A Turnover Turnaround Led by Kolby Harvell-Peel Has Saved OSU’s Season

Oklahoma State had a turnover problem.

For a good chunk of this season the Cowboys offense Spencer Sanders couldn’t hang on to the ball and the Cowboys defense couldn’t take it away.

In fact, heading into the Iowa State game, Mike Gundy’s team was on pace to record the worst turnover margin by any Big 12 team in over a decade. The Cowboys’ average mark was an abysmal -1.75.

But something changed. Or rather a couple of things changed, and those added up to spur a stark reversal of the frustrating trend. What’s more, they have helped make the difference between a repeat of a disappointing 6-6 and the potential to go 9-3 before bowl season.

Spencer Sanders and the offense cut giveaways way down over the last three games —  he turned in his first TO-free game since Week 2 against Kansas — and during that same span the defense has gone full 2011, forcing 10 turnovers.

Against Iowa State, TCU and Kansas the Cowboys are a combined +8 in turnover margin, raising that once historically bad -1.75 average margin to a much more palatable -0.10 which is good for fifth in the Big 12. That’s an amazing turnaround in less than a month’s time. How did they do it?

Mike Gundy credits part of it with hard work, at least when it comes to his freshman QB.

“We implemented some ways to try to correct the issue,” Gundy said of Sanders’ improved ball security. “I sat up here five weeks ago and said in most cases those things don’t happen overnight. He’s been successful in what has hurt him and our team in the middle part of the year, which was putting the ball on the ground. We worked hard on it from a drill standpoint and he’s gotten better.”

The sudden spike in forced TOs by its defense may be a little harder to explain because there is always an element of chance involved. But luck doesn’t explain a team forcing seven TOs in seven games and then 10 in the next three. 

You can point to an increase in pressure on opposing QBs up front…

And you can point to a salty secondary lead by sophomore safety Kolby Harvell-Peel who has accounted for five of OSU’s 10 takeaways during this three-game stretch. OSU has risen all the way up to T32nd in turnovers gained and T14th in interceptions.

More Than Luck

Back-to-back two-pick games against TCU and Kansas have earned him corresponding Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors and put him on course for an underclassman all-conference selection. His count of three DPOWs leads the league. Only one other defender (Baylor’s Terrel Bernard) has multiple weekly awards.

Also of note: Emmanuel Ogbah is the only other Cowboy to win multiple Big 12 DPOW honors in the same year. He had three in 2015.

I got lost in the media guide at some point Thursday morning. 

Brodrick Brown in 2011 (All-American):
5 INTs, 15 pass breakups and two forced fumbles.
Kolby Harvell-Peel in 2019 (three games to go):
5 INTs, 11 pass breakups, two forced fumbles #okstate

— Kyle Cox (@KyleCoxPFB) November 21, 2019

Those honors, and the buzz of more to come, haven’t gone to Harvell-Peel’s head.

“I was just telling all the guys today, they keep coming up and messing with me about being big time and stuff, but I’m glad we got wins the past three weeks,” Harvell-Peel said. “The past two games I’ve won (defensive player of the week), we’ve got wins. That’s more important to me.”

Harvell-Peel said he’s been teased by Rodarius Williams whose pass deflection allowed for his interception against Texas. And junior linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga called it luck, with tongue planted firmly in cheek.

“It’s crazy. I’ve never seen somebody get so many picks off of tips,” said Ogbongbemiga. “It’s just back to back. After the second one against Kansas I just looked around and was like ‘Of course’ like no surprise. This has got to be the luckiest kid.

“… But he’s making the plays and those are not easy to make, reaching out for the ball after it’s tipped. He’s a great player and I’m sure he’s gonna keep making those plays.”

Regardless of what percentage of this concoction is luck versus a knack for knowing where to be at the right time, it’s been a good recipe for wins and has helped resurrect what looked like a sunken season.

By the way, the Cowboys’ final two opponents, West Virginia and Oklahoma, are T8th ahead of only Kansas in turnover margin in the league. If the ball keep bouncing OSU’s way, they might just be in for a special finish.