Kasey Dunn’s Formula for Evaluating Talent at Wide Receiver

For the second-straight year, Oklahoma State’s signing class was headlined by a four-star, top-25 wide receiver in the country. In 2017, it was Tylan Wallace — as well another four-star wideout LC Greenwood who is redshirting this season. This year, it’s in-state stud C.J. Moore who spurned the likes of Ohio State and others to stay close to home.

While the ability of Oklahoma State receivers coach Kasey Dunn to pull top-flight talent is impressive, Mike Gundy is more enamored with his sixth-year assistant’s knack for finding diamonds in the rough.

“He’s been very successful in recruiting guys that a lot of people don’t think are good enough to play and he sees something in them and potential to develop them into good players,” said Gundy on Wednesday.

The poster child for Dunn’s keen eye and evaluation skills is obvious and he just made Oklahoma State the leader in earned Biletnikoff trophies. James Washington wasn’t under-recruited, he was un-recruited when Dunn brought the name to his head coach’s attention.

“I still remember [Dunn] coming in my office,” Gundy said earlier this season. “I think it was October and he said, ‘Coach, I’ve got a kid I need you to see. He’s at a real small school in west Texas. He’s a tennis player, basketball player, baseball player, football player, all these different things. I think he’s a big-time player, but nobody’s recruiting him.’”

That kid has turned into the best wide receiver in the nation and is very likely going to surpass Rashaun Woods for most receiving yards in Oklahoma State history next week.

Offering a scholarship to Tylan Wallace or C.J. Moore doesn’t take a genius, but being able to see beyond the stars and rankings and evaluate off-the-grid talent based on how it fits your system, culture and “formula”? That makes Dunn the best in the business according to Mike Gundy.

“I would argue that he’s been as successful as anybody in the country at recruiting to a specific position, in my opinion, over an extended period of time,” Gundy said. “You know you see a few guys have a flash in the pan for a year or two.”

“He’s had his experience in the NFL and he’s got a formula that he uses that he learned in the NFL — or he made that up and told me that, I don’t know.”

Made up or not, Dunn’s track record speaks for itself and as long as Gundy can the best WR coach in the country in Stillwater, the Cowboys shouldn’t run out of freaks to throw the ball to.