Football Notes: Confidence in Spencer, Chuba Using Bye Week to Rest

STILLWATER — It feels like forever since the Cowboys game in Lubbock, but Saturday they’ll have a chance to rid the bad taste the Red Raiders left.

Oklahoma State hosts Baylor this weekend for homecoming. OSU players met with reporters after their practice Tuesday, and here are some of the topics they discussed.

1. Hubbard Uses Bye Week to Rest

Even after a week off, Chuba Hubbard still leads the nation in rushing by 268 yards.

It hasn’t been an easy task to get there, though, as he also leads the nation by 18 carries. Hubbard perhaps more than anyone in the country needed some time to stay off his legs that have run for 1,094 yards in six games.

“It was good,” Hubbard said. “I mean everyone needs a break, especially after five or six games. It was a good time to just reflect on the season, see what we need to change, what we need to fix and stuff like that. It was a good week.”

2. Teammates on Spencer Sanders Bouncing Back

Spencer Sanders has had to sit on the worst game of his young collegiate career a whole week.

Sanders, OSU’s redshirt freshman quarterback, had five turnovers in the Cowboys’ loss to Texas Tech. After his last interception, classmate Bryce Bray consoled Sanders on the sideline.

“I just told him to keep his head up,” Bray said. “It happens to everybody. Not everybody can have a perfect game, not everybody can rush for however many yards he’s been rushing for, have a perfect passing game and stuff. So, that’s kind of what I told him, ‘Just keep your head up. We have another week to go. You didn’t end the season and stuff.’ I just said, ‘Pick your head up, and let’s keep going.'”

In the few practices the Cowboys had last week, Bray said Sanders was practicing as if there was a game that Saturday. Bray said he was fired up again Tuesday and ready to redeem himself.

Sanders’ first shot at redemption comes in what will be one of the Cowboys’ bigger games of the season, a homecoming matchup with an unbeaten Baylor team.

“Every day he gets better,” Hubbard said. “He’s learning. He’s young. (Taking care of the ball) is one thing that he’s been working on. I’ve seen it a little bit, just making the right reads and staying poised. That’s on my end, too. We need to give him a good pocket and give him time to throw the ball, not have him running all over the place. He’s doing a great job.”

3. Hubbard, Wallace Happy for Cornelius

Taylor Cornelius is a professional football player.

The Tampa Bay Vipers took the former OSU quarterback in the XFL Draft on Tuesday morning. Cornelius has gone from walk-on to college starter, and now he’ll get paid to toss a pigskin.

“I’ve said this since last year, I’ve always been a big supporter of Corn,” Hubbard said. “I think he’s a really talented guy. I was blessed to be able to play with him. I’m happy he’s doing good things. All you need is an opportunity and anything can happen. I hope the best for him.”

Tylan Wallace was a Biletnikoff finalist in 2018 after he and Cornelius connected for 1,491 yards and 12 touchdowns.

“I’m real happy for him,” Wallace said. “Well deserved, real great guy, I’m just really happy for him.”