The Top 5 Quotes from Doug Meacham’s Post-Kansas State News Conference

The Cowboys played their most competitive Big 12 game of the season Saturday, but that doesn’t mean it was pretty.

Oklahoma State fell to Kansas State 14-6 on Saturday in Boone Pickens Stadium in a game where the Cowboys outgained the Wildcats by 89 yards. But the Cowboys had five turnovers (two fumbles and three interceptions), and their inability to finish drives off meant the Wildcats left had their second win in Stillwater this century.

A bummed interim OSU coach Doug Meacham fielded questions after the game. Here are five quotes that stood out.

1. ‘Not Gonna Beat Stillwater High’ with So Many Turnovers

Eight OSU drives finished in Kansas State territory on Saturday, but that somehow resulted in only six points.

The Cowboys final seven drives of the game went interception, missed field goal, interception, fumble, fumble, interception, turnover on downs. Brutal.

“Incredible effort by our football team,” Meacham said. “Loved the attitude. I loved the fight that we have under, you know, fairly adverse conditions. However, when you have three turnovers in the red zone, you’re not gonna beat Stillwater High School. They moved the ball, did a good job, did some nice things on offense. Defense, they held them to how many yards was it in the first quarter? Ten yards in the first quarter. That’s K-State, guys. Arguably one of the best QBs in the league, all that stuff. So, they held them to 284. They did a great job, man.

“They laid it out on the line, and I appreciate them. And I will always appreciate everyone of these guys the rest of my life. I’ll always remember this team — always. I’ll always remember this team because I don’t know how many teams could lace them up and go fight like our guys do. I don’t think there is one. There may not be one. I just appreciate every one of those kids and the effort put forth by the coaches that put together a gameplan and get these guys pointed in the right direction and get them out there ready to fight.

“Again, defense played good enough to win. Offense played good enough to win except for the turnovers. We had an opportunity down at the end, got a holding penalty that backs us up. That was kinda it. It always comes down to about five or six plays, especially when it’s a game like that, a one-score game.”

2. On Justin Blackmon’s Ring of Honor Induction

A sixth name and jersey number was immortalized in Boone Pickens Stadium on Saturday, as Justin Blackmon joined OSU’s Ring of Honor.

Blackmon was a two-time Biletnikoff winner in Stillwater, one of only two players to ever hoist that trophy twice. He finished his OSU career with 253 catches for 3,564 yards and 40 touchdowns in just three seasons.

“That’s awesome,” Meacham said. “I didn’t coach him directly, but me and Gunter Brewer switched sides, so we coached one side and swapped to the next. We could have used him today, you know. But, I mean, a guy won two Biletnikoffs, which has only been done one other time. I think (Michael) Crabtree did it.

“What a fierce competitor. And you know, Brandon Weeden owes a lot to him because when things didn’t look good, he’d just throw it to him and (Blackmon) would make it happen. I’d say in my career, he’s the best receiver I’ve ever been around on a team. I know there’s probably guys that are arguably better on a team that I coached on, he’s probably the best.” 

3. On the Defense

With as ugly as things were offensively on both sides, the Cowboy defense probably played its best game of the season Saturday.

K-State was held to just 284 yards of total offense. K-State QB Avery Johnson was held to just 177 passing yards, completing 54% of his 28 attempts. The Wildcat rushing attack didn’t do much better, running for 107 yards on 3.6 yards a carry.

But because of all the turnovers, it wasn’t enough.

“I mean, they held K State to 284,” Meacham said. “Has anybody done that? (It was K-State’s third-lowest yardage total of the season) Maybe, I don’t know. You hold anybody in this league under 300, that’s a major accomplishment. And they made them punt I don’t know how many times, six, seven times. They did a good job. They held them at bay for the most part. They had a couple plays, but just proud of those guys. You can see it in their eyes. They want it bad, and they fight their butts off. You just hope what we have left in the season we get one.”

4. On Parker Robertson

A former walk-on, Parker Robertson nearly carried his team to victory, which is a rare feat for a safety.

The 5-foot-11, 185-pounder finished the day with eight tackles, a sack, an interception and two pass breakups.

“God, what a guy right? He’ll be CEO of something one day, you know what I’m saying? Like this guy is a walk on from where, somewhere in Texas, right? What a baller. When he hits you, he knocks you down. He knocks you backwards, and has great instincts for the ball. He had an interception, and he’s such a great kid, man, you’re not gonna find a better kid. It’s hard to find things wrong with him. No one thought he could do it, or he wouldn’t have walked on and he thought he could. He’s probably one of the most productive, best guys we got over there.”

5. ‘At Some Point, You Would Think That Something Good Would Happen’

Not that Meacham has been thrilled at any of his postgame pressers since taking over, but he looked particularly bummed out being so close to that win and not getting it.

“I’m pissed,” he said. “You just want it so bad for these kids. You gotta look them in the eye every day, and they go to it and they work hard. They believe what you tell them. You sell them on an idea and a scheme, and they believe in you and you go out there and you fall short. It’s like eventually it kind of wears you out, you know what I mean? It’s kinda like the dealer’s flipping 21 every time, it feels like sometimes. But I can tell you this, there ain’t no quit in us. We’re gonna go out there Sunday, tomorrow. We’re gonna do what we gotta do, and Monday we’re gonna go right back to it. And we’re gonna give Central Florida a shot and see what happens. We’re pretty close. 

“We’ve got it whittled down to the kids out there, the guys that are on the field, man, it means a lot to them. At some point, you would think that something good would happen. We got two more left for to that occur, so we’ll find out.”