Gundy to OSU Fans: “Stay With Us”
BY MARSHALL SCOTT | PISTOLS FIRING
It’s no secret that the past 12 months of Cowboy football haven’t necessarily been the good ole days.
Oklahoma State lost to Oregon 69-3 on Saturday. The loss means the Cowboys will go a full calendar year without beating an FBS football team. OSU’s last win against such an opponent was against Tulsa on Sept. 14, 2024. The Pokes have a bye week before playing Tulsa on Sept. 19, 2025.
That’s 10 straight losses against FBS teams. Only three of those losses have been by single digits while six of those losses have come by at least three touchdowns. OSU’s average margin of defeat in this stretch: 23.4 points.
“My message to the fans is to stay with us,” Gundy said after Saturday’s loss. “I mean, that’s what we do. You know, it’s in our alma mater. It’s loyal and true.
“The one thing I can say is I understand we get frustrated. Fans get frustrated. People get frustrated. I don’t get frustrated, but I don’t like it, OK. So there’s different ways to handle adversity. People outside the program get frustrated. I get that. I understand. It’s just part of competitive athletics. The one thing I can say is this is they’ll work hard, and two weeks from now, they’re going to come out and play hard that part, I’m fairly sure. And we would love for them to come out and support their team. We’ll try to do our part, but there’s no doubt that that group in there is disappointed in what happened today. I guarantee you that.”
On top of the losing, the board of regents drama from the early portions of last offseason seemingly put Mike Gundy’s job in as much jeopardy as it’s been in.
Gundy is by far the greatest coach OSU football has ever seen. He has won 170 games. No. 2 on OSU’s list is Pat Jones, Gundy’s ole ball coach, at 62 wins. And it’s not just because of his longevity. Gundy’s .656 career winning percentage is also the best in program history. The only other coaches to win at least 60% of their games on the Cowboys’ sideline are Dave Smith (1972) and Paul J. Davis (1909-14), and those two combined don’t even have a quarter of the wins Gundy does.
It’s because of the standard Gundy himself set as to why this string of losses is looked at as harshly as it is.
He was asked after Saturday’s game if he worries about what that high expectation he has set could mean for his future.
“Well, I’m never worried about myself,” Gundy said. “I’m worried about the team, and what my job is to continue to try to build this program with the new players we have and get in a position to where we’re at a competitive nature like that. That’s really the only thing that I’m concerned about. And I don’t think anybody on our staff has forgotten how to coach football. It’s just a matter of us giving them something they can execute.”