The Top 3 Quotes from Mike Gundy, Kasey Dunn and Bryan Nardo from OSU’s Final Week of Spring Practice

Oklahoma State began its final week of spring practice on Monday and it was an opportunity to hear from Mike Gundy and his two lead assistants, offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn and first-year defensive coordinator Bryan Nardo, before football breaks for the summer.

Here are the Top 3 quotes from the Cowboys’ final media availability of the spring.

1. Gundy Pleased with Spring, But Cowboys Have a Long Way to Go

It’s no secret that the 2022 campaign fell short of OSU’s lofty goals. After a 5-0 start, the Cowboys slumped to a 7-6 finish and their worst Big 12 finish in five years. Add in the massive turnover that took place through the transfer portal and this spring camp brought with it more urgency maybe than ever as coaches try to see what they have and then get their players in the position to rebound this fall.

So, after five weeks of practice, how does Gundy see their progress? On Monday, he said the team is further along than he expected.

“I feel good about what we’ve been able to get accomplished,” said Gundy. “We still have got a lot of work to do in the offseason. Coaches need to do a good job of setting these guys up where they can work on their own and continue with what we’ve started with some of the new schemes offensively and obviously the defense is new. They’ve done everything we’ve asked them to do at this point.”

2. Physicality a Priority for OSU’s Offense According to Dunn

We’ve heard more than once that OSU has made a point to get more physical in the run-blocking, and we saw the more than once, the need for it last year as OSU ranked ninth in the Big 12 in rushing after turning in its lowest per-game average since 2001.

Cowboys OC Kasey Dunn also beat that drum this week.

“Running it downhill and running it in situations where we normally wouldn’t like a third-and-four or a third-and-five,” said Dunn. “Situational work, we have that pop up in practice and see if we can run the football there. I make a big deal out of it in our unit meeting… Our guys get behind that and they rally.

“One thing that we’re talking about is running a football and physicality go hand-in-hand, it’s a marriage. You’re not going to do one without the other. It’s definitely been an emphasis for us this spring.”

3. Nardo is Okay Rooting for the Offense

Spring practices should be pretty evenly matched. If an offense dominates its defense, or vice versa, it probably spells trouble for a team in the fall. OSU’s camp, from all indications, has been pretty competitive, so the occasional big play on offense doesn’t upset the Cowboys’ new DC.

“The way I’ve always looked at that is, I want to win, period,” said Nardo. “I’m the first one celebrating if a receiver makes a catch, I’m the first one telling the running back he made a good run, I’m the first one celebrating if we get an interception, because at the end of the day it’s about Oklahoma State winning football games.

“I’ve been at some places where we have very competitive springs, and you end up having the best football team you ever had. If one side of the ball dominates, it’s usually pretty bad.”