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Looking Back: 2015 Cactus Bowl an Inflection Point for UW, OSU

Examining the different (similar?) trajectories the two teams have traveled since that 2015 bowl game in Arizona.

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After seeing Washington at No. 6 in the preseason AP poll and seeing Oklahoma State omitted from the same list, I immediately reflected back to the Cactus Bowl matchup between the two teams in 2015. Why is there such a chasm between Washington and Oklahoma State today? What has been the difference between the squads over the past few seasons?

The Cowboys started 2014 off strong. After narrowly losing to the reigning national champion Florida State Seminoles, the Pokes went on to win their next five games. Then came something Cowboy fans had not seen in a very long time.

OSU’s high-powered offense, the one that had put up at least 20 points in the previous 58 games dating back to the beginning of 2010, was a big reason the team stumbled into a losing streak. In the subsequent five games, the Cowboys averaged only 13.6 points. Daxx Garman getting sacked for a 10-yard loss became as frequent an occurrence as positive yardage plays.

No one gave OSU a chance in Bedlam that season — and can you blame them? OSU carried a five-game losing streak into the rivalry game, and looked mostly hapless until Mason Rudolph’s call-up off the redshirt list for Baylor the game before breathed new life into OSU.

Still, it looked as though Oklahoma State would miss its first bowl game since 2006 as Bedlam was coming to an end. Thanks to a Bob Stoops decision to re-punt to Tyreek Hill (among other things, like Brandon Sheperd playing out of his mind and Mason Rudolph playing with ice in his veins), OSU found its way back in the bowling arena.

They were matched up with an 8-5 Washington team led by the former Hook-and-Lateral, Statue of Liberty play-calling genius Chris Petersen of Boise State. In a physical game where chips of helmet paint were flying everywhere, Oklahoma State came out with the victory boasting a score of 30-22.

After finishing the 2014 season with Bedlam and Cactus Bowl victories, things were looking up again for Oklahoma State. Things were also looking up for Washington.

In 2015, the Huskies went 7-6, but that record looks worse than how good they really were. They lost a few close games, but it appeared they were beginning to figure things out. In 2016, the Huskies won 12 games and earned a spot in the College Football Playoff. They were ultimately overwhelmed by Alabama and lost in the semifinal 24-7. Washington bounced back the following season, however. Even though they didn’t make the Playoff, they won 10 games and played a formidable Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl.

After the Cactus Bowl, both Washington and Oklahoma State finished the season unranked. In 2015, Oklahoma State finished the season ranked No. 20 while Washington remained unranked.

In 2016, Washington and Oklahoma State had a common opponent in Colorado. Washington defeated Colorado in the PAC-12 Championship game 41-10, and the Pokes continued the beat down of the Buffaloes in the Alamo Bowl winning 38-8. Washington finished the season ranked No. 4 and Oklahoma State finished ranked 11. Last season, the Cowboys finished two spots ahead of the Huskies at 14.

Since losing to Oklahoma State in the Cactus Bowl, Washington has posted a record of 29-11 (1-2 in bowl games), including a trip to the College Football Playoff. By comparison, Oklahoma State has consistently posted a 10-3 season in the past three years for a combined record of 30-9 (2-1 in bowl games).

So what gives? Why is Washington ranked sixth, and OSU enters the season unranked?

Washington has the benefit of its quarterback returning for his fourth year, as well as a breezy Pac-12 schedule. It looks like that’s the difference between being preseason ranked No 6 and being unranked (unless you’re Texas, in which case you’ll be ranked based off number of wins collected from the previous season).

Bridging the gap between perception (Washington is a top-10 program; OSU is a top-25 program) and reality (Washington is a top-15 program; OSU is a top-15 program) is one that is made more difficult by lack of conference titles and CFP appearances in the titles since. But it shouldn’t preclude OSU from being considered among college football’s top programs perennially.

In 2018, the perception for OSU is largely unknown; Washington, meanwhile, is a borderline playoff contender. If recent history repeats itself, one program may wander closer to another’s trajectory — OSU to contender status, or Washington to under-the-radar territory.

I know which way I’m leaning.

And it should be an exciting year watching Oklahoma State bridge that gap.

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