Cowboys Have It Their Way in Lawrence
LAWRENCE, Kansas – Very rarely do road trips in the Big 12 go off exactly the way they are planned. With Oklahoma State Director of football operations Mack butler, the travel and lodging is almost always perfect. I’m not sure where Mike Gundy gets his fast food hamburgers, but the trip to Kansas was just like Burger King all the way for Gundy and the Cowboys: they had it their way.
The keys were balance on offense and balance on defense.
On the offensive side, a series of key plays led the Cowboys to the results they have been looking for in the first two games. Start with Chuba Hubbard’s first run of the game from scrimmage. It was a burst of 11 yards and a first down and it was the start of a bunch of bursts.
Related: Oklahoma State rolls to a 47-7 win over Kansas
The second play was the long connection from Shane Illingworth to Tylan Wallace that went for 30 yards down the right side of the field. The play looked a lot like Illingworth’s first collegiate play against Tulsa, also to Wallace. That play established Illingworth and his passing as a real threat. The third play was the 66-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Braydon Johnson, which will go a long way to establishing other receiver threats which will only help Wallace and the offense.
The other plays are a smorgasbord. Take your pick, any of the other carries by the running backs, like Dez Jackson who finished with 10 carries for 91 yards, or any of the other positive plays. It all led to a nearly perfectly balanced offense that gained close to 600 yards on the day, 298 through the air and 295 on the ground. That’s just about as balanced an offense as you can have.
The defense had balance too. Not only could Kansas not run or pass with much success, but all 22 of the front-line Cowboy defenders that regularly rotate in were making plays.
Related: Illingworth and a favorable schedule help Spencer Sanders get healthy
Now the best part about the win, and one that Gundy well understands the value of, is every player that made the road trip got on the field, including the backup snapper and the backup kicker. That kind of participation always buoys the spirit of the team, keeps more players engaged and will ensure great effort in practice from scout teamers and everyone else throughput the rest of the season.
"I saw some guys play there – [Brennan Presley] got in there a little bit, [Rashod Owens] was in there a little bit, we had a variety of young guys, or slash young guys that hadn't played in any real games on defense, which is great,” said coach Gundy after the game. “They don't play as good as you want them too. They've never been in games, but it seemed like they were running to the ball, trying to make some plays and that's how they learn. They get in there, they play, they make mistakes, they get over being in a college football game, hopefully they'll be better the next time they get in."
Further, Gundy knows that if you were going to choose a manner in which to win leading into a bye week, 47-7 on the road over a conference opponent, even one in the cellar like Kansas, is the way to go.
