Tag: ollie gordon

Ollie Gordon starts Heisman campaign with strong opener

Ollie Gordon showed off his skill with three touchdowns in Oklahoma State’s season opening win over South Dakota State.

Mike Gundy and the Oklahoma State Cowboys heard all offseason about the challenge they would face in Week 1 of the season. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits were going to give them all they could handle in the season opener. The Cowboys put a stop to that with a double-digit halftime lead and 21 third-quarter points. The biggest plus – Ollie Gordon showed why he is a legitimate Heisman candidate.

Gordon put on a show, with 27 rushing attempts, 104 rushing yards, and two touchdowns on the ground. He also caught four passes for 42 yards and a touchdown as well. It was the Gordon show for the Cowboys, and it wasn’t Alan Bowman struggled under center.

Here is one of Gordon’s most impressive runs of the day, which got him into the end zone to make it 17-3 Cowboys:

https://twitter.com/UnnecRoughness/status/1829957620792508838

Bowman threw for 267 yards and three touchdowns. He did not turn the ball over in the game, and neither did his teammates, a clean game for the 17th-ranked Cowboys.

Gordon is coming off a 2023 season where he rushed 258 times for over 1,600 yards. Gordon scored 20 touchdowns on the ground, and another one via the air in 2023. He has over 2,100 total rushing yards for the Cowboys in his career.

The next opponent for Oklahoma State is the Arkansas Razorbacks. They will host the Hogs on Saturday, and then play their first road game at Tulsa on September 14th. The Cowboys have a massive Big 12 affair on September 21st against Utah.

Oklahoma State prospects will have something different on their helmets

Oklahoma State football players like RB Ollie Gordon will have QR codes on their helmets for fans to scan and donate to the team fund

The Oklahoma State Cowboys have a handful of 2025 NFL Draft prospects set to play this college season. Thanks to an interesting wrinkle, those prospects–like all Cowboys players–will have something innovative on their helmets.

Oklahoma State revealed that all of their helmets will feature a scannable QR code on the back. Scanning the code with a mobile device will take folks to the football team’s general fund.

Say you’re inspired by RB Ollie Gordon breaking off one of his signature big plays that makes Gordon one of the higher-rated backs in the coming draft cycle. Now you can instantly scan the QR code and donate directly, like a GoFundMe sort of NIL package.

Head coach Mike Gundy said on the Pat McAfee show that the QB codes will also be made available all around the Stillwater area on game days.

Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon rare non-quarterback in Heisman conversation

Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon is a rare non-quarterback candidate to win the 2024 Heisman Trophy award.

Oklahoma State Cowboys running back Ollie Gordon is one of 10 favorites to win the 2024 Heisman Trophy award according USA Today Sports, as they prepare for the season getting ready to start this weekend.

Gordon was one of the top running backs a season ago and is one of two players on the list who is not a quarterback. This is what the article had to say about the star back.

Gordon is the one non-quarterback really in the Heisman mix after leading the Bowl Subdivision last season in rushing yards (1,732) and finishing second in touchdowns (21). As the focal point of Oklahoma State’s offense, he could exceed those totals if the Cowboys can find some balance in the passing game. But Gordon’s recent arrest on DUI charges could complicate his Heisman candidacy, even if coach Mike Gundy said he won’t miss any playing time.

Gordon and the Oklahoma State Sooners open their season on August 31st at home against South Dakota State.

That was not the only member of the Big 12 on the list. Both Colorado Buffaloes star players Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter made the list. Sanders is the quarterback for coach Deion Sanders, while Hunter is listed as a cornerback and wide receiver. Here is the clip on them:

Ranked individually among the top players in college football, Sanders and Hunter have name recognition, a track record of high-level production and the eyeballs that come with starring for one of the most-watched programs in the country. Heisman-winning campaigns have been built on less. But there’s a catch: Colorado might be better, but the Buffaloes won’t rank among the best teams in the FBS – and that’s become pretty much a must-have prerequisite for Heisman contention. Sanders and Hunter might have to settle for two of the top spots in next year’s NFL draft.

Sanders and Hunter will start a little earlier. They host North Dakota State on August 29th.

Gavin Sawchuk gives Oklahoma Sooners big play ability

The Oklahoma Sooners have their lead back for 2024 and Gavin Sawchuk is set to have a big season.

It took about half the season for the Oklahoma Sooners running game to really take off. Yes, [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag] had played well in spurts, but the run game was largely inconsistent. That is, until [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag] was healthy.

