Mussatto: Why Oklahoma State football's turnaround starts and ends with Mike Gundy
STILLWATER — Mike Gundy got a call from his brother, Cale, as one of OSU’s pre-Bedlam practices wrapped up.
Cale was at happy hour with his old boss, Bob Stoops. The two former Sooner coaches called for no other reason than to make fun of Mike Gundy that he was grinding through another practice while they were enjoying drinks.
“Really?” Mike Gundy said.
“Hey, this is a lot better life than that,” Stoops told him.
As Gundy told the story, his life seemed pretty darn good. His Cowboys had just beaten the Sooners 27-24 in the last Bedlam of the Big 12 era. It was Oklahoma State’s fifth win in a row, putting the Cowboys in the HOV lane to Arlington.
The idea of OSU contending for a Big 12 title would’ve sounded ludicrous less than two months ago, when the Cowboys were beat up by a Sun Belt squad. South Alabama stunned OSU 33-7 in Stillwater.
The Jaguars, by the way, are 2-3 in the Sun Belt with conference losses to James Madison, Louisiana and Troy. Meanwhile, the Cowboys are 5-1 in the Big 12 with wins over OU, Kansas and Kansas State — all of which are ranked in the top-25.
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No. 7 Texas is the only higher-ranked Big 12 team than No. 15 OSU. A Cowboys-Longhorns Big 12 Championship Game is the most likely scenario.
So, how did we get here?
It starts and ends with Gundy.
“Our coaching was awful, and so we didn’t play very well,” Gundy said of OSU’s early-season struggles.
OSU’s three-quarterback carousel was dizzying. The lack of touches for running back Ollie Gordon II was puzzling. The offensive line was a mess.
And that’s just what we on the outside could see. Safe to say Gundy, a more sophisticated football mind, noticed other shortcomings.
Gundy challenged his staff to come up with answers.
“And then I’ll handle the rest,” Gundy told them. “Let me handle the mojo. I need you guys to coach, and coach your ass off, because we haven’t coached very good. And it was a challenge for all of us.”
To say this is the best single-season coaching job of Gundy’s 19-year career is premature. The Cowboys still have three regular-season games left, and it would discount Gundy’s past. He’s the winningest coach in program history and third on the Big 12’s all-time wins list behind Stoops and Bill Snyder.
But if the Cowboys end up in Arlington, this season will be among Gundy’s finest accomplishments.
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“The only way that we can continue to play at a high level is to practice the way we’ve practiced,” Gundy said, “which has been extremely hard and fully committed.”
It’s fair to blame Gundy and his staff for not feeding Gordon, now a Heisman Trophy candidate, from the start. It’s fair to question, although to a lesser degree, why Alan Bowman wasn’t the starting quarterback coming out of fall camp.
Who knows, though, if making those moves would’ve erased a loss to South Alabama or even Iowa State.
What makes the Cowboys’ season enchanting is how they regrouped, turning an awful start into what might be a spectacular finish.
Gundy, in a relaxed mood after Bedlam, said he goes home after games and cracks open a Diet Coke as he watches more football.
Any particular flavor of Diet Coke?
“Well, I love whiskey,” Gundy deadpanned.
He missed happy hour, but life is good for Mike Gundy.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com. Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State football's turnaround starts and ends with Mike Gundy
