Oklahoma State Kicks off Fall Camp on Sunday; Storylines, Dates, Schedule

The start of fall camp kicks off on Sunday evening for Oklahoma State—just hours after players are expected to report for training camp.

We’ve gone through some key storylines to watch, players expected to benefit from the month-long lead-up to the first game, and freshmen who could make an early impact. Now it’s time to get this thing rolling with a primer detailing everything you need to know before camp kicks off.

As we noted earlier this week, here are all the notable dates in August to put on the calendar for now, as well as three storylines to watch. We’ll have more details on key dates such as fan appreciation day as events approach.

Sunday, July 30

• Players report (afternoon)
• First practice in Stillwater (7:10)

Wednesday, August 2

• Media availability

Saturday, August 5

• Media availability (plus photo shoot)

Wednesday, August 9

• Media availability

Wednesday, August 16

• Media availability

Friday, August 25

• Media luncheon

Thursday, August 31

• First game

Three storylines to watch

1. The backup quarterback competition; Cornelius or the field? Despite the hype surrounding Keondre Wudtee coming in last season, the Louisiana native hasn’t solidified himself as a backup to Mason Rudolph — now he has three weeks to do so. Lots of smart people consider walk-on Taylor Cornelius to be the frontrunner to land the back gig. But can redshirt freshman Wudtee or true frosh Jelani Woods unseat him?

2. Will a true frosh backup Justice Hill? Freshman All-American running back Justice Hill will be the starter, health willing, but behind him is one giant Times New Roman question mark. Everyone has their opinion: J.D. King is a fan favorite, Chuba Hubbard has Cowboy fans drooling about his speed, and LD Brown is a sleeper pick after having been on campus a year. Redshirt frosh Ja’Ron Wilson also figures to be squarely in the mix. But Mike Yurcich isn’t saying a word just yet.

“It’s kind of a teaser when you start camp, because you’re in pajamas,” Yurcich said earlier this week. “When practice becomes full pads and you start seeing the fur fly — you start seeing whose going to be physical, who can bounce off and make somebody miss, who can break a tackle and make tough yardage after contact .. that’s the fun part.”

3. Which receivers separate themselves? If you were to tell me OSU has eight future NFL receivers on its current roster, I’d not dispute it. The Pokes have James Washington and Jalen McCleskey as preseason Biletnikoff candidates, Marcel Ateman as an all-conference red-zone target, Tyron Johnson as an all-hype player, and Tylan Wallace as one of the most highly touted freshman to arrive on campus since Dez Bryant.

Washington will be WR1, but behind him there’s plenty of competition. Will Tyron Johnson jump up and become WR2? Will Marcel Ateman pick up where he left off pre-injury? Or will Jalen McCleskey take a step forward again in 2017 to backup Washington? Fall camp should provide plenty of answers to those questions.