25-For-25: Ranking Oklahoma State’s Top Teams Since 2000

We made it 25 years through the century so to celebrate PFB took on the enormous task of ranking the top 25 Oklahoma State teams to compete across all sports since the year 2000.

The following list touches on nine different sports and includes numerous national championships bookended by national titles won in both 2000 and 2025.

Notes:
• In a few select cases multiple seasons were combined into a single entry. This was done to include championship teams with significant overlap.
• The top 20 of this list was done through an internal vote. We get into rational for our selections in this roundtable discussion.
• Spots 21-25 were done through a vote in our forum, which you can sign up for here.

25. Women’s Tennis 2016

Record: 29-5 (9-0)
National Finish: Runner-up

The Cowgirls fell one point short of a national championship against Stanford in the program’s only national championship appearance and the deciding point was extremely competitive.

Oklahoma State’s path to championship required them to beat No. 1 California which entered the day with only one prior loss.

Former Cowgirl Katarina Adamovic dominated the postseason in both doubles and singles play, recording victories over the No. 5, 7 and 25 ranked individuals in singles play.

After being mistakenly left off the initial fan vote, the 2016 tennis team got 64% of the second fan vote to beat out the 2010 soccer team (60%) for the final spot on the list.

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24. Equestrian 2022

Record: 15-2 (7-1)
National Finish: National Champions

The equestrian program consistently proves it belongs with the best in the nation, and the 2022 team left no doubt when it made the most of the Cowgirls first appearance in the final round since 2013. 

TCU handed OSU one of its two losses that season, but the Cowgirls won the other three meetings between the two teams including a 13-6 victory in the semifinals.

The 2022 equestrian team earned a spot on our list with such dominant showings, and it’s clear fans felt the same way giving them 38% of the initial fan vote and 76% of the final fan vote to lock them into one of the final spots on the list.

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23. Football 2013

Record: 10-3 (7-2)
National Finish: 17th

Two of Oklahoma State’s losses came against top six opponents, according to the final AP Poll. The only outlier was a 30-21 loss at West Virginia.

Otherwise these Cowboys overmatched most of their opponents thanks in part to a defense which held six opponents to 17 points or less. OSU won eight games by at least 18 points and won their 10 games by an average of 25.3 points.

The 2013 team won 48% of the initial fan vote to earn its spot on our final list.

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22. Men’s Basketball 2005

Record: 26-7 (11-5)
National Finish: Sweet Sixteen

Arizona won the Sweet Sixteen matchup 79-78 on a jump shot with 2.8 seconds left. John Lucas tried to answer, but his corner jumper at the buzzer went off the rim.

Those three seconds kept this team from appearing much higher on the list. The Cowboys won its first two NCAA Tournament games and the Big 12 championship  game by an average of almost 12 points.

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21. Wrestling 2025

Record: 13-1
National Finish: Third

Wyatt Hendrickson’s upset in the finals became arguably the signature moment from the 2024-25 athletic calendar. The win over Olympic Gold medalist Gable Stevenson went viral nationwide and was the perfect exclamation point on David Taylor’s first season. Hendrickson later became OSU’s third Dan Hodge Trophy winner.

Oklahoma State finished third nationally for the first time since 2021 and produced six All-Americans including individual national champion Dean Hamiti.

All of this following a conference championship, one conference title (won by Hendrickson) and a dominant regular season that saw the team break attendance records and nearly doing the same with notable scoring records.

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20. Men’s Golf 2025

National Finish: National Champions

Oklahoma State’s latest national championship was the school’s first in any sport in roughly 18 months. 

The Cowboys 4-1 victory over Virginia is tied with three other teams (Alabama twice and LSU) as the second-most dominant showing in a championship since the sport changed scoring formats in 2009.

Oklahoma State is now the only team to finish first or second five times since 2006, making the Cowboys an undisputed top program nationwide.

Preston Stout and Ethan Fang earned All-American status after finishing inside the top 15. Stout, who placed third, was only four strokes short of first place among all individuals.

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19. Wrestling 2016

Record: 13-3
National Finish: Second

The Cowboys still own wrestling from a historical standpoint, but this is the last group to finish inside the top two at the NCAA Championships. Although unable to keep pace with 2016 champion Penn State, no one produced more All-Americans than the Cowboys (six). 

Oklahoma State finished with two national champs (Alex Dieringer and Dean Heil) to go along with a Big 12 championship and seven individual conference titles. Oh and Dieringer became Oklahoma State’s second (but not most recent) Dan Hodge Trophy winner given to the nation’s top wrestler.

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18. Softball 2021

Record: 48-12 (15-3)
National Finish: Tied for fifth

Few sports were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as much as softball. Despite what could have proven to be a costly interruption, Kenny Gajewski’s team fought its way back to the WCWS for the second consecutive time thanks to current coach Carrie Eberle’s 19th complete game of the season when she shutout Texas in the third game of the Stillwater Super Regional.

Alysen Febrey, Hayley Busby, Kiley Naomi and Sydney Pennington each hit at least 13 home runs to provide the Cowgirls offense with plenty of fireworks.

