Oklahoma State Isn’t as Good as We Thought, but That Might Not Be a Bad Thing

Think back to last season as Oklahoma State entered conference play against Texas Tech. Spirits were high coming off a fun game with Florida State and 40-point performances against Missouri State and UTSA. Morale was high.

This year, not so much.

I’ll hold off judgement on the nonconference portion of the schedule until Oklahoma State plays UTSA this weekend, but I tend to agree with the majority of those who voted in this poll on Tuesday.

OSU has been slightly worse than we thought coming into the season. Now, part of that is because we thought OSU was going to be able to roll with the 2007 Patriots. The other part is because it has looked, at times, inept on offense so far against two inferior opponents.

The good side of that, though, is something Mike Gundy noted earlier this week about last season’s opener.

“We had to do so much to get ready for Florida State. We had to come up with a game plan to move the ball and score points against a team that we knew was physically better than us. We don’t want to do that. We want to work our way to a certain point. That’s my approach.”

Why is that good? Well, the perception might be that OSU is worse off than we thought. But the reality is that it is a team that could peak in November (yes) or even later. Look at Ohio State last year. That team that got beat by Virginia Tech in September was a shadow of the squad that curb stomped Oregon in Dallas.

So take heart, OSU fans. Your expectations have been laid low but this team still has a real chance to be a lot better than we think. Under promising and over delivering and such. Its defense will keep it in nearly every game, and Mike Yurcich has never had a full season with the same QB [crosses fingers].

And because it hasn’t been elite thus far, its players know they can’t overlook anybody.

“UTSA is a good team,” said Emmanuel Ogbah this week. “We are not taking them lightly. We’re taking them just like a Big 12 opponent. We’re going to go out there and give it our all. The coaches keep us locked in. It’s not tough, because we always think about the next game we have, which is UTSA. That’s what we’re focused on.”

Plus, it can’t be any worse than last year.