He began to show what he was capable of in the win over UCF when he carried the ball 10 times for 63 yards and a touchdown. But his season really took off following the loss to Kansas, where he only saw six carries as the Sooners rode Walker, who had a great game with 23 carries and 146 yards and a touchdown.

The next week against Oklahoma State, Sawchuk led the way at running back with 13 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown. It was his run of 64 yards that revealed the big play threat that the Sooners had in Sawchuk.

Sawchuk used that game as a springboard for the rest of the season, running for more than 100 yards in each of the final five games of the year. He totaled 744 yards and 9 touchdowns over the course of the season. Over the final five games, Sawchuk carried the ball 86 times for 617 yards and six touchdowns. He averaged 7.2 yards per carry.

If you take those numbers from the final five games of the season and prorate it over 13 games, Sawchuk would have carried the ball 223.6 times for 1,604 yards and 15.6 touchdowns.

Much of his success was found because of his ability to create big plays on the ground. He finished the season with a breakaway percentage (yards gained on runs of 15 yards or more) of 54%. Among 260 players with at least 59 rushing attempts last season, Sawchuk’s breakaway percentage ranked 14th in the nation last season, according to Pro Football Focus.

For perspective, that 54% finished just behind Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon, who finished with a breakaway percentage of 54.8%. Gordon is widely considered one of the best running backs in the nation.

Well, the Sooners may have one of the best running backs in the nation as well in Gavin Sawchuk.

Although there are questions about the offensive line, the Sooners have their answer at running back. Sawchuk is primed for a big-time season if the  Oklahoma offensive line can come together. And as Jackson Arnold adapts to life as the starter in the SEC, having a player that can create a big play in an instant will be a huge factor for the Sooners offense.

Sawchuk has the juice to turn a lot of heads in college football and put himself into the race for the Doak Walker award. If Sawchuk can create big plays in the running game it will go a long way to helping the Sooners be a contender in 2024.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.

Ollie or Nothing: How Texas can limit the Oklahoma State offense

We look at how Texas can slow the Oklahoma State offensive attack.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys (9-3) stand as the Texas Longhorns’ (11-1) next test. On the surface, Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon is the biggest problem for the team to solve.

Gordon has had a tremendous season on the year running for 1,580 yards and 20 touchdowns on 245 carries and 6.4 yards per carry.

The Oklahoma State back certainly isn’t the best running back to wear the orange and black for the Cowboys. Former Heisman winner Barry Sanders’ numbers dwarf what Gordon has done this season. Nevertheless, Ollie is the best running back in college football and a huge reason his team is in the Big 12 title game.

Stopping Gordon might be the initial priority for most teams, but stopping everyone else might be much easier. That’s what Texas did last week against Texas Tech and lead running back Tahj Brooks. Brooks ran for 95 yards on 19 carries while his quarterback Behren Morton threw for just 88 yards on 36 attempts.

The change in defensive approach led to last week’s blowout win over Texas Tech. The Longhorns allowed dominant defensive tackles in T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy to take over on the interior. Linebackers Jaylan Ford, Anthony Hill and David Gbenda cleaned up whatever made it to the second level of the defense. They played aggressive coverage and allowed Tech to get a couple nice runs but little in the way of scoring opportunities.

How does Texas dominate Oklahoma State? Perhaps the best way to beat the team is by allowing the Longhorns defensive front to take on a heavier load and eliminate easy throws for the Cowboys.

Texas hopes to secure its first Big 12 title since the team defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 14 years ago.

Scouting Oklahoma State’s best weapon: Running back Ollie Gordon

Can the Longhorns stop Ollie Gordon?

Oklahoma State’s star running back Ollie Gordon has been a dominant force on the field this season. He has been able to rush for almost 1,500 yards and score an impressive 18 touchdowns.

It seems like nobody can stop him, as he consistently makes incredible plays and is a key player in every game. His dominant performances have undoubtedly contributed to Oklahoma State’s success this season, putting the Cowboys in the Big 12 Championship game.

Gordon rushed for over 160 yards in back-to-back games against Houston and BYU last week. He has had four games this year with over 160 rushing yards.

The star running back had a slow start to the season, failing to reach 100 yards in a game until Week 4 when the Cowboys lost to Iowa State in Ames. However, since then he has been performing exceptionally well, with only one off game against UCF, which they lost 45-3.

The Texas Longhorns defense didn’t get to play UCF this year, but that doesn’t mean they can’t take notes from that performance to stop Gordon once again.

