Oklahoma State HC Provides Injury Update on Star Defender
Oklahoma State will be without one of its star linebackers for an extended time.
On Saturday, OSU linebacker Collin Oliver suffered a lower right leg injury against Arkansas. Oliver came back to the sidelines on crutches later in the game, with OSU coach Mike Gundy saying he could miss the rest of the season in the postgame press conference.
In Monday’s press conference, Gundy again said Oliver would miss significant time, and any re-evaluation is still a month away. This season, Oliver has four tackles, including two tackles for loss and a sack.
“It’s gonna be a while,” Gundy said. “Very unfortunate, as Justin Wright and Collin both now are in that category that might miss a considerable number of games.”
Wright is yet to play this season after missing most of last season with injury as well. Without him and Oliver, the Cowboys’ linebacking group will have a heavy reliance on Nick Martin and Kendal Daniels.
In Oliver’s absence on Saturday, transfer Obi Ezeigbo got an opportunity to make an impact and played well. He finished the game against Arkansas with nine tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks, including one in the first overtime that forced Arkansas into a long field goal attempt. Although he might not be able to replace Oliver’s production entirely, OSU seems to be in good hands moving forward.
“He’s not in that category from experience and a lot of things, but what he did was really compete,” Gundy said. “And he got put to the test with an extended number of plays that he really hadn’t had at this level. So, it is different for him, and I was proud of him and shared that with the staff that he actually played better than I thought he would.”
READ MORE: Oklahoma State Updates Depth Chart After Crushing Injury
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IVAN WHITE
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.