STILLWATER — In two games against Baylor last season, Spencer Sanders was sacked three times and hurried on eight other occasions. In Waco on Saturday, Sanders was hurried twice and didn’t hit the scorching turf unless he was on one of his 14 rush attempts.

When Oklahoma State beat Baylor 36-25 this past weekend, it avenged a lot of things — most notably a Big 12 championship defeat Arlington. But, it also avenged an offensive line that was put under a microscope and took shots of criticism to the shins all of last season.

The Cowboys were a yard away from a Big 12 title nine months ago, but with seven fourth-quarter snaps from Baylor’s 2-yard line or closer, OSU walked away with only a single field goal. OSU was tested in short-yardage scenarios early and often in Waco with different results.

The first instance came on the Cowboys’ opening drive. OSU had a 4th-and-1 on the Baylor 15, and Mike Gundy wanted to make a point instead of settling for an early 3. Spencer Sanders plunged forward on a quarterback sneak to extend the drive that ended in a touchdown.

“We went into this game since last year’s championship game and said, ‘When we get close to the goal-line or we get in short-yardage, I want our players to know that we can convert it,’” Gundy said. “Because we didn’t do it in the championship game. We didn’t coach them well enough. And that’s my fault, and the offensive coaches. And I said, ‘When we get in this situation they need to know whether [Siaki Ika] is in the game or not, we’re gonna sneak the ball, we’re gonna run the ball to convert.’ Otherwise, we have a hard time winning.”

Then in the second quarter, the Cowboys got back to the Baylor 1 for the first time in nine grueling months. Game-wrecking defensive tackle Siaki Ika invited the Pokes back to his playground, and it took only one play for the Cowboys’ O-line to push the Bears back and score.

The Cowboys got back to the 1-yard line in the third quarter and further proved their capabilities, again scoring on one play.

“They took a lot of criticism last year at the end of the season,” said OSU defensive tackle Brendon Evers, who practices against OSU’s O-line every day. “And pressure makes diamonds. … I wouldn’t expect anything less because I saw what they put in this offseason.”

In the two games last year, OSU ran for 3.4 yards a carry against Baylor. The Pokes ran for 3.6 this past Saturday. That’s not a huge difference, but the Cowboys mustered only 1.8 yards a rush in the title game.

There were plenty of caveats to that game in Arlington in regards to the Cowboys’ health. OSU was without then-starting center Danny Godlevske and then-starting running back Jaylen Warren. But it’s a new-look group on OSU’s offensive front.

Left tackle Caleb Etienne and center Preston Wilson each received their highest run-blocking grades of the season from PFF, despite this game being against the stiffest competition to date. Right guard Hunter Woodard and right tackle Jake Springfield each received their highest pass-blocking grades of the season. And Etienne, Woodard and left guard Taylor Miterko all received their second-highest overall grades of the year.

“We’re getting there,” Etienne said Tuesday. “We haven’t improved as much as we can, as we want to, in the run game, but we’re getting there.”

Spencer Sanders is a dynamic, playmaking quarterback having the best season of his career. He’s leading the Big 12 in total offense, he’s got his team to 4-0 and he’s now tied for second all-time in wins at Oklahoma State. And, if he wants to, he can play another (sixth) year in 2023 because of COVID.

Any coach in the country would be happy to have him, but Mike Gundy is aware of the national perception of his gunslinger.

“I think he is underappreciated for what he’s done,” said Gundy on Monday. “And the reason why is because he’s gone through different times in his career. One time we were out of offensive linemen — no fun for a quarterback. Last year, we didn’t have any receivers left. He was out there playing with freshmen. And he just keeps playing. And he just keeps finding a way to win games.

“He has a competitive nature, and now he’s developed a calmness and a humbleness about him that is hard to replace. He’ll be hard to replace.”

It would be hard to argue with Gundy on any of that. Sanders just exorcised his Baylor demons while simultaneously clearing the Cowboys’ biggest supposed hurdle in the first half of their season, all while the rest of the Big 12’s traditional powers tumble around him.

