWATER — There has been an uneasy feeling around Stillwater about the two-time defending FCS champs coming to town, but the Cowboys made a statement on Saturday.
Oklahoma State bested South Dakota State 44-20 to start the 2024 season 1-0. Here are 10 thoughts from the game.
1. A Good Performance
When you think of how rough OSU’s nonconference games were to watch last season, Saturday’s result is well-welcomed. Then when you think of how good South Dakota State is supposed to be, the hype around OSU’s 2024 season should only build.
The Jackrabbits haven’t given up 44 points in a game since the 2018 FCS playoff final against North Dakota State, and the Cowboys just dominated this game from start to finish. Just putting that in a time capsule, Taylor Cornelius was OSU’s quarterback in 2018. So over the span of the entire Spencer Sanders era and then last season, that hasn’t happened against the SDSU defense.
Even when things didn’t necessarily go OSU’s way, the Cowboys would still come out winners.
OSU got stopped on the Jackrabbit 43 in the second quarter, sending Hudson Kaak out for his first punt of the year. He pinned the Jackrabbits on their 2-yard line. The Cowboys got stopped again in the fourth, again in SDSU territory, and new starting kicker Logan Ward went out and drilled a 52-yard field goal. Could be good, early returns on kickers and punters coach Sean Snyder. Whatever it was, it made even OSU’s lows high. And it made it to where the only swearing OSU fans were doing Saturday was because of the humidity, not the game.
2. Alan Bowman Was Dang Good
After leading the Cowboys to a Big 12 title game and a 10-win season last year, Alan Bowman didn’t have an overwhelming approval rating going into the year. It was just one game, but Saturday should go some ways into silencing some of his critics.
Bowman’s naysayers from 2023 will point to his interceptions (14) and his completion percentage (61%). Well, Bowman didn’t throw a pick against South Dakota State and completed 74% of his passes. And he did all that while throwing for 267 yards and three touchdowns. You could argue that line should’ve been better. Rashod Owens dropped a would-be touchdown on OSU’s first drive, and De’Zhaun Stribling dropped what might’ve been a touchdown in the third quarter.
Bowman looked unbothered. He looked like it was his seventh year playing college football. Much of the quarterback talk going into this game revolved around South Dakota State’s Mark Gronowski, the reigning Walter Payton Award (FCS Heisman) winner. Bowman outperformed him in every way.
Again, it’s just one game, but perhaps having a full preseason as the starter (and the experience in the system last season) have made a big difference for Bowman. By the looks of it, this old dog learned some new tricks.
3. Oh, and Ollie Is Still Incredibly Good
Saturday’s game might not go down as a top 10 game of Ollie Gordon’s college career, which is impressive considering he had 146 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns against a team that hasn’t lost in two years and held teams to 89.6 rushing yards a game last season.
It just felt like when OSU needed a play, Gordon made it. He was patient, yet violent, waiting on blocks to develop before cutting through most who got through.
His second-quarter touchdown run was particularly impressive. Out of the diamond formation (it’s back), Gordon coolly slid between blocks from Preston Wilson and Jake Schultz. Shultz almost tossed his man into Gordon’s path, but it was more a curse than a blessing for the defender, as Gordon just continued the would-be tackler’s flight path. Then a safety came up and found out Gordon has legs of concrete and smashed his face into them before the reigning Doak Walker winner skipped freely into the end zone.
It wasn’t anything new in terms of watching Gordon play football, but rest assured, it doesn’t appear last season was lightning in a bottle.
4. Defense Is Different
I’m not going to pretend to have a PhD in football schematics, but OSU’s defense looks different than it did last season.
I’m not sure that Collin Oliver ever had his hand on the turf, but for all intents and purposes, he was an edge rusher as opposed to a traditional linebacker. Meanwhile, Jeff Roberson got quite a bit of run next to Nick Martin, and — as advertised — Kendal Daniels spent a lot of time close to the line of scrimmage. In fact, on South Dakota State’s first offensive snap, Daniels was lined up between a defensive end and a defensive tackle, standing up on the line of scrimmage.
It feels like this setup should best take advantage of the talent the defense has. Oliver had a big sack (and is now 10.5 away from Leslie O’Neal’s career record). Daniels nearly had a pick-six in the fourth quarter if not for a drop. Martin also dropped a sure-fire INT in the fourth but made up for it a few plays later by annihilating Gronowski as the Jackrabbits went for it on fourth down.
5. Korie Black Might Not Get Thrown at the Rest of the Season
Opposing teams don’t like throwing anywhere near Korie Black, and after Saturday, they might never again.
Black’s would-be receivers were targeted just 35 times last season, according to PFF. That’s despite being on the field for 350 coverage snaps. Well, in the first time he was thrown at in 2024, Black showed why teams are looking anywhere but near No. 2. He intercepted Gronowski in the first quarter. It was SDSU’s second possession.
And it wasn’t one of those picks that just hit the defender in the gut, either. Black undercut an out route and met the ball at full extension.
Black did get beat while playing as a slot corner, something he said he needs to work on, but if he can regularly shut down an outside receiver, it should bode well for this defense’s improvement as the year goes on.
6. Big Plays a Concern
As seemingly easy as this highly anticipated game was for the Cowboys, the number of big plays the defense gave up was a concern.
It’s too early to overreact too much to this. As we’ve gone over, the defense tinkered with some things this offseason, so it’s probably unfair to assume the Cowboys would hit Game 1 in full stride. But OSU ranked last in the Big 12 in plays given up of more than 20 yards last season. And that seemed to be an issue again Saturday. The Jackrabbits ripped off six plays of more than 20. For further reference, OSU — a team that scored 44 points — had just three of such plays.
