Kickoff: 2:30 PM CT
Location: Autzen Stadium (Eugene, Oregon)
Television: CBS/Paramount+
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network
Twitter: Follow @HeartlandPokes for live tweets during the game
The Oklahoma State Cowboys kicked off their season last week with a pretty mediocre showing against UT-Martin. A 27-7 win at home against an FCS school is nothing to get excited about, especially when you lose your starting quarterback after just one quarter of play, but the defense did look much improved from last season, so that is an area of encouragement.
Still, the offense has plenty of questions surrounding it with Zane Flores now at the helm. The offensive line struggled at times against UT Martin, and now they have to take on the #6 team in the nation on the road. The Oregon Ducks rolled to a 59-13 win against Montana State last weekend, and they have their sights set on returning to the College Football Playoff. Oklahoma State would love to play spoiler to that plan, but it’s going to take a lot for the four-touchdown underdog Cowboys to make this a game. Still, Mike Gundy has cooked up some crazy, unexpected wins in the past, so don’t count the Cowboys out just yet.
How the Cowboys Win
Is it too much to ask for a miracle? Oklahoma State’s best chance at trying to make this game remotely interesting is using the gift of the unknown. It’s hard to tell what the identity of this team is going to be this season, especially since starting quarterback Hauss Hejny is set to miss a while. Zane Flores looked okay last week against UT-Martin, but he’s going to have to be pretty dang good to give the Cowboys a shot. The offensive line is going to have to do a much better job than they did last week for that to happen. If the line does a good job, and Flores makes some big plays while taking care of the ball, then it will be up to the defense to slow down the high-octane offense of the Ducks. A few forced turnovers would be nice. Essentially, a lot is going to have to swing in Oklahoma State’s direction.
How the Ducks Win
Oregon really just needs to play a clean game, and they should come out of this one with a reasonably easy win. The Ducks aren’t a top-10 team by accident. Quarterback Dante Moore is a fantastic young talent, and Oregon has a handful of quality running backs that can pick up yardage in chunks. Take care of the ball, and the Ducks should come out on top in a likely decisive manner.
Odds & Predictions
Staff Score Predictions
| Staff | Prediction |
|---|---|
| Caleb | Oregon 48 – Oklahoma State 10 |
| Craig | Oregon 45 – Oklahoma State 14 |
| Matt | Oregon 45 – Oklahoma State 17 |
| Zack | Oregon 42 – Oklahoma State 17 |
An Oklahoma State Win Would…
- Mark Mike Gundy’s 41st career win vs. an AP Top 25 opponent. No other active coach has more.
- Make the Cowboys 6-2 in their last eight and 12-5 in their last 17 games when playing as an unranked team against an AP Top 25 opponent.
- Make the Cowboys 11-8 in their past 19 and 20-13 in their past 33 games vs. AP-ranked teams.
- Improve Mike Gundy’s record against teams in the Big Ten to 6-3.
- Improve Mike Gundy’s record in non-conference games to 69-16.
- Mark Mike Gundy’s 12th career win over an AP top 10 team, all since 2008.
- Give the Cowboys six straight wins in non-conference games.
- Make the Cowboys 30-5 in their past 35 non-conference games and 52-11 in their past 61 non-conference games.
- Make the Cowboys 36-21 in their past 57 games overall, dating to 2020.
Notable Streaks and Trends Entering the Game
- Oklahoma State has converted 5 of its past 6 two-point conversion attempts dating to last season.
- OSU is 14-2 in the past 16 games when winning or tying the turnover battle.
- Dating back to 2008, OSU is 83-10 when winning the turnover battle.
- Dating back to 2005, OSU is 50-4 when not committing a turnover.
- OSU has held 35 of its past 52 Big 12 opponents under their season scoring average entering the game.
- OSU has won 87 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 on the same date and includes 95 games.
- OSU has held its opponent to less than a 50% third-down conversion rate in 54 of its past 65 games.
- OSU is 40-19 in its past 59 games decided by fewer than 10 points.
- OSU is 52-9 in its past 61 games when leading at halftime, dating back to Sept. 17, 2016.
- OSU has won five of its past seven overtime games.