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Oklahoma State Football

5 Thoughts on Oklahoma State's Home-and-Home With Alabama

June 10, 2021
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STILLWATER – It was announced earlier this week Oklahoma State and Alabama had scheduled a home-and-home series slated to start in 2028 in Stillwater, with the return trip to Tuscaloosa in 2029. While playing the best program in college football history might be daunting, this is a huge step forward for Cowboy football.

Here are my 5 Thoughts on Oklahoma State’s home-and-home series with Alabama.

This is a huge step forward for Cowboy football

While it might seem like a rather daunting task, this is a massive step forward for Cowboy football. One of the chief complaints from fans was the non-conference scheduling, the Missouri States and South Alabamas of the world. However, if you look at some of the in the near future matchups, Gundy and the administration have done a great job getting premier games against premier conferences. Arizona State in 2022 and 2023, Arkansas in 2024, 2027, 2032 and 2033, Oregon in 2025 and 2026, Nebraska in 2034 and 2035 and now Alabama is the proverbial icing on the non-con cake.

Don’t expect this to be the last big-time non-conference series

What Mike Gundy and the administration, such as incoming athletic director Chad Weiberg, have been able to do with scheduling is nothing short of amazing. The product on the field speaks for itself and if you want the program to continue to build, you need to try and win games against very quality opponents. I know it was a random draw but think beating a ranked Miami team in the Cheez-It Bowl. Very quality win for the Pokes. Even with the great upcoming non-conference games I’ve listed above, I wouldn’t expect the athletic department to sit back and just be complacent. Not saying to expect another huge announcement in the near future, just don’t be surprised if another major matchup is announced in the next three years.

Alabama has scheduled some tough non-con games

When Alabama plays a non-conference opponent, or especially a Power Five non-conference opponent, they either play them in Tuscaloosa or at a neutral site on a national stage, like Jerry’s World in Dallas, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans or Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. However, we’re seeing Saban schedule some premier home-and-homes with big-time Power Five conference opponents. They’re playing Wisconsin in 2024 and 2025, Florida State in 2025 and 2026, West Virginia in 2026 and 2027, Ohio State in 2027 and 2028 and Notre Dame was pushed back to 2029 and 2030 to fit the Pokes in during the 2028 and 2029 series.

Mike Gundy has the Pokes trending in the right direction

With Alabama scheduling some big-time opponents, they wouldn’t schedule OSU if they didn’t feel it would be mutually beneficial. The program has steadily gotten better each season under Mike Gundy, Jim Knowles has developed one of the top defenses in the country, the offense is very prolific, and the level of recruits being brought in gets better each season. This Alabama series is indicative of the job the Pokes’ coaching staff is doing.

The Cowboys are currently undefeated against the Crimson Tide

That’s right, Oklahoma State is one of just 10 Division I schools that have a winning record against Alabama, and one of just six that are undefeated. The Cowboys are 1-0 against the Tide after the 34-31 Independence Bowl win back in 2006, the first bowl win in the Mike Gundy era. Nick Saban had yet to be hired by the Tide and they entered the game riding a three-game losing streak and a 6-6 record, the same record as OSU.

Bobby Reid went 15-for-29 for 212 passing yards with one touchdown and interception. Dantrell Savage had 19 carries for 112 yards, 41 receiving yards, and one rushing touchdown. Adarius Bowman had three coaches for 50 yards and a touchdown and Brandon Pettigrew had four catches for 65 yards. Now, Saban was hired six day later and the rest is history, but don’t think the OSU athletic department isn’t going to play up the whole undefeated angle leading up the first game between the two teams in 22 years.

Discussion from...

5 Thoughts on Oklahoma State's Home-and-Home With Alabama

5,069 Views | 9 Replies | Last: 3 yr ago by OctaviusRex
CaliforniaCowboy
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11:02a, 6/10/21
the "flip side" of the coin is that Bama only plays 8 conference games (i.e., P5 games), so adding a cream-puff like OSU simply pads their P5 game total up to what OSU already plays.

That's right, OSU goes from nine P5 conference games, plus a game like Bama, now we're at 10 P5 teams (out of 12) on the season.

it's not apples to apples. Bama takes relatively no risk scheduling OSU (Georgia felt the same way we split with them when we had our great team), while for OSU it will likely end the season's hopes for a decent bowl game.



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Danny Deck
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12:47p, 6/10/21
I'm not going to project too much for what a game in 2028 will mean for OSU.

I'm happy it is on the schedule and I hope that we have a team where you can squint and see a possible win when this time in 2028 rolls around.
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OctaviusRex
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In reply to CaliforniaCowboy • 8:05p, 6/10/21
Do you actually like OSU? Why are all of your posts so negative.? How is splitting a series like Georgia did "low risk"? If OSU was really a cupcake, losing to us would be humiliating. Sounds pretty high risk to me. I don't recall that being a humiliating loss to a cupcake for UGA.

Also.losing to Alabama would not automatically blow a shot at a decent bowl game at all. Plenty of teams have been blown out by the tide and it's not like their season was derailed.
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Orangeheart72
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8:48p, 6/10/21
OSU already schedules 2 of the best funded and historically significant teams in the country each year. This makes it 3 a couple of years. I don't consider it a insurmountable game, but if any of those three teams are at the top of their games, it's a tough hill to climb. Truth is however, Texas (along with Michigan, S. Cal) has been a great example of how the mighty can slip. Maybe Saban tires, they promote Mack Brown to Bama.
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CaliforniaCowboy
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In reply to OctaviusRex • 8:43a, 6/11/21
OctaviusRex said:
Do you actually like OSU? Why are all of your posts so negative.? How is splitting a series like Georgia did "low risk"? If OSU was really a cupcake, losing to us would be humiliating. Sounds pretty high risk to me. I don't recall that being a humiliating loss to a cupcake for UGA.

