Sanders to the Rescue, He's Cowboys Braveheart

STILLWATER – After the game on social media there was a post that jokingly compared Spencer Sanders emergence at the end of the third quarter coming in to spark the Oklahoma State team and the entire stadium to the Adam Sandler character in the move “The Waterboy”. Sandler has to pass an exam to be eligible to come back and join his team in the Bourbon Bowl and lead them to victory.

Sanders found it humorous with his re-tweet, but I would claim there is a better movie comparison for what Spencer did and has done all season than this one. Sanders and has never been a water boy in his life. His coach is not Henry Winkler or anything close, and his mom doesn’t hate that her boy plays foose-ball, Carrie Sanders is a native Oklahoman that loves to watch her son play football.

The better movie analogy is “Braveheart” and the character of William Wallace that inspirationally leads his clan in battle. Sanders has the ability to bring up the confidence and the performance of his teammates by his presence. Then his talents, as they did in the last quarter of the game with Iowa State, helped propel the Cowboys to a 20-14 win.

Pat Kinnison - Chief Photographer

Sanders may look good on the sidelines, but he doesn’t like being there.

“Sometimes when they know a guy is playing that's not 100%, they're like 'Okay I'll fight for that guy,' it's just human nature,” head coach Mike Gundy said of Sanders knowing that the players on this team fight for and alongside Sanders, healthy or injured. “You know when we brought him in at the end of the third, we said we're just going to throw it on every down, and we couldn't run the ball. From that point forward, we just felt like we were going to throw it on every down."

They did except for the play that Sanders took off on the scramble and, obviously, was working to avoid getting hit but also getting the first down and he did. Sanders did everything he needed to including perfect execution on a run look “pop pass” that faked out the Iowa State defense and resulted in the winning touchdown. 

“Magic,” slot receiver John Paul Richardson said on the sidelines during the game. “He’s more than magic, he’s damned good.”

Later after the game Richardson, who caught the Cowboys other touchdown on an 83-yard long strike and then run coming from the Cowboys starter in the game, Gunnar Gundy, said this about Sanders coming in and how the team responds

“It really, I think, instilled confidence in the team and to have a leader like him out there, we all definitely want to have his back and make as many plays and go hard for him," Richardson stated.

Pat Kinnison - Chief Photographer

Nixon caught the touchdown pass all alone thanks to Sanders execution.

“It’s just different because when you have Spencer in the game you’ve got to game plan for him running, him throwing, it’s not just him sitting back in the pocket throwing the ball up,” said Jaden Nixon the receipient of the game winning touchdown pass. 

Sanders doesn’t even think of himself first, really. When asked about coing in to help spark the team to win the game he talks about the other 10 players on the field doing their jobs. He’s right! He makes the other players, his teammates, better. 

He was asked if he thought about the fact that he was out there having not practiced, he basically stood and watched behind the offense during practice last week.

"It's my job not to think like that. It's my job to put myself in those comfortable positions because how can I make these younger guys feel as comfortable as possible when I'm on edge? I just try to focus on staying as comfortable as possible,” Sanders said. “I know the offense like the back of my hand. Then it is not just me doing my job, but the other 10 guys on the field doing their job.”

“The thing you have to remember is that guy went out there to play with a lot of pain,” offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn said. “He as been phenominal for us and our season. I admire the way he went out there executed, his poise, his effort under pressure. It was just phenominal, a phenominal dsiplay.” 

Sanders in the locker room gave a positive sign as quarterback quality control coach and former OSU quarterback J.W. Walsh pulled Sanders’ jersey and shoulder pads off. Those suckers are tight and it is not an easy removel especially for a player nursing a shoulder injury.

“That didn’t feel so bad,” Sanders said after the process. 

As for next week? Sanders left no doubt about Bedlam.

“I’m playing next week. That ain’t no question,” he told the media. “You can count me in. 

Any chance he would shut it down for the season. He made that clear as well.

“I’m too competitive for that s**t.”

Yes he is, he’s left no doubt about that.