Kickoff: 2:30 PM CT
Location: McLane Stadium (Waco, Texas)
Television: ESPN+
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network
Twitter: Follow @HeartlandPokes for live tweets during the game
The Oklahoma State Cowboys have plenty on the line on Saturday when they take on the Baylor Bears in Waco. The Cowboys have lost four straight, and a fifth loss today would be the longest losing streak of head coach Mike Gundy’s career. Both the Cowboys and the Bears are 3-4 on the season, and Oklahoma State is still searching for that first conference win. While neither team has a shot at making the Big 12 Championship, both schools are still hoping for a shot at a bowl game at this point, and a win today would go a long way.
The Cowboys looked much more like themselves last week in a close loss against BYU. Oklahoma State took a 35-31 lead with just a little over a minute remaining in the game, but the Cougars charged down the field to score with barely any time remaining on the clock to come away with the 38-35 win. Despite the loss, Oklahoma State did look as if they had made some improvement. Moral victories do not exist, however, so hopefully those improvements can translate to an actual win against the Bears.
How the Cowboys Win
If the Cowboy offense can replicate something close to what it managed against BYU last week, then I think they’ll be in a pretty good position to win the game. Ollie Gordon got his groove back, and Alan Bowman did a decent job coming in for the injured Garret Rangel. Bowman earned his starting position back by way of injury, so he’ll need to prove that he deserves to be there today. Meanwhile, the defense still needs to figure out a way to stop big plays, but Baylor’s offense isn’t much better than Oklahoma State, so simply trying to outpace them may bring a win.
How the Bears Win
Baylor has home field advantage on their side, so keeping momentum will be key to a win against the Cowboys. If they can get into the Oklahoma State backfield early and cause some chaos, they should be able to keep Oklahoma State from moving the ball, giving themselves great field position and the opportunity to score. The Bears don’t have a running back nearly as good as Ollie Gordon, but quarterback Sawyer Robertson has thrown 14 touchdowns to just 3 interceptions, so they could do some damage through the air.
Odds & Predictions
Staff Score Predictions
| Staff | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Caleb | Baylor 31- Oklahoma State 21 |
| Craig | Baylor 42 – Oklahoma State 33 |
| Matt | Baylor 34 – Oklahoma State 27 |
| Zack | Oklahoma State 38 – Baylor 34 |
An Oklahoma State Win Would…
- Make the Cowboys 98-25 in its past 123 games vs. opponents outside of the AP Top 25, dating to 2010.
- Make the Cowboys 11-9 in its past 20 road games.
- Give the Cowboys wins in 13 of its past 20 and in 26 of its past 36 games following a loss.
- Make the Cowboys 4-4 or better for a 19th consecutive season.
- Give the Cowboys wins in 12 of its past 18 games.
- Improve Mike Gundy’s record in October games to 51-23.
- Improve Mike Gundy’s record in Big 12 games to 103-67 and move him to one game away from tying Bill Snyder for the second-most Big 12 wins in conference history.
- Improve OSU’s all-time record vs. Baylor to 24-19 and its record vs. Baylor in Waco to 9-9.
- Give the Cowboys wins in 21 of its past 29 games against Baylor and in nine of its past 14 trips to Waco.
- Give the Cowboys three straight wins against Baylor in Waco, marking its second ever three-game winning streak in Waco with the first coming on a stretch of four wins from 1997 through 2003.
- Improve Mike Gundy’s record against Baylor to 12-8.
- Make the Cowboys 35-16 in its past 51 games overall, dating back to the 2020 season
Notable Streaks and Trends Entering the Game
- Brennan Presley has multiple catches in 37 straight games, the second longest active streak in the FBS.
- Trey Rucker has recorded at least 10 tackles in four of his six games played this season.
- Oklahoma State is 4-for-4 on two-point conversion attempts this season and the four successful twopoint conversions are tied for the most in the FBS.
- Ollie Gordon II has rushed for more than 100 yards in 11 of the past 18 games.
- OSU, LSU and Georgia Tech are the only Power Conference teams who have allowed fewer than five sacks in 2024.
- OSU’s offensive line has not allowed a sack in 10 of its past 17 games.
- OSU is 13-2 in the past 15 games when winning or tying the turnover battle.
- Dating back to 2008, OSU is 82-10 when winning the turnover battle.
- Dating back to 2005, OSU is 49-4 when not committing a turnover.
- OSU has held 35 of its past 47 Big 12 opponents under their season scoring average entering the game.
- OSU has won 86 consecutive games when holding its opponent to fewer than 20 points, dating back to Sept. 13, 2003 – the longest active stretch of time in the FBS, the longest since at least 1980 and likely the longest in college football history. Including games when opponents have scored 20 points or fewer, the streak begins at the same date and includes 94 games.
- OSU has held its opponent scoreless on its game-opening drive in 44 of its past 65 games.
- OSU has held its opponent to less than a 50% third down conversion rate in 51 of its past 59 games.
- OSU is 40-18 in its past 58 games decided by fewer than 10 points.
- OSU is 51-9 in its past 60 games when leading at halftime, dating back to Sept. 17, 2016.
- OSU has won five of its past seven overtime games.
- Over the past 56 games, OSU has held opponents to 281-for-872 (32.2%) on third down