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17. Softball 2023

Record: 47-16 (10-8)
National Finish: Tied for fifth

The Cowgirls beat eventual runner-up Florida State twice in a three-game series in the regular season before fighting its way back to the WCWS. 

This group went 1-2 in Oklahoma City, which puts it in a three-way tie for the program’s best showing in the WCWS this century. However these Cowgirls, led by Rachel Becker and Kiley Naomi, could hit it better than any group before or since. The 2023 squad finished with the school record for hits, runs scored, doubles and RBIs.

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16. Cross Country 2023

National Finish: National Champions

After falling just short in 2022, Oklahoma State won its first national title in cross country in just over a decade after Denis Kipngetich, Brian Musau and Fouad Messaoudi each finished inside the top 10. 

Kipngetich, a freshman, led the way with a fourth-place finish which ranked as the fourth-fastest 10K in program history at the time.

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15. Wrestling 2013

Record: 20-1
National Finish: Runner-up

This group fell 4.5 points short of toppling Penn State in David Taylor’s senior season as a Nittany Lion. The 2013 Cowboys finished with seven All-Americans and two national titles won by Jordan Oliver and Chris Perry. Oklahoma State dominated the Big 12 winning both a team championship and eight individual conference titles, a feat which has only been matched once in program history.

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14. Baseball 2016 

Record: 43-22 (16-8)
National Finish: Third

This is the only group of Cowboys to appear in the World Series since 1999, and they made sure it wasn’t a short stay winning their first two games before falling twice to national runner-up Arizona (after beating them earlier in the World Series).

O’Brate Stadium was under construction less than two years later. This run almost certainly helped the program add such an incredible ball park. It’s possible that place isn’t the same without the 2016 team. Shout out to Utropolis. 

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13. Men’s Golf 2006

National Finish: National Champions

The Cowboys won it all under first-year head coach Mike McGraw, beating second-place Florida by three strokes.

Redshirt freshman Jonathan Moore shot 12-under to secure the individual championship for Oklahoma State making it the fourth time in program history that the Cowboys swept the team and individual championships.

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12. Men’s Basketball 2000

Record: 27-7 (12-4)
National Finish: Elite Eight

Doug Gottlieb wrapped up his Oklahoma State career with an Elite Eight loss to eventual runner-up Florida. That run was something of a turnaround for a Cowboys team which dropped three of its final five games headed into the NCAA Tournament.

The 2004 Final Four appearance is the only other time since 2000 that the Cowboys have made it to the Elite Eight.

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11. Football 2017

Record: 10-3 (6-3)
National Finish: 14th

Quarterback Mason Rudolph and receiver James Washington put the exclamation point on their careers to finish with the school’s all-time records for completions, passing yards, passing touchdowns, passing yards per game, receiving yards and yards per catch.

Justice Hill finished with 1,467 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground while OSU’s defense held six opponents to 21 points or less including bowl opponent Virginia Tech which finished 24th in the final AP Poll.

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10. Football 2010

Record: 11-2 (6-2)
National Finish: 13th

Brandon Weeden and Justin Blackmon gave the college football world a taste of what was to come in 2011 when they led the Cowboys to one of Gundy’s best seasons in 2010. The Cowboys lost the 5-team tiebreaker for both spots in the conference championship game.

Their only losses came to Oklahoma (by six points) and Nebraska (10 points) which finished 6th and 20th, respectively, in the final AP Poll.

Unlike the other football seasons ahead on the list, the Cowboys were never really in contention for a national title shot, but this team checked almost every other box and more importantly set the program up for the magical run in 2011.

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9. Men’s Golf 2018 (and 2019)

National Finish: National Champions

Oklahoma State shut out Alabama in the championship round at Karsten Creek to secure the title. In 16 years under the new championship format, this remains the only shutout.

The 2019 squad deserves a shoutout, too, as those Cowboys finished the stroke place portion of the NCAA Championship at -16. The second-best school in stroke play that year was Vanderbilt at +15.

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8. Men’s Golf 2000

National Finish: National Champions

After falling three strokes short in 1999, the Cowboys bounced back and won a one-hole playoff with Georgia Tech to start the new century with Mike Holder’s final national championship.

It took OSU seven birdies during the final five holes to force the playoff in the first place. Freshman J.C. DeLeon sank an 8-foot putt to get what would-be the winning birdie. 

Charles Howell won the individual title by eight strokes to become the Cowboys seventh individual champion.

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7. Football 2021

Record: 12-2 (8-1)
National Finish: Seventh

The Cowboys came up inches short against Baylor in the Big 12 title game. A win would have given the program only its second Big 12 conference championship and likely would have resulted in a playoff appearance.

As with the 2011 team, this is the kind of season that would have resulted in so much more had it occurred now in the age of CFP expansion. Still, it’s a season worth remembering highly. 

Quarterback Spencer Sanders and receiver Brennan Presley combined for an incredibly memorable performance in a 37-35 win over then- No. 5 Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl.

