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Two Reasons Mike Gundy Won’t Make a Change at QB Away from Taylor Cornelius

Maybe Corn’s backups are TO machines or maybe the OL just needs to get a LOT better.

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I wrote a piece on Monday about why Oklahoma State needs to move away from Taylor Cornelius at QB and try somebody different. It’s certainly not personal, but what I’ve seen on the field is not sufficient. It’s not just because of the loss on Saturday. I was starting to lean that direction following the Boise State game. Tech was just more evidence.

I don’t really expect anything to happen. I think Cornelius will play the entire game at Kansas, and OSU will win 33-21, and then he’ll play the entire game against Iowa State and all the games after that, too, barring injury. That’s fine. That’s Mike Gundy’s prerogative. I just think the downside to playing one of the other two QBs is nearly non-existent. Are they going to be less dynamic than 4/14 for 29 yards and a pick in the second half against Tech?

Anyway, Gundy was asked if Dru Brown would get QB1 reps this week, and he reacted as if he didn’t understand the question, which I found to be both hilarious and a bit of a bummer. Here’s the clip.

https://youtu.be/6tHVwfOI7rY?t=4m7s

I told Carson this on Sunday when we broke down the game, but there are really only two reasons to continue playing Cornelius. Here they are.

  1. You think Dru Brown or Spencer Sanders will turn the ball over a lot more.
  2. You think the offensive line is going to improve quickly.

The first is a legitimate reason and one only Gundy knows. If you’re going to get, say, 15 percent more production from one of those two than you’re getting from Corn but 25 percent more turnovers, then maybe logic says don’t play ’em. But how will you know unless you, as Gundy says, turn the lights on and let ’em go?

The second is more interesting. There is a scenario in which — and this is what I think Gundy thought and I bought coming into the year — OSU can be really good with a QB like Taylor Cornelius. If the offensive line is elite at protecting and the run game is popping for like 7 yards a carry and the defense is better than it’s been in years then TC could potentially be the starter for a good Big 12 team. Potentially.

This is essentially what we saw against Boise State, right? A great team with an OK quarterback who did enough to get a big win. That world exists, OSU just did not live in it against Texas Tech. And if you think Corn’s big problem is no run game and poor protection — I’m not sure I buy it! — then you’re going to roll with him until you don’t roll anymore.

I have no idea what Gundy truly thinks about QBs anymore — for all I know Gage is making the calls via text — but I do know that he values consistency and loyalty and intelligence (and he should!) Cornelius came into the season representing all of those things, which is a great thing and should be rewarded on some level. I’m just not sure his on-field play has matched Gundy’s perception of his value to the program.

Maybe I’m wrong — and you are more than welcome to @ me when I am — but regardless, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t matter. Gundy is going with Taylor Cornelius for the foreseeable future, and I’m not sure any amount of reasoning is going to change his mind.

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