Former Oklahoma State DC Shines in College Football Playoff
Ohio State dominated in the Rose Bowl, and it served as a reminder of what Oklahoma State could have had.
On Wednesday, Ohio State avenged its loss to No. 1 Oregon, beating the Ducks 41-21 to advance to the College Football Playoff semifinals. After looking like the best team in college football throughout the season, Oregon was embarrassed by a team it beat earlier the year.
In the first half, the Ducks’ offense was abysmal. Led by former Oklahoma Sooner Dillon Gabriel, Oregon finally managed to score its first points on the last play of the first half and added a two-point conversion. It brought the score to 34-8, and it never got much better for the Ducks.
The mastermind behind Ohio State’s stifling defense was in Stillwater not long ago, leading the Cowboys’ defense. Jim Knowles arrived in Columbus in 2022 and has been helping the Buckeyes be among the top teams in the nation for the past three seasons.
While the Cowboys would have loved to keep Knowles around, his price tag was likely too much for them to pay moving forward. Still, Knowles ended his tenure in Stillwater as the best-regarded defensive coordinator of the Mike Gundy era.
In his final season at OSU, Knowles led the Cowboys’ defense to being one of the best in the country and helped the team reach a top five spot in the College Football Playoff rankings. In 2021, OSU ranked fifth in total defense and rush defense while also finishing ninth in scoring defense.
Since Knowles’ departure, the Cowboys have found little success on that end. With Derek Mason and Bryan Nardo having unsuccessful tenures, the Cowboys are hoping Todd Grantham can find any success similar to Knowles.
As Knowles leads one of the nation’s best defenses toward a national title, the Cowboys can only sit back and watch a defense that could’ve been in Stillwater.
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Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.