I was 10 years old when I went to my first Oklahoma State football game. I had been a fan (as much as a kid can be growing up in a Sooner household) for a couple of years at that point, and even though the Cowboys dropped a 33-26 decision to Iowa State that day, I was still in love with the Cowboys. Since then, the Cowboys have derailed Oklahoma’s national championship hopes, missed out on a chance to go one themselves, won plenty of big games, and lost more than a handful of heartbreakers. Still, none of those feelings match what I’m dealing with right now.
Coming into Saturday’s meeting with the #6 Oregon Ducks, I knew the Cowboys had very little chance at winning the game. Honestly, I was just hoping to cover the four-touchdown spread so I could feel like some progress had been made since last season. But when Oregon running back Noah Whittingon burst through the line of scrimmage for a 59-yard touchdown on the second play of the game, I knew it was going to get ugly pretty quickly.
It didn’t take long as Dante Moore threw a 59-yard touchdown to Dakorien Moore on the first play of Oregon’s second drive to go up 14-0, and it only got worse from there. Down 41-3, I still felt that MAYBE Mike Gundy could cook something up to get some points on the board and get the Cowboys to within 30 points, maybe, but three straight three-and-outs and a couple more Oregon touchdowns put the Ducks up 55-3. Surely it couldn’t get any worse…but it did.
Zane Flores threw back-to-back pick-6s, putting the Ducks up 69-3. And that was all before the end of the third quarter. Thankfully, Oregon didn’t score in the fourth quarter, but neither did Oklahoma State, and now I’m left with a feeling that I honestly don’t think I’ve ever had before as a fan of Cowboy football: zero expectations.
I genuinely did not think this season could be worse than last season, and I had hoped the Cowboys might make it back to a bowl game. However, at this point, I don’t feel like there’s a win left on the schedule. Sure, Tulsa at home next weekend might be a nice bounce-back. Houston at home and Arizona or UCF on the road could all be wins. But right now, there is absolutely zero expectation from me that any of that will happen.
It’s possible that a beatdown from Oregon was just what this team needed to figure some things out, but it’s hard to take away any positives from a game in which the offense could do nothing, and the defense gave up everything. With that being said, here’s where I stand on some specifics following the loss.
Don’t Give Up On Zane Flores Just Yet
Zane Flores had a pretty terrible showing in his first start as a Cowboy. He completed just 7-of-19 passes for 67 yards, and his two interceptions that were taken back for touchdowns came with just one play in between them. He is just a redshirt freshman after redshirting in 2023 and receiving a medical waiver in 2024, so he’s hardly seen the field at the college level, plus he was playing backup to Hauss Hejny until Hejny’s injury in the first quarter last week. Still, he’s going to have to progress at lightning speed if he’s going to lead this offense anywhere.
You can’t put all the blame on him, though, when the offensive line has been downright awful for the most part. For the second straight week, the Cowboys struggled to run the ball, and that issue really goes back to last season. With no push or protection from the front line, Flores can’t really operate at his best. Interceptions today aside, he has looked decent when under pressure, managing to escape some sticky situations, but it’s likely that he’s going to have to do that regularly this season. If he can figure out how to hit receivers more on target, then he may turn into a pretty decent quarterback.
Oregon’s Offense is Ridiculous, But Oklahoma State’s Defense Looked Gross
Give the Ducks some credit. Their offense very well may be one of the best in the entire country, but so much of their success came from plays where the Cowboys just looked confused or straight up lost. It didn’t help that Oregon was able to manhandle the Cowboys at times, but the miscues need to be limited moving forward.
Whether it be overloading the wrong side of the field or busted coverage in the secondary in the game against Oregon, I’m not sure how this team held even UT Martin to 7 points. At some point, somebody is going to have to step up as a leader for that side of the ball and take some pride. Poor angles and missed tackles isn’t going to cut it in conference play.
The Cowboys gave up 9 rushing plays of at least 10 yards and 6 passing plays of at least 25 yards to the Ducks. 5 of Oregon’s touchdowns came from those big plays. This is an area that has kept Oklahoma State from being successful in the past, but it looks especially true now. Cut down on the big gains, and maybe they can put together some stops.
The Season Ain’t Over
As hopeless as this team looked against Oregon, the season is far from over. A lot can happen in a short amount of time, and the best thing to do after a game like this is to move on and get ready for the next one. Tulsa comes into Stillwater on Friday night, and I’m not sure if the Cowboys will be favored or not, but they need to come in at kickoff ready to take someone’s head off and restore some optimism to the Cowboy faithful because I’m not sure how much more low-quality football I can watch this season.