Gundy's Comments Used to Create A Firestorm for OSU at Oregon Game

STILLWATER – When this series was first announced, Oklahoma State and Oregon, you had two schools knocking on the “blueblood” door in college football. Two schools that were winning a lot of games and playing well in the then version of college football. Since the series was scheduled, NIL, transfer portal, and NCAA vs. House settlement and the advent of revenue sharing have become important factors in the college football landscape. 

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Mike Gundy at the podium on Monday before the Oregon game.

Oklahoma State’s Mike Gundy is a coach that speaks his mind and when asked a general question about this week’s opponent in Oregon the veteran head coach had a simple and truthful response.

"They're a good football team. Oregon is playing really well,” Gundy said. “I think they're well coached. They're spending a lot of money. They've put a lot into that organization, and you can see. They're a good football team."

Standing there, I didn’t think anything of it. I was thinking about the strength of the two team’s defensive fronts, Oregon’s huge surplus of team speed, and Oklahoma State’s expansion of the offensive game plan for the trip to Eugene. 

Later on his weekly radio show, Gundy was asked by Dave Hunziker about the issue of money. Again, Gundy wasn’t looking to pick any fights (which Oregon fans took exception) but he was honest. If Boone Pickens were still around, Oklahoma State would likely have more money in NIL and paying players, just like they had more money for facilities when Pickens was alive.

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Oregon has a lot talented players like tight end Kenyon Sadiq.

“I think Oregon spent around $40 (million) last year alone,” Gundy estimated. “That was just one year,” Gundy added. “Now, I might be off a few million, (but) what I’m saying is, they’re spending a lot of money.”

Gundy followed that up with the fact that Oklahoma State football spent roughly $7 million over the past three years in NIL.

“They’ve invested. Obviously, Phil Knight, the CEO and owner of Nike, is supporting them in a big way,” Gundy continued. “They’ve got a lot of resources. They spend a lot of money. But they’re a good team.”

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Dan Lanning, head coach of the Oregon Ducks.

A reporter brought it up to Oregon head coach Dan Lanning at his news conference and Lanning responded, not with malice, but there was a sense of frustration noted at the end when Lanning said he felt Oklahoma State spends a lot more on its’ roster than first game opponent UT-Martin.

“If you want to be a top-10 team in college football, you better be invested in winning,” Lanning said initially in repsonse. “We spend to win. Some people save to have an excuse for why they don’t.”

Gundy and Lanning know each other. I know for a fact that they socialized and discussed a lot of things two years ago on a Nike coach’s trip. Gundy made his first trip to the Phil Knight event and Lanning, then North Carolina coach Mack Brown, current Texas coach Steve Sarkisian, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart, and Miami, Fla. coach Mario Cristobal were all there. NIL was a major topic around the table during evening discussions. 

Like many things, this most recent exchange has created plenty of social media angst. Personally, I look at it as a lot of BS. I’d rather talk defensive front sevens, running game success, and special teams;  you know, talk football. 

On Saturday at Autzen Stadium I don’t think they will be handing out revenue share checks, I think they will be playing football.