OSU Football: Cowboys Land as High as 12 on Multiple Preseason Top 25 Rankings

We still don’t know exactly how the current COVID-19 shutdown of sports will affect the start of college football. But that doesn’t stop any of us from reading about it, pining for it and it definitely won’t stop us from writing about it.

So as sports media outlets all across the web look longingly to a time when we have an actual game to cover, many have laid out their preseason top 25 projections, despite the cancellation of spring practice. And it appear that the palpable buzz surrounding Oklahoma State’s 2020 roster is not just local.

Let’s take a lot at where the Pokes are ranked in a roundup of way-too-early college football polls.

NCAA — 12

NCAA.com ranked the Cowboys 12th, just four spots below No. 8 OU and two spots above 14th-ranked Texas (still not back). Iowa State was the fourth Big 12 team coming in at No. 23.

The Cowboys got a big, big boost as star RB Chuba Hubbard announced he’ll be coming back for another season. Hubbard led the country with 2,094 rushing yards, averaging 6.4 yards per attempt while rushing for 21 touchdowns. Spencer Sanders and Tylan Wallace form a strong QB-WR tandem. [NCAA.com]

USA Today — 19

The Cowboys landed barely in the teens, behind the other three abovementioned conference foes.

In a surprise, running back Chuba Hubbard opted to return in 2020, a decision that vaults him near the top of the list among preseason Heisman Trophy contenders. He’s also one-third of a potentially spectacular offensive cast, joining wide receiver Tylan Wallace and quarterback Spencer Sanders. [USA Today]

ESPN — 12

The worldwide leader put out its preseason rankings five weeks ago (which is roughly nine months in quarantine time), but Mark Schlabach liked the Cowboys to be the 12th-best team. ESPN’s Football Power Index also ranked the Pokes at No. 17.

Is 2020 going to be the year of the Mullet in the Big 12? The Cowboys have been a little down the past couple of seasons, but OSU coach Mike Gundy is bringing back FBS rushing leader Chuba Hubbard (2,094 yards with 21 touchdowns in 2019) and 2018 Biletnikoff finalist Tylan Wallace, who caught 53 passes for 903 yards with eight scores before suffering a knee injury in practice in November. … [ESPN]

Stadium — 24

This one is a little outdated as alum and Stadium college football scribe, Brett McMurphy, ranked his Cowboys at 24 before Chuba Hubbard’s announced return.

The Cowboys are still awaiting word if running back Chuba Hubbard will declare for the NFL Draft, but Oklahoma State knows it will return one of the nation’s top quarterback-wide receiver duos in Spencer Sanders and Tylan Wallace. Sanders started as a true freshman, but his season was plagued by a thumb injury that required surgery. Wallace, who led the nation in receiving yards in 2018, had last year cut short after eight games due to a torn ACL. Mike Gundy will have a new offensive coordinator in Stillwater after former OC Sean Gleeson left for Rutgers. [Stadium]