STILLWATER – Really? Oklahoma State head football coach Mike Gundy expects us to believe that he doesn’t always realize his son is out there on the practice field working toward the day that he can run onto the field at Boone Pickens Stadium and realize a dream he has had for many years. The second oldest of the Gundy boys has wanted to play quarterback at the same school that his father did and play for the head coach he has always wanted to have and that is also his father.
For the doubters and the haters, and they are out there. Gunnar Gundy is a legitimate addition to Oklahoma State football. Let’s start with he entered the program in January measuring 6-2, 200-pounds. Gundy tested and ran a 4.69 in the forty and had a 31-inch vertical jump. Not bad. After six weeks of off season work in the “Body by Glass” program Gundy tested again and ran a 4.62 in the forty and had a 32.5-inch vertical jump.
This is the same Gundy that led Stillwater to back-to-back Class 6A-II State Championship Games only to lose to back-to-back-to-back champion Bixby. Gundy was seeing playing time as a varsity quarterback for the Pioneers since he was a freshman. In his career he completed 424-of-621 passes for 6,627-yards with 78 touchdowns and only 7 interceptionsHis senior year was especially strong as he completed 224-of- 300 passing for 3,481-yards with 47 touchdowns and only three interceptions. He had a few Division I scholarship offers, but many coaches knew he was good enough but backed off because they felt certain he wanted to play for his father. They were right.
“I actually forget he is there,” said father and head coach Mike Gundy. “I have so many things in practice that I am trying to watch and then I will scan and I’ll see him. When I talk to the team in off season and then I will look over there (different side) and I see him and I remember he is there. It is a little unusual, but I have prepared myself for that. The good thing is I have so many things that I’ve got going that I get zeroed in on certain things and I’ll forget. Then I see him and I have to do a double take.”
I really believe there will be a time that Gunnar Gundy will take the field and will quarterback Oklahoma State. He will likely get some reps in this April’s spring game on April 24. So far in practice he has been seen in drills and in team working with a mixture of threes and fours on the depth chart. He won’t be favored and he won’t get automatic movement on the depth chart. It will be earned. Offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn and quarterbacks coach Tim Rattay will have the final say there. Spencer Sanders is the Cowboys quarterback and Shane Illingworth the top challenger.
Gunnar Gundy has plenty of work to do and seasoning to absorb, but he did get his number 12 from high school and the same number his father wore as a Cowboy.
“Oh 12, I wasn’t sure he had it. I didn’t know what number that he was going to be, honestly,” the head coach said. “But I guess it worked out for him that he was able to get that, so it’s pretty cool.”
No, the head coach doesn’t typically assign numbers. I’m sure he could if he chose to, he’s the head coach. Number assignments go through the special teams coach first as he has to make sure there won’t be any duplication in his units. Then there are recruiting promises sometimes. After that equipment coordinator for football Justin Williams signs off on number assignments.
Young Gunnar is respectful and courteous. That goes a long way to getting a number you want if the special teams coordinator has no problem with it.
