STILLWATER – Despite it being Labor Day, Mike Gundy still met with the media for his weekly availability in the press box of Boone Pickens Stadium. No rest for the weary right? Certainly no rest for a head coach who’s looking to try and fill some holes based on injuries.
One of those injuries came to light the day after the 23-16 win over Missouri State when Jacob Unruh of The Oklahoman reported Trace Ford will be out for the year following another torn ACL, this time in the opposite knee.
Ford tore his ACL against Baylor in the final game of the regular season in 2020.
A guy who saw much more action in the season opener than he would’ve otherwise is freshman Collin Oliver, a 6-2, 225-pound edge rusher out of Edmond (OK) Santa Fe, ironically the same position and school as Ford.
“We were going to play him [anyway] this year because we think he’s good enough to play as a freshman; he’s physically mature enough, he has a really, really strong lower body and we think that if he pushes hard, continues to work and do all the things we talk about, he’s gonna be a really good player,” coach Gundy said of Collin Oliver. “When we got some guys beat up a little bit, then he has to get more reps. So, that’s why he played more than what we would’ve originally had played him if we were healthy.”
Oliver played a good portion of the game against the Bears, recording one total tackle and was a part of a sack in one of the key stops late in the fourth quarter.
“I like everything that he’s doing,” said coach Gundy. “He’s gonna make mistakes, but he’s gonna do them fast. So far, he’s played physical. Again, it’s gonna get tougher for him as we move forward, but at this point plays fast, he plays physical, he likes to play football.”
The depth chart for the Tulsa game was released Monday morning and the DE position looks like this: Brock Martin is now the starter, with Tyren Irby lining up behind him, then Tyler Lacy is starting the other side, with Kody Walterscheid and Nathan Latu in an either/or situation behind him.
Martin finished the Missouri State game with five total tackles, two quarterback hurries and 0.5 sacks, Tyler Lacy and Tyren Irby each record one tackle and quarterback hurry apiece, with Walterscheid recording a quarterback hurry as well.
“Well, [the depth’s] not as good as when I was in August, but we’ve got guys there: 30 [Collin Oliver] can get in there and play a bit, 91 [Tyren] Irby can play a bit, Brock [Martin’s] gonna be able to play a bit, 52 [Ben Kopenski] gave us some snaps,” said coach Gundy. “52, Kopenski, he was a good example of what happens when you get guys work all spring and August. He got more practice in the spring than any guy ever at his position on where he was on the depth chart.”
Coach Gundy explained the team kept last year’s COVID policies in place, which meant they practiced everyone because the coaching staff wasn’t sure who would be available to play any given week. Because of that, he said Kopenski, a walk-on redshirt junior out of McKinney, TX, saw some decent action on Saturday.
We’ll see how that depth looks this coming Saturday as the Pokes will host Tulsa for an 11 a.m. kick on FS1.
I think you meant to say Zach, not Robert.... but that's how these things go...Guitar54 said:
...."he would've otherwise is freshman Collin Clay, a 6-2, 225-pound edge rusher out of Edmond (OK) Santa Fe, ironically the same position and school as Ford."
Robert:
I think you meant to say Collin Oliver....not Clay.
