Gundy, Cowboys Can Grab Conference Power at Big 12 Media Days

Words have the potential to speak louder than actions this week at Big 12 Media Days, almost exclusively for Oklahoma State.

There are unquestionably a few dangerous teams in the conference, but there are only two potent ones. And OSU has an opportunity to come out of Big 12 Media Days as the leader at the clubhouse for the most lethal team in the conference.

Baylor is seemingly depleted after losing its last six games of the regular season. TCU, as you’ll read later this week from Kyle Cox, is going to be worse than their fifth-place finish last season. Kansas and maybe even Texas Tech will finish below Iowa State. Then there’s the middle of the pack.

West Virginia is spooky good. Kansas State is sneaky good. And Texas is questionably good. That leaves the two top dogs.

Oklahoma had seven more first-place votes (19 to 12) than the Cowboys in the Big 12 Preseason Poll, which was voted on by media outlets and should not be a surprise unless pointing out the margin. But there is reason to believe the season will not finish in that order. Here are our top two reasons for thinking that.

1. OU lost its top three non-quarterback playmakers in running backs Semaje Perine and Joe Mixon, and receiver Dede Westbrook. The Sooners return only one linebacker and two defensive backs from last season’s starting lineup.

2. Oh, and Bob Stoops retired after 18 seasons as coach. Lincoln Riley is in, and he will be the second Sooner coach to hold a press conference at Big 12 Media Days since the Play Station 2 was released.

Meanwhile, OSU coach Mike Gundy just signed a 5-year extension that could and likely will further immortalize himself in Stillwater and the Big 12 for that matter. That’s a power swing. Potentially. Which brings us to Monday and subsequently Tuesday.

Riley is the last coach to take the stage for his press conference Monday afternoon, at 12:25. It will be the first time a lot of people will hear his voice or even see his face. For a lot of people, Riley will make a first impression. He will do fine, say he is excited for the season and the opportunity and the day will end on that note.

Gundy is last to go Tuesday when he takes the stage at 12:25 p.m. in the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas. Except for Kansas State coach Bill Snyder, Gundy will be the most experienced Big 12 coach to have spoken there. With two Heisman Trophy candidates and what could be the best pass-catcher in the nation there with him, Gundy has the chance to try to win this conference over with his vernacular, the skill around him and his track record.

With Stoops gone, Gundy is now the Big 12’s leader in win percentage of games played while in the conference (TCU, of course, joined in 2012).

The conference is in limbo with Stoops out of the picture, and Big 12 Media Days could be OSU’s first step toward restoring order to it and reversing the “Little Brother” mindset. So throw some haymakers, Gundy. Let’s see some swagger to match the hairdo. It might be your only chance at nailing this conference down for the next 19 years. We’ll be watching.