Concerning the dearth of linemen and receivers at different times in his career, those may all be valid qualifiers (they are), but that’s also just a fancy word for an excuse. Sanders would say so himself. When there’s praise to go around he deflects it to his teammates. When there’s blame to be taken, he funnels it onto himself.

When Mason Rudolph took the reins, the Cowboys could barely field five offensive linemen and the running game was so gaunt that OSU had to play Tyreek Hill at running back. Then in Year 2, they still had to supplant his goal-line plays with a running QB in J.W. Walsh. That would have not been necessary with Sanders, maybe the most physically gifted quarterback ever at OSU, certainly during Gundy’s tenure.

The detractors can also point to the interception numbers. He had seven total in two games against Baylor last season and another last weekend (though he did follow it up directly with a 49-yard strike to set up a touchdown).

But Gundy is talking about that Spencer Sanders of 2022. A big-time playmaker that’s grown into a big-time leader. He can still try to do too much, at times, and he’s not immune to another multiple-pick outing. He’ll probably have one this season. But the mix of ability, competitive spirit and now experience sets up Sanders to make a run as one of the best ever at OSU.

That win against Baylor was the 28th victory of his career as a starter, tying his head coach and leaving him four wins shy of Rudolph’s OSU record of 32. At this rate, Sanders could be the Cowboys’ winningest QB by this time next month.

A quarterback’s legacy is not something that can accurately be assessed while he’s still playing, but it’s become apparent that Sanders will go up there with the greats that include Weeden, Rudolph, Fields and Gundy. And the best part is that this iteration of Sanders is just getting started.

You really couldn’t have scripted a better start to Big 12 play for Oklahoma State. Not only did it win on the road Saturday against reigning conference champion Baylor, and in impressive fashion, but OU and Iowa State both took losses last weekend after Texas fell to Texas Tech the previous week, all setting up OSU to march into frontrunner status in the Big 12 heading into Week 6. That should put an extra shine on Saturday’s game as Texas Tech heads to town, so here are five things (plus one, because who doesn’t want an extra bonus nugget?) to know as gameday approaches.

1. OSU has been ranked top-15 in every AP poll dating back to Oct. 3, 2021, a streak of 17 consecutive weeks that ties the school record. (Two other times OSU has ranked that high for at least 17 consecutive weeks: once from 2016-2017 and another time from 2010-2011.) Here’s a look at the other streaks via okstate.com:

2. A win Saturday would give OSU a 5-0 start to the season a sixth time under Mike Gundy (including doing so last season).

3. OSU has won a school-record 11 consecutive home games. The Cowboys are 86-27 all-time at home under Gundy.

4. OSU’s defense has held nine of its last 16 opponents under 100 yards rushing. Texas Tech enters Saturday ranked ninth in the Big 12 in rushing yards per game at 113.4 per game. OSU, for context, is seventh in that category at 164 yards rushing per game.

5. Saturday will mark the 50th all-time football meeting between OSU and Texas Tech in a series that dates back to 1935. The series is tied with both programs owning 23 wins and 23 losses (there are also three ties in the series). OSU, though, has won 11 of the last 13 matchups, and it holds a 13-8 advantage in games played in Stillwater — including eight home wins over Texas Tech in its last nine meetings in Stillwater.

Bonus nugget: OSU will honor legendary Cowboy, Bob Fenimore, on Saturday by inducting him into the Cowboy Football Ring of Honor inside the stadium at the end of the first quarter. The late Fenimore was the No. 1 overall pick of the 1947 NFL Draft. At OSU he was twice a top-10 finisher in Heisman voting, and he was the first in program history to earn All-America honors. Fenimore, who earned the epic moniker “Blond Bomber,” will join Thurman Thomas and Barry Sanders — an incredibly exclusive club — in Ring of Honor lore at OSU.

Texas is favored over OU by more than a touchdown, Kansas is only a single-digit dog at home against a TCU team that looks like a potential Big 12 title contender and Iowa State is a home dog to a Kansas State team not coached by Bill Snyder. Welcome to a wacky Week 6 Big 12 slate!

