Kansas Superlatives: Game MVPs, Top Plays, Stats that Stood Out and More

Oklahoma State secured its first win over a ranked opponent in nearly a year when it beat No. 23 Kansas 39-32 on Saturday night at Boone Pickens Stadium.

Here are some superlatives that stood out from the win, from MVPs, to play calls and stats.

Offensive MVP: Ollie Gordon

This was easy and obvious. What a day for Ollie Gordon.

Gordon was the first OSU running back since before he was born to record 100 rushing and receiving yards in the same game. The last was Gerald Hudson, also against Kansas, in 1989. Gordon ran for 168 yards on 29 carries, averaging 5.8 yards a carry, and a touchdown. He caught six passes for a team-high 116 yards and a touchdown.

For those curious like me, if you had Gordon on your fantasy football team in a full PPR league, he would have given you 46 points this weekend. Christian McCaffrey who?

Defensive MVP: Collin Oliver

This was a much more difficult decision than Offensive MVP because the OSU defense as a group was so clutch Saturday. Collin Oliver’s disruptiveness couldn’t be ignored, though.

Oliver filled the stat sheet with seven tackles (four solo), 2.5 sacks, 2.5 tackles for loss, two pass breakups and a forced fumble. The forced fumble, although recovered by KU, came with a sack on fourth down that gave OSU the ball back to take its final lead late in the game.

Play of the Game: Flea Flicker For Brennan Presley Touchdown

There was a lot going on here, but that’s probably what made it so fun.

Presley, a receiver, was lined up behind Bowman as a running back in a three-back pistol set. Bowman handed the ball to Presley, who pitched it back to Bowman. Presley then slipped out to the flats on the right side before catching a short pass and taking it for a 20-yard touchdown. Presley put a Jayhawk defender on skates to finish the play in the end zone.

Call of the Game: Brennan Presley’s Late Lead-Changing Touchdown Run

With so many red-zone struggles and settling for field goals, the Cowboys needed something special with one of their playmakers to finally get in the end zone and take a late lead.

Presley scored on a 6-yard run to give OSU a 36-32 lead with 2:33 left and ultimately give the Pokes the win. The design behind the play was made it stand out as much as what it sealed, though.

After being criticized for being rather vanilla in the red zone with runs up the middle out of simple packages, Kasey Dunn cooked up something unique here. With Bowman under center, Presley came in motion from the right side as Bowman snapped the ball to turn around and hand it to Presley, who sprinted around the outside as Bowman faked a pitch to Jaden Nixon toward the right side.

Offensive Stat that Stood Out: Over 30 Points

Saturday was the first time the Cowboys surpassed 30 points since beating Texas 41-34 on Oct. 22, 2022. OSU had went 358 days without reaching 30 points, according to Marshall’s math. That was also 11 games the Cowboys were held under that point mark.

Defensive Stat that Stood Out: Turnovers in Four Consecutive Possessions

It may have seemed like a shootout at times, but the Cowboys don’t win this game without how clutch the defense was.

With the game on the line at the end of the third quarter and in the fourth, Bryan Nardo’s defense forced a turnover on four possessions in a row. The first two were interceptions after KU quarterback Jason Bean entered the game having not thrown an interception in 86 attempts, dating back to last season, according to the FS1 broadcast.

OSU then held the Jayhawks on fourth down the next two possessions. The final drive ended because the game concluded.

This run of four straight possessions with a turnover came from the same defense that didn’t force a turnover at all for two games earlier in the season against South Alabama and Iowa State– both losses.

Terry Miller Inducted into Ring of Honor

Another name and number was added atop Boone Pickens Stadium at halftime Saturday.

Former OSU running back Terry Miller was inducted into the Cowboy Football Ring of Honor, joining Thurman Thomas, Barry Sanders and Bob Fenimore.

Miller was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2022 after a successful career at OSU that included a 1977 season in which he finished as the Heisman runner-up. Miller was a two-time All-American, recording 4,754 rushing yards and 49 rushing touchdowns– both of which rank second all-time in OSU history. In a program that includes Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas, Miller is the only OSU running back to record three 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

Miller was the fifth-overall pick by the Buffalo Bills in the 1978 NFL Draft. He replaced O.J. Simpson and ran for 1,060 yards as a rookie.