What the Cowboys Did with the Open Week

STILLWATER — It’s been a chaotic stretch for Cowboy football off the field, but that didn’t mean the games stopped being played.

Before this past weekend, Oklahoma State’s last weekend off was Sept. 13.

Since then, OSU fired longtime head coach Mike Gundy. Then the program parted was with defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, with Clint Bowen stepping into that role. Then Doug Meacham, the interim coach, handed over play-calling duties to quarterback coach Kevin Johns. The Cowboys had a stretch where Sam Jackson V, listed as a wide receiver, played quarterback because of injuries to that room. And on top of all of that, a 30-day midseason portal window meant no one knew who was going to be on the team from week to week.

With all that happening, the Cowboys finally had a week off.

“It’s an opportunity to reset for sure,” Meacham said Monday. “You take this week that we just had off, and it’s an opportunity to reflect back on what’s occurred and re-energize and remember what’s important, what’s important is these kids right now. We’re adults, we’re fine. We’re going to be fine. There’s good coaches in there that will be fine.

“Just got to reflect and think about what’s the most important thing is those kids. And sometimes those kids don’t necessarily do exactly what you want them to do. They’re youngsters, and your job is kind of guide them, show them a way. So that’s what we’re trying to do.”

Meacham said the team practiced last Tuesday and Wednesday before a four-day break. He said he told some of the coaches to take a “staycation,” as well.

Some of the players used their break to go home for a few days. Others, like receiver Shamar Rigby, stayed in Stillwater. Rigby said he did a couple workouts by himself and stayed in and played video games.

With OSU being light on bodies, that’s made it to where others have had to carry more of a load, meaning the Cowboys were quite banged up going into the open week.

So, it was good for mind and body to have a little time off.

“I feel like this bye week was good for our mental, our bodies, being able to just recover and get our minds clear and things like that,” safety Raymond Gay II said. “So, now we can come out as a team and go out and try to get a win this week.

“I feel like it’s very beneficial because we still have three games left, so just trying to get everyone together to get a win and just keep everyone on the same page, be positive, no negativity, things like that. I feel like a mental reset is very good for that because it can clear your mind. It can get those negative thoughts or any negative emotions that you have out of the way.”

The Cowboys have three games left to chase down a conference win that has eluded the Pokes since the end of the 2023 season. That hunt starts with OSU welcoming 4-5 Kansas State to Stillwater at 11 a.m. Saturday. Then the Cowboys will close the year out with a trip to Orlando to play UCF before Iowa State comes to Boone Pickens Stadium for the finale.

After that, everything changes again as the program will be under new leadership.

“Just gritty,” said edge rusher Wendell Gregory on what he wants to see from his team coming out of this bye. “We know what team we’re coming into. Kansas State is a really good ball team, so we can’t go to sleep. We gotta watch film — study junkies — be aggressive. They run the ball really well. They have a great quarterback. Just dial into what we need to get done.”