OSU, for its part, is mostly holding chalky as far as betting odds go. Before the season you would have probably predicted it would be favored by at least a touchdown in Week 6 over visiting Texas Tech, and that would have held true! The Cowboys are 9.5-point favorites at Caesars Sportsbook right now, despite Tech taking down mighty Texas two weeks ago and stunning Houston earlier in the season. It marks the fourth time this season OSU will be favored at home and the fourth time it has been favored in five games. It was a road dog last week, but Gundy and the gang let it hang in Waco.

OSU has been solid against the spread this season at home as a favorite, going 2-1. The only game thus far it failed to cover the spread in on Boone Pickens Stadium’s turf was its first game, in Week 1, against a feisty Central Michigan team (in a game that turned out not to be all that close but wasn’t the booty-kicking people may have expected). Since then it has covered in three consecutive games by an average of nearly seven points per contest.

As for what type of show Saturday might give to OSU fans, the over/under line at Caesars suggests we could have a straight up firework show. The line is set right now at 69.5, which eclipses the season-high 64.5 over/under that Vegas set when OSU faced Arkansas-Pine Bluff last month. OSU in that game scored 63 points on its own and yet the over barely cashed because APB mustered a lowly seven points. The over has cashed in three of four OSU games this season, though, so if you’re going to be at the game, the forecast of a Pokes-Red Raiders shootout is hovering around 90+%. Ya love to see it.

Here’s a look across the rest of the Big 12 at odds for Week 6. Baylor and West Virginia are on bye weeks

STILLWATER — The Oklahoma State football team hosts Texas Tech at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Boone Pickens Stadium. After the Cowboys’ Tuesday practice, Tom Hutton, Bryson Green, Brendon Evers, Mason Cobb and Caleb Etienne met with reporters to preview the matchup.

Thanks for stopping by – here’s your daily dose of Oklahoma State sports news.

OSU Bullets

• Predicting OSU’s first loss – hint: not this week against the Red Raiders

• Football updates – tracking the eligibility of true freshman and noting the two freshman who are sure to play, Jaden Bray status update

• The OSU offense is starting to bloom around Spencer Sanders from two different angles:

Two key position groups were a big help to Spencer Sanders in Waco — an offensive line that fought the Bears’ vaunted defensive front to a draw or better, and a receiving corps that got consistency from Brennan Presley and big moments from Braydon Johnson and Bryson Green.

[TulsaWorld]

• A couple of different websites (HCS and CBS Sports) have the Pokes beating Texas Tech on Saturday

• Super solid uni combos to this point in the season.

• It’s true – this kind of measured and unbiased take from a national media member is solid. Starts at 19 minutes til 23 minutes

Non-OSU Bullets

• Framing Aaron Judge’s season after he hit No. 62 last night
• A clearly faith-based take on fathering young men

STILLWATER — The Cowboys have experience, or at least older players, scattered throughout their roster, meaning they shouldn’t have to burn many redshirts from their 2022 recruiting class. But, four games into the season, it looks like some playmakers won’t take a redshirt.

Oklahoma State defeated Baylor 36-25 on Saturday in the Cowboys’ fourth game of the season. The number four is relevant when discussing redshirts, as players are allowed to play in four games while maintaining a redshirt.

Thus far, running back Ollie Gordon is the only freshman Cowboy to play in all four of the OSU’s games, but wide receivers Braylin Presley and Stephon Johnson made brief appearances (their third games of the season) against the Bears in Waco, making it look as if the Cowboys’ staff isn’t too worried about keeping the pair an extra year.

“They’re gonna play,” OSU coach Mike Gundy said as to whether Presley and Johnson would redshirt Monday.

Presley’s biggest contribution to Saturday’s game came as a gunner on a Tom Hutton punt. Presley ran to the Baylor goal line and downed Hutton’s boot on the Baylor 2-yard line, leading to the Bears’ safety. Johnson was thrown a pass on a third down in the second quarter. Spencer Sanders’ throw was low, and Johnson couldn’t corral it.

