Fall Camp Day Seven: Is Cole Birmingham the Best Yoga Student on the Oklahoma State Team?

STILLWATER – Cole Birmingham doesn’t look like the kind of guy that heads to yoga, but these Oklahoma State offensive linemen might surprise you. Last season when the Cowboys season hit the skids going 1-5 in the last six games, rushing the ball for an average of 92-yards a game and allowing 16 sacks, 2.7 sacks a game; the offensive line was beat up, beat to the hilt. One guy that could have made a difference was Cole Birmingham, 16 career starts, but he didn’t make a single one in 2022 because he tore his ACL the last week of spring practice. 

Birmingham is back and playing with the first offensive line at left tackle, although, smartly, offensive line coach Charlie Dickey has him on a snap count, the equivalent to a pitch count for a pitcher in baseball. Birmingham, who plays a tough-style of football with a smile on his face has discovered a new training method, new to him that he believes really helps.

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Birmingham in drills on Tuesday’s practice.

“Every day I make sure I get to yoga with them and metabolics, I make sure I stretch out more trying to get more flexible,” Birmingham said. “It’s night and day difference and I feel more flexible, move better, and it’s been good.”

The yoga started this summer, actually last summer, but Birmingham was still rehabbing the knee injury. He has become a regular and an advocate for his other teammates on the offensive line struggled with ailments ranging from feet to ankles, to hips, and shoulders in previous seasons especially the last one.

“I try to get the whole group to go. More than a couple attend. It really helps with power,” he added. “It’s getting into position on blocks. It’s a lot easier in that you’re more flexible and can move around.”

Moving is a key for the offensive line with more opportunities built into the offense for this season by head coach Mike Gundy and offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn as both want to run the football in this offense with gusto. The goal is run it when you want, how you want, even when the defense knows you want to. Zone is still there, but so are some of the old school ways of running the football.

“I like it a lot more. It allows us to play more powerful and downhill,” said the big left tackle from Katy, Texas. “The pulling, I like pulling and I like that the tackle gets to pull. It allows everybody to play downhill. I like gap scheme, it’s fun.”

Yoga is good. The X’s and O’s of the run game are fun for Birmingham, but so is the help. There was a walk-on that left the team early this week, however that means another waiting can join in. The offensive line currently has 21 players working together every day.

“Having the amount of depth that we have now, even going back to spring we were kind of looking around for guys, but all that depth and actually having ones, twos, threes helps,” Birmingham said of having 16 scholarship offensive linemen and five walk-ons to push the numbers. “It’s a lot better.

“It’s a good group, my recruiting class we’re all together here still,” Birmingham said with pride of the offensive line class of class of 2019. “All of us, Jake Springfield, Taylor Miterko, Joe Michalski, Preston Wilson. It’s a great group and I’m glad everyone stayed and we’re all here.”

They are to be congratulated. I was hard on some of them last season, but a thorough review of what they were dealing with and often playing through convinced me that I was unfair. I’ve told them. This group is tough and they are resilient and this fall just may be their finest moment.

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Gordon in full pads on Tuesday.

Today was the first day in full pads and the offense struck quickly with Ollie Gordon catching a pass from Garret Rangel and zig zagging his way to the end zone. Gordon is having a good camp.

“In this offense the running backs have to be able to catch and run,” Gordon said when asked about that first scoring play. “We have to be able to catch and run with the football about the same.” 

A word out to a couple of walk-on running back in red-shirt freshman Seth Swirczynski of Muenster, Texas and true freshman Hudson Devins of Berea, Ohio as both have been getting some third team reps and they are showing up. 

Jerod Hill/OSU Athletics

Similar battle to Tuesday last spring. 

Defense showed up well on Tuesday, all the way around the defenders had to feel good, but how about cornerback Kale Smith. The red-shirt sophomore from Midwest City battled one on one in the end zone on a ball with standout receiver Jaden Bray and Smith won the battle for his third interception of fall camp. Kale Smith is having an excellent camp and getting lots of notice. 

Wednesday is a day off for the players, but they will be involved in meetings, Head coach Mike Gundy told the players they would get to sleep in a little before heading in for brunch and meetings at the West End Zone. The Cowboys next practice will be on Thursday early at 8 a.m. inside the Sherman Smith Training Facility.