Oklahoma State’s Extreme Makeover

Oklahoma State under new head coach Eric Morris shocked and stunned the college football world in Week Two by upsetting #2 ranked Oregon in Stillwater 39-31. Morris, who was hired in the off-season after successful seasons at North Texas State, led a Cowboy team which had only won one game last season and which led to the firing of head coach Mike Gundy who was a fixture at OSU for 21 seasons.

Morris and his coaches deserve all of the credit in the world in pulling off a monumental upset against a NIKE/Phil Knight supported and nationally ranked Oregon football team.

While upsetting a highly ranked and funded Oregon football team is noteworthy, even more amazing is that this year’s Oklahoma State team has 92 new players and retained only 25 from last season’s one win season. Talk about a massive overhaul of talent. The Cowboys have the current record for new transfers via the portal. Head Coach Eric Morris never had such financial resources at North Texas where he previously coached, but that changed when he accepted the Oklahoma State job last November.

Cowboy quarterback Drew Mestemaker came with Morris from North Texas after mulling over offers from the likes of LSU, Oregon, and Texas A & M, largely due to his familiarity with his head coach.

Oklahoma State also has signifantly greater financial resources and boosters compared to North Texas, therefore it was an easy decision for Mestemaker to accompany his head coach to OSU. According to ESPN, Mestemaker is earning a 2-year NIL deal of $7 million dollars.

Oklahoma State and Morris have made it known that there is no time or patience for any rebuilding project in Stillwater. Wins and success need to come immediately.

It would be safe to say that “Free Agency” in college football is here to stay with coaches now free to bring in as many new transfer players as their rosters and NIL budgets can manage and afford.

Real College Football
September 13, 2026