Maealiuaki Smith Unlikely to Play for Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State has been the worst team in the Big 12 this season, but another midseason quarterback change might not happen.
On Saturday, OSU fell to Baylor 38-28 in Waco to fall to 3-5. With its fifth straight loss, OSU is in sole possession of 16th place in the Big 12 with an 0-5 conference record.
A couple of weeks ago at BYU, the Cowboys started Garret Rangel at quarterback after the bye week, leading to solid results. However, Rangel suffered an injury toward the end of the first half after a massive run, which will keep him out for the rest of the season.
Rangel’s injury thrust Alan Bowman back into the starting role and he played well enough to get OSU a win at BYU. While the defense let him and the offense down, Bowman’s play against Baylor wasn’t enough to get the job done.
Considering OSU’s defense might finish among the worst in the country, the Cowboys will need to outscore teams to have any chance of winning games. With how stagnant OSU’s offense has looked throughout the season, a quarterback change could be the answer.
However, Rangel and Zane Flores will be out for the rest of the season, leaving Maealiuaki Smith as the next quarterback in line. However, OSU coach Mike Gundy is not ready to put the true freshman on the field yet, despite him being the only scholarship player backing up Bowman.
“Right now, no…No, we’re not in that position right now,” Gundy said.
Smith’s best case for making his debut this season is his mobility. Bowman is far from a shifty player, but Kasey Dunn continues to call quarterback runs. While it is an important quirk in the offense to keep opponents guessing, Bowman’s lack of rushing ability has hurt OSU’s offense considerably.
Gundy might not be ready to throw Smith on the field, but OSU could be one big hit away from the freshman being the only option. Considering Bowman can’t play another season and Smith could be in the middle of the quarterback battle in 2025, it would be wise for the Cowboys to see what they have.
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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.