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Oklahoma State Football

With All the Openings in College Football, Mike Gundy Must Be Prepared

October 2, 2022
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STILLWATER – I don’t know anything except that Oklahoma State head football coach Mike Gundy makes sure he is prepared for anything. 

“Nothing really ever surprises me in this business anymore,” Gundy has said quite often going back about the last six-years or so. That means Gundy in his first dozen years as a head coach feels like he saw quite a bit. In short, during that time Gundy saw the program from initial rebuilding to a string of bowl appearances, a conference championship, a slght slip in performance and back to championship level. All through it winning seasons and bowl appearances. He lost several coordinators. Larry Fedora to Southern Miss, Dana Holgorsen to West Virginia, Todd Monken to Southern Miss, Mike Yurcich to Ohio State, Marcus Arroyo to UNLV, and Jim Knowles to Ohio State.

Gundy assistants have a tradition of strong upward mobility in the coaching profession. Now with multiple Division I FBS jobs already sitting there this fall both of Gundy’s current coordinators have been mentioned as candidates. On Sunday alone, Wisconsin and Colorado were added to the list of schools firing their head coach.

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Mike Gundy talking with then Arizona State head  coach Herm Edwards.

Oklahoma State best Arizona State earlier this season 34-17 and a couple of weeks later and Herm Edwards was out. The Sun Devils job is a potentially good one, but currently has added difficulty and some unknown because of serious alleged NCAA recruiting violations during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn has been mentioned in national media as a candidate for that job and the Colorado opening. Dunn, in his third season as the Cowboys offensive play caller has an NFL pedigree having coached for offensive guru Mike Holmgren at Seattle. He has also coached in the Mountain West and Pac-12 and is familiar with the Western United States. He is looked at as not only an excellent X-and-O coach but also a strong recruiter. 

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Mason was as good a head coach as Vanderbilt has had.

Defensive coordinator Derek Mason has been mentioned by multiple sources as a candidate for the Arizona State vacancy. Mason is a native of the Phoenix area and went to college at Northern Arizona. He too has an NFL pedigree with the Minnesota Vikings and was at Stanford in the Pac-12 before taking his first college head coaching job at Vanderbilt. He did better with the Commodores than any other head coach they’ve had. 

Both coaches have daughters that have finished school or are at least finishing up college. Moving is not going to uproot their children from school. 

Now, I also feel both coaches are loyal and understanding when a special opportunity is achievable. Oklahoma State at 4-0 and ranked No. 7 in the major polls is in a position where anything is possible for this season. I really don’t think either Dunn or Mason would leave Oklahoma State when that possibility is still in play.

However, if you are Mike Gundy then you have to be ready for anything. The good news is Gundy is the kind of coach that keeps a plan for even the unforeseen. 

I like to see good things happen to good and deserving people. Both Dunn and Mason fit that category, but selfishly, you want to see them finish this season the way it is shaping up at Oklahoma State.

Discussion from...

With All the Openings in College Football, Mike Gundy Must Be Prepared

4,095 Views | 5 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by CaliforniaCowboy
Zen
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At first, I was bothered that so many colleges are firing coaches so early this season. But then I thought that they are all paid lots of money these days with the expectation that they earn their keep by having good football teams. Like any other profession, if you are not performing to the expectations of your employer, then you need to be replaced by someone who might be able to do a better job.
It took oSu awhile before they started getting rid of dead wood. Phil Cutchens had terrible, undersized team. Floyd Gass didn't accomplish much. Bob Simmons liked to put in his son at RB on crucial downs instead of putting in the best back. So he needed to be swept away. Things changed for the better when Jimmy Johnson arrived and shocked college football when the Pokes opened against Arizona State and unexpectedly beat them soundly. I was living in Phoenix when that happened. It was the start of a new era for Cowboy football. Then came Les Miles and he too used his success as a stepping stone. I guess if you can produce winning teams at oSu, the rest of college football considers the head coach to have greatness, and then he is highly sought after. I am glad that at some point oSu admin decided they wanted to do what it takes to produce a winning football program. The catalyst for that was Mike Holder who corralled T. Boone. Holder, T. Boone, and Gundy are responsible for what we watched last season and what we are expecting this season. Yes, the price we pay for success will be the continuous loss of coordinators. Fortunately, Gundy seems to have a knack for picking good replacements. So not to worry. Better to just watch and enjoy.
backphil
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Mike Gundy is the straw that stirs the drink. As long as he is head coach, and maintains his enthusiasm and desire to keep coaching, the current "Cowboys Culture" that he has built over the past decade will continue to produce top shelf assistants and continuously improving recruiting.
Class 1980
CaliforniaCowboy
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Zen, I'm going to label that post "revisionist history", and just move on from there.

all you seem to have done is praise cheaters and admonish those that tried to play within the script they were handed.... and Nathan Simmons was the best back on the team until he got hurt.

Jimmy dang near got us the death penalty, and he skipped town just before the sheet hit the fan... same with Stanley.

I have high praise for Coach Holder and Mr Pickens, but we had these facilities long before "last year and this year".... Pickens cost us Les Miles, for better or for worse, and Holder/Pickens almost cost us Gundy, for better or for worse.

A good Coach, and Rule changes are primarily what have allowed us to build and maintain competitive teams.
_888
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Zen can post what he wants. You do all the time. And cry when someone does not agree.
CaliforniaCowboy
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_888 said:

Zen can post what he wants. You do all the time. And cry when someone does not agree.
shut up.

I never said he could not post what he wants, It simply said it's revisionary. (gossip and opinion, not true)

if you don't have any additional comments on the subject, how about you not post, it would be better than telling me what YOU THINK that I do, and making false attacks on me.

I DO NOT CRY WHEN SOMEONE DOES NOT AGREE..... I get pissed when folks like you attack me.
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