Redemption Game For Oklahoma State Thanks To Defensive Takeaways
STILLWATER, Okla.– The Cowboys’ return home to Boone Pickens Stadium brought a much-needed shift of momentum to the team as they beat out Iowa State 20-14. While it wasn’t a pretty game thanks to 7 total turnovers between both teams, a win is a win and this one came at just the right time.
Freshman QB Gunnar Gundy got the nod to start today’s matchup, as Spencer Sanders and Garret Rangel were both listed as doubtful heading into the game. Gundy finished the day with 103 yards, 1 TD, and 2 interceptions. He was in for the Cowboys up until the beginning of the fourth quarter, cue Spencer Sanders.
Sanders was injured during the Texas Tech game during the first week of October and has been in and out of games since then. He acted as the hero for Oklahoma State today, bringing momentum, familiarity, and leadership to a recently struggling team.
Leading up to the fourth quarter, however, the game had a different feel. Multiple drives to start the game resulted in a punt for both teams, and it seemingly took a while for either team to get some offense going. When it seemed like momentum started to pick up, that’s when the turnovers come in.
“Effort, technique, and finish,” said Defensive Coordinator Derek Mason on what led to the defense’s success tonight. “That’s what we graded this week in practice... and that’s what showed up today. They finished the way that Cowboys should finish.”
With 8:18 left in the first quarter, Iowa State was driving down the field and was sitting at the OSU 39-yard line. On a first-and-10 rush up the middle by RB Deon Silas, S Kendal Daniels knocked the ball out for DE Kody Walterscheid to jump on top of.
“We know he’s got great ability,” Mason said of Daniels. “This was a defensive win though. It was a total defensive performance that we hadn’t had all year. First half and second half, we put one together so now that’s the standard moving forward.”
After a failed fourth down conversion for OSU, Iowa State got the ball and, once again, began to drive down the field. They were able to reach the Cowboys’ 15-yard line before QB Hunter Dekkers lobbed the ball into the hands of Daniels, who finished the day with a forced fumble, an interception, and 9 total tackles. This led to another punt by OSU, but the defensive takeaways eventually proved to play a huge role in the outcome of this game.
The very next drive for Iowa State resulted in yet another Dekkers interception thrown to DB Jabbar Muhammad. This takeaway finally resulted in some points for the Cowboys with K Tanner Brown punching it through the uprights and bringing the score to 3-0 OSU with 12:10 left in the second quarter.
The next big momentum-shifting play was a blocked OSU punt at the 9-yard line, leading to an Iowa State Dekkers to WR Sean Shaw touchdown. Even though this gave ISU the lead, it wouldn’t remain for long.
The very next drive for the Cowboys was the longest pass for the program since 2019 and went down as an 83-yard scoring connection between Gundy and WR John Paul Richardson. This allowed OSU to retake the lead and bring the score to 10-7.
Gundy’s first interception on the night came during the following OSU drive. It was a pass intended for WR Rashod Owens and was taken back to the OSU 45-yard line by DB Beau Freyler. This takeaway wouldn’t amount to much, however, as K Jace Gilbert missed his 41-yard field goal attempt.
The next turnover was a forced fumble by Cowboy CB Korie Black at 6:03 left to play in the third quarter. This play shifted the game's trajectory for OSU because, during the next drive, Gundy tossed his second interception of the day. This led Coach Mike Gundy to pull his son from the game and bring in veteran Spencer Sanders.
Sanders went 9-for-13 on the night, penciling in 84 yards and a passing touchdown. His lone touchdown was a 14-yarder to RB Jaden Nixon, which put the Cowboys ahead of the Cyclones at 17-14 with 9:18 left to play.
After that score, the defense sealed the game for Oklahoma State. In the fourth quarter alone, the Cowboys tallied up four total sacks, all of which were key stops for the OSU defense.
The one that mattered most, however, came during Iowa State’s final possession of the game. Having driven down the field quickly to the OSU 23-yard line, the Cyclones were in a prime position to score. Dekkers dropped back to pass on fourth-and-10 but was quickly met by DE Collin Oliver, who sacked Dekkers all the way back at the OSU 34-yard line with 0:19 remaining.
“How we played today is how we should’ve been playing the whole year,” Oliver said. “It takes a little bit of a wakeup call, and I feel like we needed that. As a unit, we felt like we were acting entitled and acting like things should just come to us. But this time we went out and took it, and we’re going to continue to take it.”
Defense secured this must-win game for the Cowboys today, painting a much different picture than they have over the past couple of weeks. This provides a source of hope leading up to a highly anticipated Bedlam matchup next weekend and will continue to make or break the outcome of these games as long as the injury-plagued offense continues to struggle.