Notebook: One Half with a Classic OSU Offense Is Enough with This Defense

Oklahoma State’s offense looked like an Oklahoma State offense for about half of the game on Saturday night, and its defense continued to look stout all night. Imagine how scary this team could be.

Here are my thoughts and notes from OSU’s first Big 12 win.

Rashaun Woods was the VIP guest at Oklahoma State’s Big 12 opener but the MIP (Most Important Person) might have been another rangy wideout. Tay Martin, who returned from injury after missing all but two plays the last two games, picked up right where he left off as OSU’s No. 1 wideout. He reeled in nine of 12 targets for an efficient 100 yards and a score.

The Cowboys are now 5-0 in W-B-W. The last time OSU wore a Pete helmet with a white-black-white combo was that crazy game in Stillwater when Rudolph, Washington and Co. beat the Wildcats 36-34 on a late field goal by Ben Grogan after K-State took a 1-point lead with three minutes remaining. This didn’t quite live up to that in terms of theatrics but, for spurts, was reminiscent.

Will Howard struggles against OSU. Last year, Howard threw a pick and lost a fumble that Jason Taylor took to the house that sealed an OSU win. This year he lost another fumble that ended with a Cowboy in the end zone, this time from his own 2-yard line. Malcolm Rodriguez was there to clean it up and pay it off.

Other Notes

• Kansas State’s only win in Stilly this century was in 2017. Byron Pringle returned a kickoff for a touchdown. On Saturday, Malik Knowles did the same in the first quarter. I was scared.

• OSU had not scored 30 points so far this year but scored 31 points by the second quarter. I was excited.

Of course they didn’t score again.

• Jaylen Warren makes big plays.

• K-State appears to be trying to pick on Jarrick Bernard-Converse, This might not go well.

• For the second week, OSU’s offense got a kick-start from Jaylen Warren. Instead of a 75-yard house call, Warren took a screen pass 52 yards and set the Pokes up deep in Wildcat territory. A few plays later, Spencer Sanders skipped into the end zone untouched on a 2-yard play.

• Malik Knowles’ 99-yard kickoff return puts OSU back up 10-7 Malik Knowles’ 99-yard kickoff return makes it 10-7 OSU. The last time K-State won in Stillwater (and only time this century) included a Byron Pringle KO return TD. Yikes

• K-State went for it on fourth-and-1 on the OSU 15 and converted. Of course.

• Again Will Howard is still going after JBC. Again, he bats away a would-be huge pass play.

• Wow at Brennan Presley’s TD.

• In football, your world can get turned upside down in just one play. Flying high after taking a kickoff 99 yards for a score, Kansas State’s Malik Knowles fielded the next OSU kick in the end zone and decided to try to make it two in a row. Unfortunately for Knowles, Dominic Richardson had other ideas, swallowing up the Wildcat receiver at the 7-yard line. On the very next play, a K-State fumble was tipped into the end zone and corralled by Malcolm Rodriguez for a score to wipe away Knowles’ big play.

• Daniel Green was disqualified for targeting. It’s technically against the rules. If I were Green, or a K-State fan, I’d be a tad bit perturbed.

• Sanders to Blaine Green for 24 yards on third-and-5. Nice throw and catch.

• Sanders is taken down on should-be late hit by KSU Ryan Henington. Cole Birmingham did not appreciate it, took a 15-yard penalty that put the Pokes behind the poles. OSU settled for a 48-yard FG attempt which went wide left. (Justified as it may be, it cost the Cowboys and killed momentum.)

• Brennan is going to house one of these returns at some point.

• Insult, meet injury. Brock Martin is flagged while finding himself down on the field. Clutching his left elbow. Doesn’t look good.

• On the Cowboys’ first play of the fourth quarter, Sanders found Brennan Presley for 33 yards in play that looked like it would relight the Pokes’ fire. A big play pulled in by Tay Martin was called back for offensive pass interference to put the Cowboys, again, behind the chains. A dart from Sanders to Rashod Owens was called a 17-yard pass, but that was overturned as out-of-bounds upon review.

• After missing from 48 yards earlier in the game, OSU went to Alex Hale from 49 yards. Wide left again.

• Jaylen Warren is back and is still the three-down RB. Feed him.

• OSU’s defense is good.

• Cowboys are 4-0 and undefeated, atop the Big 12.