Superlatives: Game MVPs, Top Plays and More from Oklahoma State’s Double-OT Win over Arkansas

The Cowboys survived one of the ugliest all-around games that I can remember. Coming from someone who’s been covering this team for nearly a decade, that says a lot. But win they did, and it’s time to hand out some superlatives.

Offensive MVP: Brennan Presley

With all the warts Oklahoma State’s offense showed, there’s little question who gets this award. Presley hauled in nine catches for 91 yards and a score, and also added the jet sweep TD that gave OSU its first lead. It took him 19 targets to get those nine catches but, again, in a game like this one, that looks very clean.

BP again! 😤

📺: ABC pic.twitter.com/R1zm2j6xnv

— OSU Cowboy Football (@CowboyFB) September 7, 2024

Honorable Mentions: Rashod Owens, Ollie Gordon

Defensive MVP: Nick Martin

Regardless of how ugly OSU’s defense looked for huge portions of this game, there were some nice individual performances, so this wasn’t easy. But Martin takes home the hardware for the second week in a row, not only for his 16 tackles (behind only Trey Rucker’s 17 in the game), but also for his 4.5 tackles for loss and three QB hurries. He was all over the field, and despite how many times quarterback Taylen Green was able to scramble and make plays, Martin caused plenty of havoc on the Hogs’ dynamic playmaker.

Honorable Mentions: Trey Rucker, Obi Ezeigbo, Kale Smith

Breakout Performance: Obi Ezeigbo

After recording one tackle for loss in his Cowboy debut against South Dakota State, the former Gannon transfer showed that this level of competition wasn’t too much for him. Ezeigbo ranked third with nine total tackles, and recorded two sacks, 3.5 tackles for loss and a QB hurry. He makes a strong enough case for Defensive MVP if “Breakout Performance” wasn’t such a perfect fit.

The Cowboys have got a LOT to figure out on defense, and will now be without LB/EDGE Collin Oliver for at least the foreseeable future, but Ezeigbo’s performance provided a silver lining for the Pokes on that side of the ball.

Stat of the Game: 3-1

Chaos theorists could write dissertations on this box score, but probably the most decisive number to the outcome of this game is one we talked about all the time. OSU won the turnover battle 3-1 and scored 10 points off of those takeaways without giving up any on its own. That was enough to overcome the countless chunk plays the Cowboys gave up, the ineffectiveness on offense, the overthrows and even the shoddy game-deciding calls. It might not be there every week, but it’s what made the difference for the Cowboys in this one.

Play of the Game: Kale Smith’s Pick-Six

There really is no other option here. Smith got a stop and the Cowboys’ only points in the first half. If it weren’t for this play, OSU’s improbable win probably has no chance of happening. It will, unfortunately, be tainted seeing as it’s the same play on which Oliver was injured.

INT TO THE HOUSE 😤😤

📺: ABC pic.twitter.com/W4BC3hCKFT

— OSU Cowboy Football (@CowboyFB) September 7, 2024

Honorable Mention: Flea flicker to Jake Schultz for 63, Presley’s 36-yard catch