It's Time, What Will the Cowboys Look Like in 2021

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STILLWATER – It’s time, three days ago Oklahoma State finished off an 8-3 season by beating Miami, Fla. 37-34 and now after a few days of reflecting on a season that was hard to complete due to COVID-19 and was a struggle because of injuries. It was a season where the primary  and reachable goal of winning the Big 12 wasn’t met, but one where in the face of monumental injuries to the offensive line and the loss in three games of the starting quarterback, four games of an All-American running back, and two games of an All-American receiver the Cowboys still were competitive in all but one game. They won eight including two games against teams that spent part of the season in the top-10. 

Now it is time to look ahead. What will 2021 look like and what will head coach Mike Gundy and his staff have in the way of talent to work toward that goal of winning the Big 12. The NCAA stopped the eligibility clock allowing for seniors to return for next season. We already know that Malcolm Rodriguez will return at linebacker. Two really talented juniors in safety Tre Sterling and offensive lineman Josh Sills have said they will be back. As for the rest of the seniors, we guessed on what they will do and projected some in the three-deep depth chart that we did. 

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Christian Holmes (0) returning would be huge for the defense.

We’ve guessed that cowboy back Logan Carter, wide receiver Tay Martin, corner Christian Holmes, linebacker Devin Harper, and running back LD Brown will return. No gurantees that we are 100 percent correct as these are projections on our part. 

Comments on the offense, we see the bowl win and the MVP award after throwing for four touchdowns a huge positive for Spencer Sanders in progressing as the quarterback for the Pokes. 

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Spencer Sanders bowl performance is a strong bridge to next season.

The running back situation is outstanding and was set up entirely by the final four games of the season and the performances of LD Brown, Dezmon Jackson, and Dominic Richardson. 

Receiver gets a big overhaul with Tylan Wallace, Dillon Stoner, and Landon Wolf leaving. Wolf could return, but we get the feeling he will move on. We think Martin comes back and with Braydon Johnson returning they bring some experience. Langston Anderson missed most of this season with injuries, but he is still considered a tremendous weapon by the coaching staff. He just needs to stay healthy. We can see where current freshman Roshod Owens and mostly injured speedster Jonathan Shepherd and the just signed Green twins could factor in the receiver depth chart.

Brennan Presley showed he is a tremendous weapon. Keep an eye on still playing future Cowboy John Paul Richardson at slot too.

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Just a freshman, Brennan Presley is an explosive, electric offensive contributor.

I am projecting new cowboy back Austin Jarrard coming in to be the starter. His blocking and his route running and explosion that I’ve seen on video makes me believe he will take the position to a new level. 

Offensive line will benefit from all the injuries of last season and all the experience gained especially players like Cole Birmingham, Preston Wilson, Hunter Woodard, and Jake Springfield. Now, Gundy and offensive line coach Charlie Dickey add huge junior college standout tackle Caleb Etienne and transfer center Danny Godlevske. The offensive line could be really stout with Josh Sills as the leader.  

If our projections are correct and Holmes at corner and Harper at linebacker join Rodriguez at linebacker in returning then look out. The defense could improve from last season, maybe improve a lot. 

The defensive line will miss Cameron Murray but there is a lot of talent returning there and if transfer Collin Clay and big time contributor as a freshman in Jayden Jernigan return from COVID-19 associated conditions then the defensive line will be excellent. The return of Ford from his knee injury with Martin and Bundage with Lacy and Walterscheid on the opposite side at defensive end make the edges a strength up front. Nathan Latu is a new addition to keep an eye on.

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Brock Martin was probably the best defensive player upfront the last month of the Cowboys season.

Enough said about linebacker if Rodriguez and Harper are back. Also, keep an eye on Mason Cobb and Jeff Roberson as they could be the next big thing. We didn’t plug him in but Nick Martin is capable of coming in and playing some right away. I would count on him on special teams. 

In the secondary you see a proven group at safety and the same at corner. Korie Black and Jabbar Muhammad both played some as freshmen, and Holmes (if he returns) and Brenard-Converse are experienced and good.  The safeties speak for themselves as Sterling, Harvell-Peel and McCalister are all All-Big 12 worthy, maybe All-American. Initially, Harvell-Peel was going out but came back and made a wise decision to stay. His extra season at Oklahoma State should greatly enhance his NFL future.

I’m really excited about the return game with Presley taking up a role on both punts and kick returns. He is electric and has the ability to see the path and then get to it in a hurry. 

Alex Hale should come back from the knee injury and before he was hurt he was kicking better than anybody in the nation. 

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Alex Hale was 13-of-14 on field goals and 18-of-18 on PATs when he was injured.

Tom Hutton has proven to be a steady punter that gives his cover unit outstanding opportunity to make the plays and force most returners to fair catch his punts. 

The departure of Jake McClure leaves kickoffs, back-up punter, and holder open. Hutton will likely take up holding and his is athletic for fake possibilities. As for kickoffs, Oklahoma State is looking for a kicker that can put it in the end zone and beyond consistently.

It should not be underappreciated, but Matt Hembrought is the best long snapper I’ve seen at Oklahoma State. 

It will be interesting to see how close we get to this as the 2021 season moves closer. Some of those potential super seniors we will know about very soon.