Also.losing to Alabama would not automatically blow a shot at a decent bowl game at all. Plenty of teams have been blown out by the tide and it's not like their season was derailed.

I do like OSU, and all of my posts are not so negative. In this thread, I would call my comments pragmatic, as I am an optimist.... but let's try not to get personal about it.

I was not talking about UGA being low risk, that was simply an analogy... The Georgia fans that I spoke with all considered the OSU game to be an automatic win, and pointed to other teams they deemed comparable to us that they had beaten, like Boise. The fans on their message boards scoffed at the idea of OSU winning either game. (they considered the game low risk of a loss, not me)

I didn't say it was not possible for us to win, I said Bama (fans and admin) consider it low risk (as opposed to playing OU or Texas or Michigan or ND or insert "blue-blood" name here). Bama doesn't expect to lose the game(s). For goodness sakes, their agreement is with the 3rd to 5th place team in the Big12, not with the top teams in a Power 5 conference. I wish that wasn't the truth, but it is. It is a very good season for OSU if we finish in the top 2 of the conference. I don't like it, but that is the reality to those looking at us from the outside.

As for our bowl games, I was not talking about other teams that may have played Bama, I was talking about OSU and our bowls which are totally dictated by our performance in the conference standings, since our possibilities are dictated by B12 contracts, so the best we could do would be win the conference and possibly go to the Sugar (or maybe playoff), but a loss to Bama would totally derail any chance to get into the playoff (IMO).

I'm happy to clarify my comments for you, thanks for asking.





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CaliforniaCowboy
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In reply to Orangeheart72 • 8:54a, 6/11/21
Orangeheart72 said:
Maybe Saban tires, they promote Mack Brown to Bama.
LOL - good one. Mack Brown is just as old.... he would be 77 in 2028

William Mack Brown (born August 27, 1951)
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OctaviusRex
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In reply to CaliforniaCowboy • 10:36a, 6/11/21
I know you were not referring to UGA being low risk from an OSU perspective, I'm saying I disagree it was a "cupcake" game from their perspective or a national perspective. The college football world was not blown away that we split that series. it's not at all like Appalachian State beating Michigan or James Madison beating Virginia Tech. Heck, it wasn't even the equivalent of VT beating Ohio State the year tOSU won the NC.

I'm aware that OSU isn't a blue blood. I'll give you Alabama would view OU or ND as probably higher risk, but yeah......I think the rest of the country is aware the Pokes currently play just as respectable football as underachieving Texas or Michigan, despite their brand names. Nobody is shocked anymore when OSU beats Texas and no one seemed shocked that OSU beat tradition rich Miami in the bowl game. Alabama probably expects to win EVERY game and only views Clemson, Ohio State, ND, and Oklahoma as games they might lose. If that means teams like Wisconsin, Oregon, and Florida State and such are "cupcakes" to them, then I'm completely ok with being called a "cupcake". But there's a ton of middle ground between Blue Blood and cupcake and most years OSU is far more of a tough out than a cupcake. P5 "cupcake" = Kansas, Oregon State, Rutgers, Wake Forest, etc. OSU is a far cry from those programs.

Thirdly you didn't say it would cost us a shot at the playoffs, you said a shot at a decent bowl game. I highly doubt playing Alabama will make or break OSU's chances of making the playoffs. Odds are pretty low to begin with and a fairly competitive loss against Alabama would look way better than our normal OOC slate against REAL cupcakes. And if we get completely slaughtered by Alabama, we didn't belong in the playoffs to begin with.
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CaliforniaCowboy
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In reply to OctaviusRex • 10:58a, 6/11/21
If we beat OU the world would be shocked (any year)... .our dang fans would be shocked.

If we beat Bama the world would be shocked (any year).... the Bama fans would be shocked.

I did not say UGA / OSU was a cupcake... .I said OSU to Bama is a cupcake. Forget Georgia.

I'm just pointing out what is.... (or has been)

as for the bowls.... my point is the same. What's a decent bowl to you, the Big12 only has 1 possibility for a decent bowl, unless you're counting the Alamo bowl or the Orlando bowl as decent bowls (those are runner up prizes... been there done that). We need another Fiesta type bowl (I know they're not under contract), which means we would have to be in the playoff and losing to Bama would keep us out. (okay, we might still get the Sugar or some such if it wasn't in the Playoff group, but only reluctantly).

Believe what you want. I said what I said, and I believe what I said. I'm moving on to some other discussion because neither of our opinions matter much in a "what if" fictional future.

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OctaviusRex
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In reply to CaliforniaCowboy • 12:30p, 6/11/21
That's fair from a perspective that Alabama probably only realistically views 3 or 4 other programs as "non-cupcakes."

I may have misunderstood. Perhaps you weren't implying this, but I don't agree with the idea that Alabama scheduled OSU with the only thing OSU brings to the table is being P5. If they wanted that they'd schedule Illinois or Rutgers. I would think Alabama realizes OSU has been a fine winning program for almost the last 2 decades, and is a perennial top 25 program, and that having a win over OKST in non conference would be very respectable. Not a marquee win like one over Ohio State, but a very good one that would be a resume builder.

OOC wins over ND and OKST sound a hell of a lot stronger than ND and Oregon state. I don't think that's an unrealistic take on the national perspective of OSU. IMO to think otherwise would severely discredit what OSU has accomplished under Gundy.
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