Presley had catches in the Central Michigan game and the Arkansas-Pine Bluff game, totaling three receptions for 12 yards. Johnson had four catches for 55 yards against UAPB. Both were considered four-star prospects by at least one of the major services.

There are a lot of mouths to feed among OSU’s receivers with Braydon Johnson, Brennan Presley, John Paul Richardson, Bryson Green and the looming return of Jaden Bray, but if there is anyone who has earned slack when it comes to redshirts, it’s Kasey Dunn.

Even with a deep receiving corps. in 2017 that included James Washington, Marcell Ateman, Chris Lacy, *takes breath* Dillon Stoner, Tyron Johnson, Jalen McCleskey, Dunn found a way to get a freshman Tylan Wallace involved. That experienced Wallace gained in 2017 seemed to propel him to the 3,316 receiving yards and 26 receiving touchdowns he had over the next three years.

Here is a look at the number of games each scholarship freshman has played in to this point, per okstate.com’s participation tab.

The men responsible for arguably the two biggest plays in OSU’s win over Baylor each came away with some extra accolades.

Jaden Nixon earned Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week and Co-Newcomer of the Week for his 98-yard touchdown on a kickoff return, and Jason Taylor II earned Co-Defensive Player of the Week for his game-sealing interception.

Behind the likes of Dominic Richardson and Ollie Gordon in the running back rotation, Nixon has carried the ball in spot duty so far this year. But that did not preclude him from showing out in a big way on special teams. Against Baylor, Nixon returned three kicks for 131 yards, but this is the one that earned him the honors.

Taylor is no stranger to making game-defining plays on defense or sniffing out the ball, and he did both on Saturday. With the Bears down 11 and making their last attempt at a rally, Baylor QB Blake Shapen went for a big strike to receiver Josh Cameron. Taylor read it perfectly and then made a great play on the ball.

If Taylor misses there and Cameron corrals it, we’re likely looking at a three-point game with three minutes to go. But Taylor did, and the Cowboys were able to burn two more minutes off the clock to facilitate the win. Taylor also recorded seven tackles (two solo) in the win.

These represent the first weekly conference honors for Nixon in his career and the second for Taylor. He earned Defensive Player of the Week last season for his momentum-swinging pick-six against Texas.

Here’s a look at the Cowboys’ weekly honors in just four games so far this season.

Spencer Sanders (Offensive Player of the Week vs. Central Michigan)
Trace Ford (Special Teams Player of the Week vs. UAPB)
Jason Taylor II (Co-Defensive Player of the Week vs. Baylor)
Jaden Nixon (Special Teams Player of the Week vs. Baylor)
Jaden Nixon (Co-Newcomer of the Week vs. Baylor)

STILLWATER — During times last week, it looked as if Oklahoma State would get one of its top pass catchers back for its Big 12-opener, but Saturday came and went without Jaden Bray making his season debut.

Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy updated Bray’s status Monday, saying Bray ‘could’ play this weekend against Texas Tech, a game that is set to kick at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Boone Pickens Stadium.

“He practiced last week,” Gundy said. “He’s out there rolling. Could [play this week]. He’s, I guess the correct term is, day-to-day. He wasn’t really conditioned like we wanted him to be last week because he hadn’t done anything for six weeks. I mean, he’s been out there conditioning, but not football conditioning. But he’s practicing.”

Bray hasn’t played yet this season after suffering a hand injury in fall camp. Among a deep class of receivers, he stood out last season as a true freshman, catching 13 passes for 250 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

A 6-foot-2, 200-pound target man from Norman, Bray was set to start on the outside receiver spot opposite Braydon Johnson. Bryson Green, Bray’s classmate, has gotten extended snaps in Bray’s place and has performed well. Green has 11 catches for 169 yards and three touchdowns this season and made an impressive touchdown grab against Baylor in Waco.

Instead of focusing in on one receiver as OSU has done in the past with the likes of James Washington, Tylan Wallace and Tay Martin, the Cowboys have shared the wealth thus far this season with five players having more than 100 receiving yards four games into the year. When Bray gets back into the fold, that only adds to the tools Spencer Sanders has at his disposal.