Mike Gundy, Dezmon Jackson and Kasey Dunn Reflect on Jackson's Debut

STILLWATER – On Monday after Dezmon Jackson rocked the Texas Tech defense and gave Oklahoma State fans a dose of old school football with his 36 carries for 235-yards and three touchdowns the Big 12 Conference named him the Newcomer of the Week.

I know that many Oklahoma State fans were unaware of what the Cowboys were sitting on in Jackson. Then Arkansas native (El Dorado, Ark.) and recent product of Hutchinson Junior College is a stone cold runner.

“Dezmon Jackson is my motivation to work as hard as I do in practice,” Chuba Hubbard told me in the spring of 2019 leading into his monster All-American season where he led the nation in rushing. “I know how good Dezmon is. If I don’t work hard, he’ll take my job.”

Mike Gundy had a feeling as did offensive coordinator Kasy Dunn, but when you’ve seen Hubbard do what he has and then LD Brown come on this season and rush for 372-yards in averaging 6.2-yards a carry, well, it’s hard to deviate from that combination. Explosion was something Gundy was hoping for, endurance was something he was amazed to see with Jackson or anybody in this pandemic altered season.

"I'm surprised that he could carry the ball 36 times and, at times, five to six times in a row and then play over 75 plays in the game. Yes (I’m surprised), Gundy said when I asked him about it in his Monday Zoom conference. “That's hard to do for anybody. He did impress me from that standpoint, his ability to stay in the game and compete."

How impressed was Gundy with the All-State two-way performer at Parker’s Chapel High School? Jackson looks like he has, for the time being, done what Hubbard predicted he was capable of in taking his job.

"(Chuba Hubbard and LD Brown) will try to get back into practice Tuesday,” Gundy said. “Monday is their big day where they get examined and we always try to find out more about them (medically). As of now Dezmon Jackson is our starter."

To go further with the COVID-19 and coronavirus pandemic discussion and the context it may have in Oklahoma State and just about every FBS team that has competed most of the season and had elongated fall camps, but little team organized spring practice and off season. I asked Gundy if he blames the disfunction of the year and how teams had to prepare for all the nagging injuries they are dealing with.

"I don't think there's any question that some of the nagging injuries and maybe even some of the more serious injuries for us (I can't speak for other teams) are related, not necessarily to the virus, but are related to the lack of preparation to start the season because of the virus,” confirmed the Cowboys veteran head coach. “When we start in August our players are in tip-top condition and up and running. It wasn't that way this year because we didn't have any offseason training. So, there's no question that affected us and I'm guessing it probably affected everybody else in the country."

The effect in the Cowboys’ case this weekend was that Dezmon Jackson got an opportunity and as Kasey Dunn said after the game on Saturday, “he made the most of it.”