On South Dakota State’s first drive of the second half, the Jackrabbits scored in three plays — all of which were more than 20 yards.
South Dakota State had 388 yards of total offense in 65 plays. That’s six yards a play. Cut out those six plays of 20+ yards, and the Jackrabbits put up 184 yards in 59 plays — 3.1 yards per play. It’s probably unrealistic to cut big plays out entirely, but cutting it down to one or two a game would feel a lot more manageable than six.
“Defensively, we played good — and then gave up big plays,” OSU coach Mike Gundy said. “… As you start to play teams that are talented, that’s gonna create an issue. That’s the first area we gotta improve on.”
7. Trey Rucker Had How Many Tackles?
There has been a lot of talk surrounding the OSU defense this offseason, but little of it has been about Trey Rucker. Many more stat lines like Saturday and the storylines will have no choice but to shift his way.
Talks about the OSU defense have been about Oliver going back on the edge, Daniels playing linebacker and Nick Martin tackling everything with a pulse. Well, Rucker had 100 tackles last season, which isn’t an easy feat. And now he is on pace (if one can be on pace after one game) for 180 tackles this season. Rucker took down 15 Jackrabbits on Saturday. For what it’s worth, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife states people are allowed to kill only three jackrabbits a day, so he’s way over.
“I knew I was balling, but I didn’t know the exact number (of tackles),” Rucker said. “That’s all God’s glory, so I’m just thankful for having those tackles.”
With Daniels moving up, Rucker is now by far the most experienced safety in OSU’s defensive backfield. He started Saturday alongside Dylan Smith — a true sophomore. Other safeties with a tackle included Cameron Epps (redshirt sophomore), Parker Robertson (former walk-on/redshirt junior) and a returning-from-injury Lyrik Rawls (redshirt junior). So with all the experience Rucker picked up at Wake Forest and starting last season, he could be huge for the Pokes in 2024 despite not entering the season with a ton of people talking about him.
8. Sesi Vailahi Has the Juice
Watching Sesi Vailahi play football is a good time.
Not to make the comparison because they are both Polynesian, but he has some Jaylen Warren in him in that he is quick enough to leave defenders grasping at air, but if someone manages to get in his way, he’s going to put his shoulder down and make sure the defender feels the upcoming hit as much as he does.
Only a redshirt freshman, Vailahi got RB2 duties Saturday over incoming transfer Trent Howland. Vailahi carried five times for four yards but also had two catches for 14 yards. One of those catches came near the OSU sideline, where Vailahi threw a nasty juke on a defender (see photo below). He basically teleported out of the defender’s path, leaving the Jackrabbit to throw his arms out in a last-ditch effort to grab Vailahi, and he grabbed just about every square inch of Vailahi’s facemask. Give him another 15 yards.
Gordon can come back next season, as he is only a junior, but he seems NFL bound given how good he is. Here’s to hoping Vailahi gets a lot of good experience this season for the nourishment of the position’s future.
9. Is De’Zhaun Stribling the Best Pro Prospect on the Team?*
*who isn’t named Ollie Gordon
De’Zhaun Stribling is back, and he looks every bit the part of a future NFL wide receiver.
At 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, Stribling has size and speed on his side, and he runs such crisp routes. He dropped what might’ve been a touchdown early in the game, but made up for it when OSU ran a flea flicker in the second half. Bowman’s pass was a little high — one of his few inaccuracies all day — but Stribling batted the ball down over his head and back into his hands before finishing off a 27-yard gain. He also had another shot at a touchdown in the second half that probably would’ve been called pass interference if the game was closer than it was.
Playing in his first game in 344 days after missing all but four games last season with injury, Stribling finished with six catches for 83 yards (team-high).
“I was pretty comfortable early,” Stribling said. “I had to go hit somebody, go pull one of those to get back in the groove and the whole mindset, but I feel like I was rolling from kickoff.”
Stribling’s injury last season wasn’t ideal from the Cowboys, but it feels as if he is entering 2024 under the radar a little bit. And he might be the best pure wide receiver on OSU’s roster (a roster that has a lot of good wide receivers).
10. Gavin Freeman WR4?
Gundy is usually fairly cautious with transfers, letting them feel their way into the season. There are some exceptions to that rule, but it felt like OU transfer Gavin Freeman was out there a lot. And not only is Freeman a transfer — he wasn’t here in the spring, meaning his first official practices on this team came during fall camp.
Outside of the dominant triforce of Stribling, Presley and Owens (who combined for 16 catches for 199 yards and two touchdowns), Freeman was the only other receiver with a catch. He had two for 10 yards, and also returned a punt and a kick.
The initial plan for Freeman was to redshirt, according to The Oklahoman. That could still be the case, given guys can play in four games these days and still redshirt, but it doesn’t feel like OSU would redshirt a guy who played as much as Freeman did in Game 1. Maybe that has something to do with Da’Wain Lofton being injured — another slot receiver the Cowboys brought in from the portal — or maybe Freeman is just too good to keep off the field. And let us not forget the plan was to redshirt Leon Johnson III last season, but he spent Saturday’s game in the crowd after exhausting his eligibility because of injuries in front of him in 2023.
If all you know about Freeman is that he transferred from OU, you have to see these high school highlights from his days at Heritage Hall.
He committed to Texas Tech out of high school, as it was his only Power Five offer coming out of high school, only to decommit and bet on himself by staying closer to home in Norman as a walk-on. Then he instantly started making plays — taking a run 46 yards to the house on his first touch of college football as a true freshman.
The kid makes plays, and though he didn’t do anything too jaw-dropping Saturday, it’s exciting to think what OSU can look like with him and Presley flying around.
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