“We’ve Got a Logo Too”: Fiesta Bowl Comeback Caps off All-Time Season for Oklahoma State

Mike Gundy stood on the elevated stage that rested atop the 20-yard line nearest OSU’s endzone.

The golden Fiesta Bowl trophy was in hand, and as he passed it over to quarterback Spencer Sanders, Gundy said, “Hold onto that with two hands, that’s worth a lot of money.”

Once Gundy had a chance to address the crowd and the nation just seconds later, he mentioned something that’s worth a whole lot more than that trophy.

“We want everybody in the country to know, with all due respect, we’ve got a logo too.”

That logo took on one of the biggest brands in college football on one of the biggest stages, and came out on top with the nation watching.

It’s hard to think of a bigger program win throughout Gundy’s tenure and maybe even OSU’s program history. It caps off a 12-win season for the Cowboys, and leaves the future as well as the national perception in fantastic shape.

“This is clearly the biggest win in the history of the school,” Gundy said.

The Cowboy culture shined through today, as it has so many other times this season as well. We mentioned a few weeks ago that the Bedlam win was a culture win because of what it took to get it done. Same thing here.

Oklahoma State was trailing 28-7 with just over a minute to go in the first half, and to say things were looking bleak is an understatement. That’s when Sanders led a 75-yard touchdown drive taking just 4 plays. That planted the seed of momentum, which grew into something spectacular in the second half. The biggest comeback in OSU history.

“We were able to overcome a lot of areas that we just couldn’t do anything about,” Gundy said. “But our culture and who we are and what we’ve established here going on 18 years is why we’re able to do that. We have the best strength coach in the country and the best training staff, and we were in better shape than they were. We went fast on offense, and we weren’t tired at all.”

Led by Sanders, Oklahoma State rattled off 23 consecutive points in the final half of play to take the lead and hold on at the end.

Sanders set records today. 371 passing yards and 4 touchdowns along with 137 rushing yards. Altogether, that’s the most all-purpose yards by any player in Fiesta Bowl history. It’s also just the second time in bowl game history that a player has had 350 pass yards, 4 TDs and 100 rush yards, the other being Tajh Boyd for Clemson in 2014’s Orange Bowl.

If Sanders returns next year, the Cowboys will have a veteran quarterback to lead a talented receiving corps and a young running back room. National expectations will probably be high for next year.

As for Sanders’ bad games this season and the people who don’t trust him, Gundy had this to say:

“I don’t know how many times I can say this: in high school, college and pros, if you don’t protect the quarterback decent and can’t rush the ball, they don’t play very good,” Gundy said. “[Desmond Ridder] from Cincinnati that I watched play yesterday is supposed to be a good player, and I’m sure he is. He didn’t look very good, because they couldn’t protect him.”

Now we’re at a point where the Big 12 is about to drastically change with OU and Texas leaving sometime in the near future. The “top dog” title will be up for grabs, and it looks like OSU will be a favorite to grab that spot.

Oklahoma State has its best recruiting class in program history coming in this offseason, headlined by running back Ollie Gordon and quarterback Garrett Rangel among others.

The parallels drawn between this team and the 2011 team are valid, and just like after that season, OSU is in a great position to elevate the program and that logo to national prominence.