Where the Oklahoma State Football Job Ranks Among Current Openings

STILLWATER — Oklahoma State was the fourth FBS program to begin camping out for a new head coach.

Of course, the line for a new coach, much like the sport itself, is rarely fair. When Penn State made the decision to part ways with James Franklin over the weekend, the Nittany Lions almost certainly emerged as the top option for any would-be head coach looking to make a move this offseason.

Penn State entered the season ranked No. 2 in the nation with 23 first-place votes, which speaks to the team’s national championship aspirations. Three consecutive conference losses in recent weeks killed those hopes, prompting the program to move on from Franklin.

Expectations drive most of these decisions. Weiberg said as much following OSU’s decision to move on from Mike Gundy.

“We all have high expectations for OSU football because of Mike Gundy,” Weiberg said. “Unfortunately, the results of the last year have not met the standard.”

Culture, regional ties and relationships play a role in which coaches land which jobs, but as the line of programs in need grows, a general pecking order typically emerges. This begs the question— how good is the Oklahoma State job?

A million data points could go into this evaluation, but the quantifiable things that lure coaches can probably be boiled down to head coaching salary, NIL and on-field success/the potential to win championships.

Money Talks

Salaries are easily the most straightforward criteria. Money talks, and almost every head coaching salary is tracked in the USA Today Database.

Gundy’s viral comments comparing Oregon and OSU’s NIL commitment earlier this season made the Cowboys seem like the kid with the empty bowl asking for more food.

That isn’t exactly the case. Yes, Oregon coach Dan Lanning is one of 10 head coaches expected to make $10-plus million this year. However, Gundy’s $6.875 million salary this season put him 34th in the nation, and fifth in the Big 12.

Following a very public dispute with OSU in December, Gundy agreed to rework his contract, which resulted in a pay cut. In 2024, Gundy made $7.75 million, which would rank 22nd in the nation and second in the conference behind only Deion Sanders.

It remains to be seen if OSU will spend big, closer to Gundy’s max salary, or aim for something closer to the $6 million mark (42 head coaches make at least this much).

Either way, the Cowboys have demonstrated a willingness to spend sizable amounts on a successful head coach. The program probably won’t outspend the Nittany Lions, but OSU probably has the support needed to keep up with the rest of the current openings (and most of the future ones).

Of course, paying the head coach is just the starting point when it comes time to write the checks.

OSU’s Result: Top of Tier 2 (behind only Penn State, but Arkansas is close)

More Money, More Problems?

NIL contributions have taken center stage in college football.

Unfortunately, it’s just about impossible to verify what any school spends on this stuff. Most numbers publicly available are heavily based on rumors or end up being disputed by others.

Most recruits and portal players prefer to talk around the issue of money, but it’s an important piece of talent acquisition these days.

It makes sense to conclude that programs that experience more success recruiting and in the portal are generally paying out more.

Lots of numbers here, maybe too many numbers. All numbers reflect 247Sports Composite rankings except the last two columns, which use On3’s portal rankings. These are a little different than the other portal rankings because they consider talent lost in the portal AND talent acquired instead of just focusing on who teams added.

It’s not breaking news to see that Oklahoma State recruits high school prospects at a level beneath the success the program achieved under Gundy.

There’s been a narrative that the Cowboys flourished under Gundy because the coaching staff, in conjunction with strength and conditioning coach Rob Glass, turned overlooked prospects into diamonds by their third and fourth years in the program.

That meant a lot more before transfers became so commonplace.

Now, most top-end programs replace holes in the lineup with proven options through the portal, making those rankings arguably the most important. That’s likely especially true when it comes to evaluating the impact of NIL.

OSU seems to be moving in the right direction, but these rankings reflect a program spending to be middle or lower among Power Conference schools.

Most won’t hear these details for years, if ever, but it’s likely this will become the make-it-or-break-it point of conversation with several of OSU’s top options as those coaches look for the Cowboys to promise a growing commitment to NIL likely closer to or exceeding what UCLA has done recently, which has begun paying dividends on the football field.

For what it’s worth, Weiberg didn’t seem troubled by OSU’s cashflow at his presser discussing Gundy’s firing. So perhaps this area will take a jump up with a new coach.

“What I am extremely comfortable of is that we are resourced at the level that we need to be resourced at,” Weiberg said. “This is not an inexpensive football team that we have on the field this season. I feel really good about the investment that we have made here. I feel great about the support that we have here. …

“I go back to we aren’t lacking for support. I know there are people who think that we are. But this is not the 1980s OSU. We have come a long, long way from then. I would invite any of you to see how many other schools have 123 suites in the football stadium. Something that was unfathomable right, back then.”

OSU’s Result: Bottom of Tier 3

Contenders or Pretenders

Even with last season’s 3-9 collapse, Oklahoma State’s recent results are much closer to the Nittany Lions than they are to the other teams on the list.

Had the four-team playoff started in 2011 or the 12-team playoff started a little sooner, the Cowboys might find themselves swimming in the same pool as the Penn States of the world when it comes to national perception.

Weiberg outlined a lot of reasons the program moved on from Gundy when it did. Protecting the brand he built was probably paramount.

The Cowboys finished inside the committee’s top 25 seven times, which speaks to how close OSU was to the expanded playoff picture back when the committee (and the nation) focused so much on the top four.
OSU also proved competitive in the Big 12, which is important considering the conference title game is essentially a play-in game these days. Weiberg said he’s not as concerned with the Big 12’s place in the national picture while conducting the search, but it should absolutely move the needle for some coaches.

Current Big 12 teams should be able to annually push for two playoffs spots if the conference can avoid beating itself up too much. That should give it a leg up without forcing top teams to win what might amount to a three and four-team beauty pageant like we see between the SEC’s No. 3-6 teams in recent seasons.

OSU’s Result: All alone on Tier 2

Overall Result: Top of a distant Tier 2, just ahead of Arkansas and UCLA

It’s been a long time since Arkansas proved it can win in the SEC. UCLA has a similar problem holding the Bruins back.

Stanford’s recruiting rankings are definitely impacted by its higher-than-most academic requirements, but the Cardinal hasn’t looked good since David Shaw left. The right fit could probably turn Stanford back into a national championship contender, but the margin for error feels much smaller there than other programs.

In general, OSU has the benefit of being a proven commodity that could probably flip the script quickly with the right head coach and a large influx of cash for NIL purposes.

“We know winning the Big 12 Championship, going to the College Football Playoff, and competing for championships are realistic goals,” Weiberg said. “They remain attainable goals, but the stakes are high and competition is intense.”