Mestemaker, Morris Discuss Lessons Learned from Tulsa, Their BPS Debut Against No. 6 Oregon

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After a major letdown in Tulsa last weekend, Eric Morris said he hasn’t been able to put much thought into what it’ll be like running into Boone Pickens Stadium as the Cowboys’ coach for the first time.

“First and foremost, after a week like last week and being obviously so disappointed, it’s been something I just haven’t even thought about, to be honest,” said Morris on his radio show with Dave Hunziker. “… The excitement and the build and then the letdown, obviously when you’re in charge of something is something that — I think our players felt it. And there were so many great learning lessons that will come out of this. …

“Now, I think once I am actually in the moment, and we run out of the tunnel for the first time, I think this is a game where you’ll be able to feel the excitement in the building and to actually hear the Paddle People the first time, the band play, the crowd cheer, all those different things. But also I know we gotta give this crowd something to be excited about, and we gotta create some excitement in this game. At some point, we gotta capture some momentum against this team.”

Depending on how big of an optimist you are, this week provides either the ultimate bounce-back opportunity or a less-than-ideal one.

Oklahoma State hosts No. 6 Oregon in the Cowboys’ home-opener. The Ducks have perhaps the best defensive line in college football and also boast quarterback Dante Moore, who might be the No. 1 pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.

This game will be well-watched by quarterback gurus, as Moore is pinned up against OSU’s Drew Mestemaker. After leading the nation in passing as a redshirt freshman last season, Mestemaker struggled in his opening game as a Cowboy, throwing for 241 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in the loss.

“I think first of all, just making all the layups,” Mestemaker told Hunziker of where he needs to improve. “There were two or three throws that I want back, honestly. There were guys wide open, and I didn’t hit them. Whether that’s being decisive and pulling the trigger or just giving my guy a chance, there’s definitely two or three throws that I wish I had back.

“Also, just not turning the ball over. I think toward the end of the game, I was just really trying to press and make a play. If you’re gonna do that, you gotta make the play. … Those are my two big things — I gotta make the layups and I can’t turn the ball over.”

Mestemaker said he took also leadership lessons from the Cowboys’ season-opening loss, saying he could’ve stepped up more on the sideline in trying to light a fire under the team.

Hunziker asked Morris if managing these types of situations is different in the modern portal movement/NIL era. Morris noted that he mistakenly once thought it was different.

“I’ve totally reset and gone back to some old-school thinking on this just because as you build the culture, and then as you play the game to win, there were some things that were inexcusable that happened in that game,” Morris said. “So, I owe it to our whole entire university to be able to put our best foot forward and continue to build this thing. Now, when I took this job, I knew it’s not something easy, right. I’ve done this twice before, and I’ve taken over programs that were in bad spots and neither one of those did we start off on a good foot. It took time to get us built back up to championship-caliber football, and we’ll do the same thing here.”

Morris is right about his previous tenures not exactly starting ideally. His first head job at Incarnate Word started with back-to-back losses to New Mexico and North Texas, losing by a combined score of 120-46. Incarnate Word would finish that season with a share of the Southland Conference title. Then at North Texas, Morris started 0-2 with losses to Cal and FIU by a combined score of 104-60 before building that program within a game of making it to the College Football Playoff last season.

Morris didn’t exactly get into what “old-school thinking” meant in reference to building a culture, but he did compare his current predicament to a spot he watched Mike Leach navigate.

Leach took the Washington State job in 2012 and hired Morris to his first full-time position as the Cougars’ inside receivers coach. Leach went 3-9 in that first season but eventually had a four-year stretch when the Cougars went 37-15.

“We won one (conference) game that year,” Morris said. “I continually watched him set the tone, week-in, week-out, in building something for the future. He did a lot of things at that time that I thought were crazy. We got rid of so many players that wouldn’t buy in to what we were preaching, and ultimately knowing we were gonna play a worse player after that because he thought it was important for the future and being able to build the culture the right way inside.

“It was such a great learning lesson for me. I was the receivers coach. He cut my best three receivers in Week 2 after he did some stuff. All of a sudden your best three players are going, you’re not very good at that point anyways, and you’re thinking as a coach, like, ‘What am I gonna do now?’ But hindsight and having conversations with him and seeing what kinda happened down the road and the way he was able to flip that program.”

Morris, again, harped on the Cowboys’ need to be better in key situations after the Pokes went 5-for-16 on third downs, 2-for-6 on fourth downs and 2-for-4 in the red zone against the Golden Hurricane.

Mestemaker noted how it’s hard to replicate game reps in practice, and while he’s excited to play in Boone Pickens Stadium for the first time, he’s also just excited to right some wrongs from the Tulsa game.

“I’m definitely excited to get in front of our fans,” Mestemaker said. “I’m excited to feel the energy in Boone Pickens Stadium. It gets talked about as soon as you step in Stillwater, it seems like, and just all the stories about being in Boone Pickens and all the big wins. Obviously I’m excited for that.

“And I’m just excited to get our there with the guys again and really show what this team really is. I don’t think last week — I mean, that just leaves a bad taste in your mouth. I’m just excited for another opportunity.”