The Oklahoma State Cowboys faced one of their toughest tests on the road this season against the Kansas State Wildcats. Manhattan, KS, was the the site of one of the most significant Big 12 games of week ten. The Cowboys came into the game with a 6-2 (4-1 Big 12) record, while the Wildcats came in at 5-3 (3-2 Big 12). Now let’s take a look at the game recap and Oklahoma State’s week ten takeaways.
Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy knew that his defense would have to stop KSU’s strong rushing attack. The Wildcats dominated in that aspect of the game, as they scored on their first two drives of the game. Kansas State quarterback Jesse Ertz scored the first touchdown of the game. Running back Winston Dimel scored on a ten yard rushing touchdown, on the second drive. Yet, the Cowboys would score the next three touchdowns of the game by way of three Mason Rudolph passing touchdowns. They would take a 21-16 lead into halftime. However, the Wildcats scored the first two touchdowns of the second half, including a Rudolph pick-six. Cowboys wide receiver James Washington would reel in one of three touchdowns to finish out the game. The Wildcats had a chance to take the lead in the red zone with less than five seconds left in the game. Cowboys safety Jordan Sterns picked off the final pass of the game to seal it for OSU. Oklahoma State escaped with a wild 43-37 victory at Kansas State.
Oklahoma State’s Week Ten Takeaways
Mason Rudolph had his Best Career Road Game
It was encouraging to see Rudolph have such a good game on the road. Throughout his career he struggled much more on the road than at home. He compiled 457 passing yards and five touchdowns, with two interceptions. Before this game, Rudolph never had more than one passing touchdown on the road. The Cowboys would not have had a chance to win this game without a clutch fourth quarter from Rudolph. He was able to lead the Cowboys back from nine points down with less than eight minutes left in the game. Rudolph now has 2,989 passing yards, with 22 passing touchdowns and only four interceptions, on the season. With the five passing touchdowns he had against the Wildcats, Rudolph set a personal career record for a single game.
Rudolph will have another chance for a huge game in week 11 against the Texas Tech Red Raiders, and the last ranked passing defense in the Big 12.
The Defense Still Needs Improvement
The Cowboys came into this game knowing that they would need to hold strong against the run. The opposite ended up happening. Kansas State totaled 345 rushing yards on the game. That included a 153 rushing yard game from Ertz (he also had three rushing touchdowns). OSU’s secondary played better than the front seven though. One of the lone bright spots among the front seven was defensive tackle Vincent Taylor. He had three tackles for loss and one sack. Linebacker Devante Averette also had one tackle for loss.
The Cowboys defense will need to step up their effort this week against Texas Tech. The Red Raiders have one of the highest powered offense in the country.
James Washington and Jalen McCleskey are X-Factors
Jalen McCleskey and Washington combined for 185 yards and three touchdowns receiving against the Wildcats. Washington is 13th in the country, and third in the conference in receiving yards with 974. McCleskey is sixth in the conference in receiving yards with 670. Both receivers have been key to the Cowboys success this season. It’s also a hard combination of receivers for teams to prepare for. McCleskey is one of the better slot receivers in the Big 12. And Washington is one of the best deep threats, not only in the Big 12, but in the entire country. They will have a big opportunity to put up big stats this weekend against the weak Texas Tech secondary.
Up Next
Oklahoma State will face off against Texas Tech (4-5, 2-4 Big 12), at Boone Pickens Stadium, this Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT. The Cowboys opened at 11 point favorites over the Red Raiders, according to Odds Shark. Furthermore, the Cowboys have an 80.3 percent chance to win the game, according to the ESPN Football Power Index.