Texas’ defensive line, led by T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy, has held opponents to an average of just 85 rushing yards per game, preventing breakaway runs and up-the-middle rushes by opposing running backs.

If Texas can prevent Oklahoma State from establishing their running game on Saturday, they will likely dominate the game and secure a Big 12 Championship.

Keys to the Game: What must the Sooners do vs. WVU to break two-game losing skid?

Oklahoma takes on West Virginia on Saturday. We’ve got you covered with our keys to the game.

Oklahoma takes the field Saturday with one thing on their mind: win. The Sooners are reeling right now after losing their back-to-back games. The most recent loss saw their in-state rivals get the last laugh in what will likely be the final Bedlam football matchup for years to come. Oklahoma played a sloppy game offensively, and ultimately, those mistakes doomed them.

They now turn their attention to West Virginia, a team playing some good football as of late. If Oklahoma is to have any small shot at fighting their way back to one final Big 12 title game, they must win out.

West Virginia is outside the Big 12 title picture but, like everyone, aims to end their Big 12 rivalry with Oklahoma with a win. The Mountaineers are averaging 37.8 points per game in their last four games. Their only loss? Oklahoma State.

What will it take for the Sooners to come out on top come Saturday? We highlighted it below in our keys to the game.

Robert Spears-Jennings breaks down 4th Down stop on Ollie Gordon

Robert Spears-Jennings breaks down one of the biggest plays from the Sooners loss to Oklahoma State.

Early in the first half against the [autotag]Oklahoma State Cowboys[/autotag], the Oklahoma Sooners found themselves in a predicament. Starting safety [autotag]Key Lawerence[/autotag] went out of the game with an injury. His backup, [autotag]Reggie Pearson[/autotag], was suspended for the first half due to a targeting call during the second half of the loss to Kansas.

In came sophomore [autotag]Robert Spears-Jennings[/autotag]. Spears-Jennings had shown promise but was hurt in the offseason and is just now finding his groove. Man, did he have a day on Saturday. He finished second on the team with seven total tackles and had a pass deflection.

His most important play came on 4th Down early in the 3rd Quarter. The Sooners were down 17-14, and [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] had just thrown an interception. The Cowboys marched all the way down to the Sooners’ 16-yard line but faced a 4th and 1.

Mike Gundy decided to go for it and give it to the nation’s leading rusher, [autotag]Ollie Gordon[/autotag]. As Gordon took the handoff and worked off of left tackle, Spears-Jennings came on a blitz and tracked him down from the backside, stopping him short of the sticks.

He broke down that play after Monday’s practice.

“Coach gave me a blitz, and I tried to make sure to try to make this play right here because this is a game-changing play,” Spears-Jennings said. “They were in high red, so if they get that first down, it’s a high chance of them scoring.”

At the time, it was a game-changing play as the Sooners marched down the field to take a 21-17 lead. Unfortunately, that play got lost a bit in the outcome, but it was another example of young talent making plays.

As the Sooners continue to build upon a defense that was one of the worst in the nation in 2022, seeing blue-chip prospects out there making plays provides encouraging signs that Oklahoma is headed in the right direction.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Report Card: Offense’s dysfunction dooms Sooners chance to end Bedlam on top

Grading the Oklahoma Sooners by position group in their loss to Oklahoma State.

If Saturday was the last time Bedlam is played, the Oklahoma Sooners will always regret how things went in their final game against their in-state rivals. The Sooners will walk away from this game knowing they have dominated this series. There’s no debating that the Sooners have owned the Cowboys. But on Saturday, Oklahoma had the chance to put one final bow on this lopsided series, and they didn’t get it done.

Oklahoma State came out swinging, and the Sooners responded. But the most common theme was Oklahoma’s offense stalling on four different possessions once they got to the Oklahoma State side of the field. Most notably on the Sooners’ final drive of the game.

Defensively, Oklahoma played well enough to win. After getting bullied early, the defense found its footing and locked in the remainder of the contest.

In the end, the dysfunction and mistakes on offense put Oklahoma in a near-impossible spot. When it mattered most, they couldn’t rectify their own mistakes.

Oklahoma will move on and turn their attention to West Virginia. Before that, it’s time to pass out grades for Oklahoma’s performance against Mike Gundy’s Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Oklahoma Sooners stunned by the Oklahoma State Cowboys in final Bedlam

The Oklahoma Sooners were unable to overcome three turnovers and a terrible no-call in the end zone and fall to Oklahoma State 27-24 in final Bedlam.

