Notebook: Stribling Not Worried about Watch Lists, Fastest Player on the Team, More Shotomide-King Talk

STILLWATER — There are just a few more fall camp media sessions before the Cowboys take to the field for real on Aug. 31.

Oklahoma State players met with reporters after their practice on Thursday. Here are three storylines that stood out.

‘I Catch the Ball. I Score Touchdowns’

This is a bit of a continuation off a storyline I wrote about earlier this week.

De’Zhaun Stribling was left off the Biletnikoff’s preseason watch list. His inclusion would’ve added to Brennan Presley and Rashod Owens on said list, but after an early injury last season, Stribling enters the 2024 season a little more under the radar than the start to his 2023 campaign would’ve suggested.

In the four games he took part in last season, Stribling had 14 catches for 198 yards and a score. Projecting that forward, Stribling’s per game averages would’ve had him with about 50 catches for 693 yards. But it’s also important to note that during three of the games Stribling played in, the Cowboys were rotating quarterbacks before settling on Alan Bowman in Game 4.

At OSU’s media day last weekend, Owens talked about how Stribling should be getting some more national love entering 2024. Well, Stribling met with the media after OSU’s Thursday practice, and he doesn’t seem too bothered by being left off any lists.

“I go out there, and I play football,” Stribling said. “I catch the ball. I score touchdowns. That’s just my job and the job I’m going to do. Not really worried about the list or all that kind of extra stuff. Just focus on helping my team win. That’s it.”

Korie Black, Fastest on the Team

When you think of the fastest player on this Cowboy team, the first person who comes to mind is probably slot receiver Brennan Presley. Well, the OSU football account put out a video this week where Hudson Kaak asked a couple of his teammates who the fastest player on the team was. Presley got asked first, and he didn’t immediately start backing himself. When asked who would beat him, the first name off his lips was cornerback Korie Black. Black quickly agreed.

Defensive backs need speed, but it isn’t often Black, listed at 6-feet, 190 pounds, is forced to open up his stride. When asked about it Thursday, Black said that if he is using his speed, it means he’s getting beat. That doesn’t happen all too often for the uber-experienced corner. According to Pro Football Focus, Black was targeted 35 times last season, where he allowed just 16 catches — a 46% reception rate.

“Luckily I don’t have to use a lot of [speed] while I’m covering,” Black said. “I try to cover with angles so it kind of slows the game down. I don’t have to use too much of my speed.”

More Shotomide-King Hype

With as experienced as this group is, there was a wonder whether there was room for an unknown to pick up a lot of fall camp murmurs, but Snow College transfer receiver Ayo Shotomide-King continues to be that guy.

Listed at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, Shotomide-King made 37 catches for 438 yards and a pair of scores at the junior college level last season. Stribling said he helped a little bit in Shotomide-King’s recruitment process, and Stribling did nothing to slow down the hype train.

“His big body, the way he’s able to run through contact, run through arm tackles, catch the ball strong, catch the ball out there, have strong forearms — that’s one of his best features, also,” Stribling said. “He’ll be a good, complete all-around receiver pretty soon. … Good guy, even better player.”