How Two Bye Weeks Could Help Oklahoma State Next Season
Oklahoma State’s season turned around after a bye week last season, and OSU could use time off to its advantage again in 2024.
Next season, OSU’s schedule features matchups with some of the Big 12’s newest members and intriguing nonconference battles. It also features two bye weeks.
OSU had only one bye last season, but it might have been more important than any game week.
The Cowboys entered their lone bye week in 2023 with a 2-2 record, coming off their second straight loss. After losing to Iowa State, a team projected to be one of the worst in the Big 12, the Cowboys’ chances of making a bowl game began to look slim.
However, OSU used that bye week to its advantage and came out firing in its next game, a blackout Friday night matchup against Kansas State. OSU avoided its first 2-3 record under Mike Gundy and carried the momentum into a five-game winning streak that was capped off with a Bedlam win.
After winning 10 games last season, OSU’s expectations are high around the team. Although the team is only projected to win 7.5 games, according to Vegas, the team and its fans believe OSU can compete for a Big 12 title.
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If the team faces a similar situation in a bye week this season, it would be a disappointment, but the Cowboys can still use that time off to their advantage. OSU’s first bye week comes at the midpoint of its schedule on Oct. 12 between matchups against West Virginia and BYU.
That break is an excellent opportunity for OSU to assess its season and still early enough to make significant adjustments if any are warranted. Meanwhile, OSU’s second bye week will be less about adjustments and more about taking advantage of the break itself.
With a grueling four-game stretch of BYU, Baylor, Arizona State and TCU, which includes only one home game, the Nov. 16 bye week comes at a perfect time. The Cowboys will get the week off to prepare for a potential Big 12 contender in Texas Tech to visit Stillwater.
This will be OSU’s first full season with multiple bye weeks since 2019 and its first with a bye week after 10 games since 2016. With high expectations next season, the placement of OSU’s bye weeks is as good as the team could have hoped.
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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.