Oklahoma State is in a new era, but it needs to come with new results.

OSU is looking to get its first conference win against West Virginia, but winning on the road is one of the most difficult tasks in the Big 12. While the Cowboys have already surpassed their road win total from last season, getting those victories in conference play is another animal.

OSU didn’t win its first conference game last season until its seventh try. Of course, that game was against West Virginia. If the Cowboys can find a way to take down the Mountaineers again this season, it would be an ideal start to 2025.

Game Information: Oklahoma State (8-4, 0-1 Big 12) vs. Opponent (10-2, 1-0)

Date/Time: Saturday, Jan. 4 at 11 a.m. CT

Where: WVU Coliseum – Morgantown, WV

TV/Streaming: CBSSN

Spread: West Virginia -9.5

Total Points: Over/Under 146.5 points

Moneyline: West Virginia -465, Oklahoma State +350

While OSU won its first conference game against West Virginia last season, it was the teams’ only matchup and was in Stillwater. The Cowboys’ last win in Morgantown came in 2021, with back-to-back losses there since.

With former Cowboy Javon Small leading the way for West Virginia, OSU will have to find a way to contain its leading scorer from a season ago. Without Small, OSU has struggled to find anyone to emerge as the go-to scorer, which could come with major consequences in Big 12 play.

OSU lost its conference opener to Houston, shooting only 25.9% in the 60-47 loss. While OSU’s offense sputtered, it showed its defensive ability, something Steve Lutz’s team will have to hang its hat on in conference play.

The Mountaineers upset Kansas on the road in their Big 12 opener, with Small’s late free throws pushing his team ahead. The Cowboys are hoping for a letdown from West Virginia after its big win, but they must be prepared for a surge in front of the West Virginia crowd, where the home team is 7-0 this season.

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Minnesota shortened the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Friday and leaned on its defense for a 24-10 win over Virginia Tech.

The Gophers ran a 15-play drive in the third and fourth quarters that took 9:20 off the clock and ended with a field goal. They took 4:35 off the clock on the previous possession just to go 29 yards and punt. But it worked. Virginia Tech got just 3 second-half possessions and the Gophers flummoxed each of them.

With the win, Minnesota extended its streak of consecutive bowl victories to 8, a mark that stretches back to 2015. The Gophers end the year at 8-5 while Virginia Tech drops to 6-7.

Here are 3 takeaways from the game.

Minnesota defense dominates

Virginia Tech averaged 8.3 yards per pass attempt — a fine number — but the Hokies were constantly behind the chains. Minnesota sacked Hokie quarterback Pop Watson 5 times. And it held the Hokies to just 4 yards per play on first downs. A disruptive defensive performance had the Hokies out of sorts all night.

Virginia Tech began the game with 3 consecutive 3-and-outs. After an 8-play, 80-yard touchdown march from Virginia Tech to take a 7-0 lead, Minnesota responded with a 21-3 run in the second quarter to take control of the game. In the second half, Minnesota limited the Hokies to 76 total yards of offense and just 18 plays.

The Hokies only got 3 second-half possessions while the Gophers sat on the ball on offense. The lone possession in the third quarter ended in a punt after 7 plays gained only 22 yards. On the Hokies’ final 2 drives, Minnesota held on fourth down twice.

After Max Brosmer threw an interception with 7:03 to play, Virginia Tech had one last chance to tighten things up and make a game of it. Defensive back Dante Lovett caught Brosmer’s pass off a deflection and returned it to Minnesota’s 15-yard-line.

In a 14-point game, the Hokies desperately needed a score. Instead, they went backward. After an 11-yard pass from Watson, 3 straight plays were stopped in the backfield for losses and Virginia Tech was forced to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 14. Za’Quan Bryan jumped a Watson pass and ended the threat without any damage done.

Minnesota was able to run out the remaining 4:24 to walk away with the victory.

Darius Taylor closes strong

Minnesota tailback Darius Taylor ran it 20 times for 113 yards and a touchdown. He also threw a 10-yard touchdown pass. The 100-yard effort was Taylor’s fifth of the season and the ninth of his Minnesota career. That pushed him into a tie for the 10th-most such games by a Gopher player in program history.

Just a sophomore, Taylor will have a chance to leave his mark all over the Minnesota record book if he stays healthy. With Max Brosmer playing his final game for the Gophers (he went 18-for-29 for 211 yards, 1 score, and the aforementioned pick), Taylor could very well be the offensive engine next season for Minnesota just like Mo Ibrahim was several years ago.

Virginia Tech, shorthanded, does itself no favors

The Hokies were missing their entire starting secondary because of opt-outs and the transfer portal. Their regular starter at quarterback was once again unavailable. There were reasons to enter into Friday night with tempered expectations. Still, Virginia Tech didn’t help itself.

Offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen drew the ire of Hokie fans all throughout the game with his play-calling. After the Hokies’ fourth-quarter interception, Bowen’s sequencing was questionable at best. Rather than let Watson — who has flashed considerable potential late in the year — cook, Virginia Tech split his time with Colin Schlee and never really let Watson find a rhythm. He threw for 254 yards in the win over Virginia on Nov. 30 and threw just 12 passes on Friday.

Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.

What do good teams with good players do? They lean on their talent. The Hokies have caught lightning in a bottle with Pop Watson. There is no question that the Hokies’ gameplan revolves around Mr. Watson. He has all of the aspects and attributes that you would expect out of an elite quarterback. Not only is he a great leader, he has an exceptional arm, he’s never panicked, he’s so confident, he’s so fast, and he can throw the ball 40 yards in a flick.

Virginia Tech has a chance to trot out the future of their franchise at quarterback for the game that’s going to matter the most, there’s no reason to not put the entire trust of the offense in his hands. Get Watson in space, give him time to load up, bootleg him to the strong side of the field and have him throw absolute bombs all game. If nobody’s open? Fine, run the ball for countless yards down Minnesota’s throat. If Malachi Thomas does not play, Watson will be the most effective runner on the field.

Put the ball in Pop Watson’s hands. He knows what to do with it.

This will be hard to do with a short handed defense, but it’s no question that Brosmer is a rhythm quarterback, he thrives off timing and if he’s not on, he’s really not on. Iowa put on an absolute clinic on Brosmer earlier in the season. Outside of the second quarter, Minnesota’s quarterback really had minimal success. Outside of the second quarter, Brosmer was 11-for-18 with just 91 yards, two interceptions, and no touchdowns.

Minnesota couldn’t really drive down the field against Iowa, and Virginia Tech, although limited in their players, have to abide by similar rules. Play aggressive defense in the secondary, get Brosmer out of his rhythm, and attack from there. Minnesota is definitely a beatable offense but if the Hokies let the Gophers walk all over them, it’ll be a long day.

How does one beat a team that seems to be in a better position than one’s own? Surprise them. The key example of this was earlier in the season when the Vanderbilt Commodores took down Alabama, the Commodores thrive off of chaos. Did they win because they had the most talent on the team? No. They caused chaos offensively and defensively, but because of the Hokies’ situation on offense, any gameplan should be considered chaos.

Now defense is the big question mark here. It’s entirely possible that Brent Pry goes really conservative with his plan on defense, doesn’t throw out any new looks, and they get smashed on defense. But it’s also possible that after the departure of Chris Marve, Pry is going to throw new looks in the air. That’s what I imagine happening in this game if the Hokies are prepared to win.

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