The Oklahoma Sooners and the [autotag]Oklahoma State Cowboys[/autotag] battled in another classic [autotag]Bedlam[/autotag] game.

Both teams started the game hot offensively. The Cowboys scored on their first drive on a 20-yard run by [autotag]Ollie Gordon[/autotag] and the Sooners answered with a 64-yard run by [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag].

On the next Sooners possession, Oklahoma tried a direct snap to [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag] the snap mishandled and the Cowboys recovered the fumble. Oklahoma State capitalized on [autotag]Alan Bowman[/autotag] 13-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7.

The offense really couldn’t find a rhythm and the Sooners quickly found themselves down 17-7 early in the second 1uarter. But that’s when the defense really started to settle in for the rest of the game.

[autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] hit [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] on a six-yard pass to cut it to 17-14.

But just when it seemed like Oklahoma was getting things going, they regularly stalled once they got to midfield.

Trailing 17-14 to start the second half, Dillon Gabriel launched a deep ball to Brenen Thompson in double coverage. The ball was intercepted and Oklahoma State was able to put together a nice drive. The Sooners defense responded, stuffing Ollie Gordon on fourth and 1.The Sooners’ offense answered with a 23-yard run by [autotag]Tawee Walker[/autotag] to take a 21-17 lead.

Oklahoma State had another great drive going before Gordon was once again stuffed on fourth down. However, Oklahoma couldn’t do anything with it, turning it over on downs on their next possession.

With the Oklahoma State Cowboys driving deep into Sooners territory, [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] picked off running back Ollie Gordon’s pass on a trick play to start the fourth quarter. Bowman returned it all the way to midfield. But again, the offense couldn’t capitalize to put the game away. After three straight runs, the Sooners were forced to punt.

A beautiful pooch punt put the Cowboys on their own three-yard line. But that didn’t stop them. Oklahoma State took the lead on a 97-yard drive that was aided by a pass interference call on Makari Vickers and a Brent Venables unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The official appeared quick with the flag on replay.

Gordon would cap it off with a one-yard run to give Oklahoma State the 24-21 lead.

The Sooners gave it right back to the Cowboys on their half of the field on an Andrew Raym snap that hit Gabriel in the shins and rolled straight to the Cowboys defensive line.

The defense responded to force a three-and-out, but the Cowboys would add a field goal to go up 27-21.

The next drive is where things get interesting. Gabriel hit [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag] on a 46-yard pass to give Oklahoma a first down at Oklahoma State’s 16-yard line. The Sooners were stuffed on their first two plays and on 3rd and 12, Gabriel would fire a ball to Stoops in the end zone.  Stoops was tackled by the Cowboys defender allowing the ball to fall to the turf incomplete. There were no flags on the play, despite an official standing right there. Oklahoma settled for a field goal to make it 27-24.

The Sooners’ defense forced a Cowboys punt. Gabriel got the ball back on their 20-yard line with 1:46 to go in the game. Gabriel hit Stoops on a 21-yard pass. But again at midfield, the Sooners’ offense stalled again.

On third and 10, Jeff Lebby called a short slant to Jalil Farooq, who was only able to pick up five yards, setting up a fourth and five. Lebby dialed up another pass attempt that Stoops caught short of the first down marker and was tackled out of bounds before he could turn it upfield, turning the ball over on downs.

It was an unfortunate end for the Oklahoma Sooners who had numerous opportunities to take control of the game, but turnovers, mental miscues and poor officiating kept them from winning the game.

Drake Stoops had a phenomenal game, catching 12 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown. Gabriel completed 70% of his passes for 344 yards and a touchdown. He also had a fumble and an interception.

Gavin Sawchuk and Tawee Walker had solid performances, helping the Sooners average 5.5 yards per carry in the game.

Getting the start in place of Danny Stutsman, Kip Lewis led the Sooners with 15 total tackles. Robert Spears-Jennings earned the first extended run of his Sooners career and finished second on the team with seven total tackles, including a pivotal fourth down stop.

Oklahoma’s defense did a nice job, limiting Ollie Gordon in key situations, still, the star running back ran for 133 yards and two touchdowns. The Sooners held Oklahoma State to 5 of 15 on third downs and 1 of 4 on fourth downs. The defense was good enough to win the game.

The Sooners’ three turnovers on offense had a huge impact on the outcome of the game.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys now put themselves on the road to the Big 12 title game with the win. The Sooners have now lost two in a row and head home to take on an underrated West Virginia squad.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.