Oklahoma State finished with wins over the No. 5, 8 and 10 teams in the final AP Poll proving the Cowboys could hang with some of the sport’s very best teams. It’s almost like OSU belonged in some kind of postseason format which pitted the best teams against each other for the right to play for a championship. But who could imagine such a thing?

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6. Men’s Cross Country 2010 (and 2009, 2011 and 2012)

National Finish: National Champions

Oklahoma State won three national titles in a four-year stretch and finished second in the year the Cowboys didn’t win.

The 2010 season proved to be the best season to represent this dynastic run of domination over the sport for two reasons. First, it is the fourth-largest margin of victory at the NCAA Men’s Cross Country Championships. Second, the 2010 team has three runners in common with both the 2009 and 2012 championship teams.

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5. Softball 2022

Record: 48-14 (14-4)
National Finish: Women’s College World Series Semifinalist

The Cowgirls fell 6-5 to Texas in the deepest WCWS run the program has ever produced. Oklahoma State won its first seven games in the tournament (including two at the WCWS) to put itself oh so close to a rematch with the Sooners whom the Cowgirls beat in extra innings in the Big 12 championship. 

Speaking of, that is the only conference championship the program has won since joining the Big 12.

The program has since proven to be a regular WCWS participant, but Kelly Maxwell and the rest of the 2022 Cowgirls undoubtedly raised the standards of what it means to play softball in Stillwater.

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4. Men’s Basketball 2004

Record: 31-4 (14-2)
National Finish: Final Four

Oklahoma State’s most recent Final Four appearance saw the Cowboys win three tournament games in which the Pokes either tied or trailed at the half. It also required a go-ahead John Lucas’ 3-pointer with 6.9 seconds remaining in the Elite Eight.

Lucas hit a game-tying 3-pointer with less than 30 seconds to play in the Final Four game against Georgia Tech. However the Yellow Jackets retook the lead with a layup in the final 1.5 seconds. 

Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton was the third-winningest active coach at the time of his Final Four loss. He coached the Cowboys to Big 12 regular season and tournament titles this time around. 

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3. Wrestling 2003 (and 2004)

Record: 17-0
National Finish: National Champions

At most other schools, a national championship team with two individual champs, seven All-Americans, a conference title and six conference champions would be the all-time season for the ages. 

At Oklahoma State it’s only the second-best season in the 2000s.

Two-time individual champion Johnny Thompson won his final championship this season at the same time three-time champion Jake Rosholt won his first for OSU. 

This is a good stand-in for 2004 because both teams had four shared All-Americans.

2004: National championship, one individual title, seven All-Americans, Big 12 championship, four conference titles

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2. Wrestling 2005 (and 2006)

Record: 21-0
National Finish: National Champions

The 2005 team produced five individual national champions. No other Cowboy wrestling team before or since has done that, and the last time OSU produced four individual winners came during 1942.

Oklahoma State finished the NCAA run with seven All-Americans and an all-time program record of 153 team points at the championship event. The Cowboys also won the Big 12 and produced seven individual conference champions.

This was the other choice for the top spot on the list. There’s no doubt that wrestling was by far the most dominant Oklahoma State program throughout the 2000s. 

In fact, to prevent the wrestling team from owning half or more of this list we made the decision to lump a few of their seasons together. Five of OSU’s six All-Americans in 2006 also earned the honor in 2005 including Coleman Scott and both 2006 individual NCAA champions Jake Rosholt and Johny Hendricks who each also won NCAA championships in 2005.

2006: National champions, 2 individual titles, 6 All-Americans, Big 12 championship, four conference titles

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1. Football 2011

Record: 12-1 (8-1 Big 12)
National Finish: No. 3

Oklahoma State missed the national title game by .0086 points, which was the smallest margin between second and third since the BCS updated the scoring system in 2004.

Under any other format (four-team playoff, 12-team playoff, polls declaring national champions after bowls) the Cowboys are in a prime position to earn a national title in the postseason.

But college football is one of, if not the, hardest sports to win a national title and the BCS era was the most unforgiving.

Brandon Weeden, Justin Blackmon and company didn’t just beat opponents, they dominated them, winning nine games against Power Conference foes by 26.1 points. Bedlam made some of those other performances look downright kind, as Oklahoma State trounced the No. 14 Sooners 44-10.

PFB wasn’t unanimous when it came time to pick this as Oklahoma State’s best single season of the 2000s. However, we all agree this team made a huge impact not just on Mike Gundy and football but on the athletic department as a whole. 

Honorable mention teams

Soccer 2010: 20-4-1; quarterfinalist; Big 12 champs (regular season and tournament)
Softball 2019: 45-17; WCWS appearance (5th)
Women’s basketball 2008: 27-8; Sweet 16 finish
Women’s Golf 2004: Runner-up (team); runner-up (individual)
Baseball 2014: 48-18; Supers appearance
Baseball 2019: 40-21; Supers appearance; Big 12 tournament champs
Softball 2011: 42-20; WCWS appearance (7th)