Oklahoma State is Running Into Yet Another Quarterback Situation
The Oklahoma State Cowboys are coming off their bye week before they take on the BYU Cougars on Friday night, so they should have some of their issues figured out by now, right? Wrong. Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy doesn't have an answer to who the starting quarterback will be on Friday.
The quarterback battle, which is commencing ahead of Week 8 of college football, is not just between two quarterbacks, either. Since winning the battle in 2023, Alan Bowman has been the program's starting quarterback. He helped Oklahoma State to a 10-4 record in 2023 with an appearance in the Big 12 title game and victory in the Texas Bowl.
The team has fallen off a cliff, though. They're currently 3-3 with three straight conference losses, and a quarterback change could be on the horizon. Last season, Garret Rangel and Gunnar Gundy joined Bowman in a battle to become the starter. This year, Bowman could lose his job to Rangel or redshirt freshman Zane Flores, who is seemingly a fan favorite.
"We're working all of our guys...I told the coaches we needed to make a decision by Thursday," Gundy revealed on Monday.
First of all, it seems to be a malpractice that they're waiting until Thursday to make a selection. They've had these quarterbacks on the roster for some time now, and they should have somewhat of an understanding of who gives them the best chance to win football games.
Also, whichever quarterback they do pick could spend time with the knowledge of being the starter heading into Friday's game, which certainly makes things less complicated. Oklahoma State is choosing the hard route, though.
Having three quarterbacks in the running to take the starting job certainly complicates things. Flores would certainly make sense as he's got plenty of remaining time in Stillwater. As a redshirt freshman, there are going to be some kinks to work out. However, the team already is 3-3, so what is there to lose? A youth movement could certainly help set the team up for the future, too.
Needless to say, a quarterback battle after a bye week in the middle of the season, which started 3-3, signals something is going very south in Stillwater and major program changes are needed.
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Kade has been covering a wide variety of teams ranging from the NFL to the NBA and college athletics since joining Sports Illustrated's On SI in 2022