Resolute Gundy Says Whispers of Culture Problems at OSU Are ‘100% Bull****’

Mike Gundy at Oklahoma State has built and nurtured one of the most successful programs in college football around consistency and a culture that has come to be known as “Cowboy Culture.”

So what happens when that culture comes into question?

Defiant as ever, Gundy answered that this week in an article published at The Athletic by Max Olson. On the heels of a trying season mired in injuries and subsequent offseason attrition, including 18 outgoing transfers like Mason Cobb, Trace Ford and Dominic Richardson, Gundy called bologna sandwich on the idea that the Cowboys have a problem with their culture.

“That’s 100 percent bulls—,” Gundy told The Athletic.

This last season, OSU lost starting QB Spencer Sanders to the portal before the bowl game, and the likes of Cobb, Ford, Richardson, Jabbar Muhammad, Caleb Etienne and others sought new homes. From November — when the season officially unraveled — until January the program was a rollercoaster of exits. There were whispers about coaching changes, rumors of discontent among players and general bad vibes across the board.

Gundy has reflected and reset in the months since and seems to be refreshed anew. He told Olson in The Athletic article that problems OSU had last season were programs OSU previously never had. It was a learning experience. Injuries wiped the team. Chemistry issues gutted it. It made Gundy come back to the drawing board.

“What we went through, we’ve never had that here — ever,” Gundy said. “We were so decimated with injuries, and then we did not have enough strong core team chemistry. I didn’t know it, but I learned it looking back.”

In true Gundy fashion, the uncertainty of the situation surrounding his program — with so many players leaving and so many spots to fill — worried him more than what the perception of his program was. He cares not about what the media says or what fans grovel about. He cares about winning, and the path he and his staff pave to get there. So one more bleep word for the road?

One more bleep word for the road!

“People say, man, the media was on you and the fans were on you and all this,” Gundy told The Athletic. “I don’t give a s— about that. That doesn’t bother me. What bothered me was not knowing the final destination. It was the uncertainty and volatility of the team. I’ve never dealt with that.”

You can read the full article from Olson at The Athletic — which I highly, highly, highly recommend — right here.