Drew Mestemaker Did Not Hide Behind Injury Following Lackluster Performance Against Texas Tech

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STILLWATER — In the most anticipated game of the season, Oklahoma State only got one pass attempt from the real Drew Mestemaker.

It was an 18-yard completion to Justin Bowick that looked both routine and easy. It was everything anyone who watched this offense since Week 2 had come to expect.

It was the last throw Mestemaker really got on Saturday night against Texas Tech before a shoulder injury limited him heavily.

“I was pretty upset honestly,” Mestemaker said of the injury. “Like first drive, and throwing shoulder.

“Just sucks, but got to deal with it and do whatever I could to give our team a chance.”

Mestemaker didn’t hide behind the injury on Saturday night. He both volunteered to talk to reporters following the game and minimized the impact the injury had in determining the outcome of OSU’s 52-27 loss.

“I mean it’s not ideal obviously, but I mean I was going to go out there regardless and see what I could do,” Mestemaker said. “At the end of the day, like I’m not going to blame it on that. Like there were multiple plays that I could have made the throw or the decision better.”

Mestemaker described the injury as a “stinger.” When asked if he’d ever had one before, the quarterback seemed to drop his guard.

“Not like that,” he said quickly.

That felt rather obvious given what he looked like on the field throughout Saturday night.

For much of the game, Mestemaker’s usually crisp passes wobbled in the air, flew off target enough that they fell incomplete and hung in the air longer than has been customary for him.

Mestemaker didn’t want to dwell on it much, but did acknowledge that he was trying to figure out what he was capable of at times during the first half.

Morris was asked how that unknown impacted his playcalling and Mestemaker’s execution.

“Yeah, I mean, you just got to trust him, right?” Morris said. “And communication was key on the sideline, and obviously, you know, he’s the best player on our football team. We want him out there, and it’s important to have him out there.

“He’s made a huge difference for us this year and allowed us to do a lot of great things, and so, so yeah, I mean, it’s something just constant communication with him and making sure. And he made some big time throws, and there’s some things he wishes he had back. And obviously, the best competitors I’ve ever been around, like they want to play in those games, and they’re not going to tell you everything that they’re feeling right now. And so, Drew fits in that category for sure.”

Mestemaker finished the evening 27-of-42 for 277 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions, which on its face isn’t some huge deviation from his usual stat line minus a couple passing touchdowns.

“No, I don’t think it compressed the playbook,” Mestemaker said of his injury. “I just landed on my shoulder weird, and it was like just a stinger. They were just trying to work me, keep the shoulder warm, and just keep it feeling good out there.”

But Oklahoma State’s offense definitely looked different on Saturday night.

The biggest difference was his lack of a deep ball, which has been one of his best tools all season. Against the Red Raiders, Mestemaker attempted only one pass of at least 20 yards, and it fell incomplete. Based on his previous nine games this season, Mestemaker should have attempted six passes of at least 20 yards and completed half of them.

He did finish three over expected in the 10-19 range, where Mestemaker completed 5-of-14 throws, but his completion percentage in this range was down almost 30 percentage points from his previous season-long average of 65%.

Despite the less-than-ideal situation and the even worse outcome, Morris praised his quarterback’s toughness and his character repeatedly on Saturday night.

“I mean, as tough as they come,” Morris said. “We’ll reevaluate him as we get back in here on Monday and see how he feels after that. Should be sore after that game. … Getting the ball to second and third reads in pass pro, there just wasn’t a ton of time. Hit a couple of checkdowns; there’s a couple of plays he wish(es) he had back where he needs to check the ball down and take positive yards, even if it is four or five yards and keep us moving the right direction.”