Three Things to Know Ahead of Oklahoma State’s Matchup Against Murray State

The Cowboys have one more nonconference matchup before they kick off Big 12 play against West Virginia in Morgantown. But look past a team at your own peril, as the Cowboys found out in Week 1.

Here are three things to know before the Pokes cap their nonconference slate with a visit from Murray State.

1. Murray State Having a Rough Go

Murray State has struggled this season at 1-2, but they got right a little bit after a 27-18 win over Valparaiso last week.

But the first two years under head coach Jody Wright looked a little like the last two years at Oklahoma State. The Racers went 1-11 each in 2024 and 2025 with their only wins coming over Mississippi Valley State and Indiana State, respectively. The Racers did end last season on a high note with a 31-17 win over those Sycamores.

The Racers haven’t had a winning season since going 6-5 in 2021. So, backing away from my former point, I’d be less worried about the Pokes looking past Murray State in terms of win/lose than I am about them keeping it close. This game is more about the Cowboys than the Racers.

Which leads us to…

2. Can These Cowboys Be Dominant Against an FCS Opponent?

This is the first meeting between OSU and Murray State. So in lieu of a series history, let’s take a look at how OSU has fared against FCS opponents in recent history.

The Cowboys are 32-0 against FCS opponents since the Division-I split in 1978, so that’s good. But that doesn’t mean it’s always been as dominant as fans might like to see.

The Cowboys’ huge win over No. 6 Oregon broke a 12-game losing streak that dated back to last year’s season-opener, a 27-1 win over UT-Martin. But the Cowboys only led 17-7 at halftime and didn’t score a TD in the second or third quarters before finally going up by 20 with four and a half minutes to go.

In 2024, they beat South Dakota State 44-20 but only led 17-6 at the half. Granted, that was a good FCS team that would finish 12-3 only losing to North Dakota State in the FCS Championship game by a touchdown.

In 2023, it was a win over Central Arkansas 27-13. The year before that they properly thumped Arkansas Pine-Bluff 63-7. But in 2021, it was only a 23-16 win over Missouri State.

One major difference between those non-blowouts and the 63-7 win over Arkansas Pine-Bluff was the timing. All of the closer games against FCS opponents in the previous five years were season openers. That game was in Week 3 like Saturday’s matchup.

The Pokes have already had their allotted slip-up game this season, and if tuning up Oregon and their Big 12 opener coming up a week later doesn’t ensure they are locked in, then they may have a problem. Fans are going to want this one to go more the way of 63-7 than 23-16.

3. Honoring the 1976 Cowboys

As part of the annual Cowboy Football Reunion, the university will commemorate the 50-year anniversary of the 1976 Tangerine Bowl team.

Headlined by the likes of Hall of Fame running back Terry Miller, the 1976 Cowboys beat No. 5 Oklahoma 31-24 in Norman and then went on to claim a share of the Big Eight Championship, with the Sooners and Colorado.

The season included wins over No. 8 Kansas, No. 5 Oklahoma, No. 10 Missouri and No. 14 Iowa State. The Cowboys ranked as high as 13th in the AP poll and defeated BYU 49-21 in the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Florida.

Miller finished fourth in Heisman voting after leading the conference with 1,541 rushing yards and finishing third in the country. He also led the Big Eight in rushing TDs, rush attempts, yards from scrimmage and led the nation in total points. And he rushed for even more a year later.