Instant Recap: Oklahoma State Drops Season Opener at Tulsa 24-10

BOXSCORE

The Cowboys hit the ground stumbling to start the Eric Morris era.

With 91 new players and a completely new staff, an adjustment period was to be expected. But it was an end-to-end ugly outing in Tulsa.

Oklahoma State dropped its season opener at Tulsa 24-10. The Cowboys were outgained by the Golden Hurricane, lost the turnover battle and were stopped on four fourth-down attempts. It doesn’t get much uglier than that.

There’s missing opportunities, and then there’s shooting yourself in the foot. The Cowboys did both early and often.

Each of Cowboys’ first two possessions went for 13 plays and over five minutes, but both resulted in zero points. The first drive ended with back-to-back rushes that were stood up for no gain at the Tulsa 3-yard line. The next drive ended with a punt. On the Cowboys’ third drive, Tre Page III fumbled on a fourth-down attempt.

Late in the second quarter, senior defensive end Jaleel Johnson got flagged for a late hit on Tulsa quarterback Baylor Hayes seconds after an incomplete pass on 4th-and-11. So instead of getting a red zone stop, OSU gave Tulsa a fresh set of downs at the 5-yard line. Two plays later, the Golden Hurricane had its first touchdown and would take a 10-3 lead into the half.

The nation’s leading passer last year had just 81 passing yards at halftime. Drew Mestemaker would finish 29-for-49 for 241 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Tulsa defenders spent a lot of time in the backfield with Mestemaker, but there were several missed throws and instances of apparent miscommunication with receivers.

In an early sad scene, first-year starting left tackle Jacob Sexton went down with an apparent lower leg injury and was carted off the field. Tulsa sacked Mestemaker twice and logged nine QB hurries.

Mestemaker’s counterpart Baylor Hayes is now 2-0 against the Cowboys. He went 17-for-24 for 227 yards, a TD and a pick. He also rushed for 28 yards.

It wasn’t pretty for either team. Tulsa kicker Marlon Hauck went 1-for-3 on field goals with misses from 31 and 40 yards. Tulsa also had its own share of drive-shaping penalties, getting flagged for four holding penalties on offense and three defensive pass interference penalties. There is an only slightly different alternative universe in which the Cowboys were down three or four touchdowns in the third quarter.

But Tulsa’s defense showed up holding OSU to just 368 total yards and 4.3 yards per play. The Cowboys were shut four times on fourth down and turned it over four times.

After falling behind two scores, there was a slight momentum shift felt by those orange-clad in H.A. Chapman Stadium.

The Cowboys finally found the end zone with just under two minutes left in the third. Mestemaker found Justin Bowick for a 16-yard touchdown on 4th-and-10 to pull within 17-10. On the next possession, LaDainian Fields picked off Baylor Hayes on a play that would have put Tulsa deep in the red zone. But the Cowboys continued firing pistols into their own cleats and couldn’t capitalize on the momentum.

OSU’s four fourth quarter drives ended by way of: punt, fourth-down failure, interception and interception.

Caleb Hawkins led the Cowboys with 76 rushing yards on 17 attempts. He also caught six passes for 29 receiving yards. Wyatt Young led the Pokes with eight catches for 84 yards. Mestemaker did spread it around, with seven Cowboys catching passes. Bowick had the Cowboys’ lone touchdown.

Tate Romney and Ethan Wesloski led the way with seven tackles each, and Fields had two tackles to go along with his third career interception.

Next up, the Cowboys will host No. 2 Oregon at 11 a.m. next Saturday in Stillwater.