Oklahoma State University Athletics
Football Celebrates Homecoming against Texas A&M
April 08, 2003 | Cowboy Football
TEXAS A&M VISITS FOR HOMECOMING -- Oklahoma State will celebrate 1998 Homecoming this week as the Cowboys host Texas A&M. OSU's Homecoming, billed as one of the largest in the country, will feature all the traditional trappings, including the main event, the OSU-Aggie football encounter, which will kick off just after 6 p.m. on Lewis Field.
NOTE THE NEW TIME -- Saturday's game with A&M was originally scheduled to kick off at 2 p.m. but will now start at 6 p.m. to accommodate television. Friday and Saturday in Stillwater will be packed with all the traditional activities, starting with Friday's walkaround and pep rally and ending with the parade, football game and other activities on Saturday.
RECORDS/RANKINGS -- OSU will enter the eighth week of the season with an overall record of 3-4 and a Big 12 Conference record of 2-3. The Cowboys will get ready for A&M after a 41-26 win over Oklahoma last week in Stillwater. Texas A&M comes to Stillwater with an overall mark of 7-1 and a league mark of 4-0. The Aggies will be fresh from a 17-10 win over Texas Tech at College Station and, with a 4-0 league mark, are the clear front-runners in the league's south division. Texas A&M is ranked eighth by the Associated Press and ninth by USA Today-ESPN. The Aggies represent the fifth nationally ranked opponent for the Pokes in the first eight games.
TICKET AVAILABILITY -- Tickets for Saturday's game against Texas A&M are still available at the Athletic Ticket Office. Tickets can be purchased at the ticket office on North Boomer Road in Stillwater, or by phone by calling (405) 744-5745 or (800) 522-6858. Ticket office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
COWBOYS-AGGIES ON THE AIR -- Saturday's game between OSU and Texas A&M will be broadcast live on the Cowboy Network. KWTV Sports Director Bill Teegins is the radio voice of Cowboy Football and is joined in the booth by Tom Dirato. The Cowboy Network is a division of Learfield Communications, Jefferson City, Missouri. The game will also be televised live by Fox Sports Net to a national (cable) audience. Ron Thulin and Artie Gigantino will be describing the action.
LOTS OF TV TIME -- Saturday will mark the sixth televised game of the season for Oklahoma State. The Cowboys will have appeared on ABC twice (Kansas and Kansas State), on Fox Sports Net three times (Nebraska, Texas Tech and Texas A&M) and once on Fox Sports Southwest (Oklahoma). The most television appearances for OSU in a single season was eight in 1985. Last year, the Pokes appeared in seven televised games (regional or national), including the Alamo Bowl against Purdue.
COWBOYS LAST WEEK -- Oklahoma State fell behind its in-state rival Oklahoma early but rallied for a 41-26 win. The victory, OSU's second straight over Oklahoma, snapped a three-game losing streak and was the Cowboys' second straight home win of the 1998 season. Oklahoma took a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and had a 13-7 halftime lead before the Cowboys went to work. OSU scored 21 points in the third quarter and 13 more in the fourth. Quarterback Tony Lindsay led the way offensively with two rushing touchdowns and two more touchdown passes. OSU's sophomore signal-caller rushed for 99 yards and passed for 138 without throwing an interception. Defensively, the Cowboys survived a 220-yard rushing performance by De'Mond Parker, who had a long gain of 48 yards.
TEXAS A&M LAST WEEK -- The Aggies strengthened their grip on first place in the Big 12 South with a 17-10 win over Texas Tech in College Station. A&M has a one-game lead over Texas, a one-and-a-half-game lead over Texas Tech and a two-and-a-half-game lead over Oklahoma State in the race for the south title. In Saturday's game between the two south division leaders, Tech took an early lead, but A&M touchdowns in each of the first two quarters gave the Aggies a 14-10 halftime lead. The only scoring in the second half came on a 24-yard field goal by Texas A&M's Russell Bynum. In a defensive battle, the Aggies limited Texas Tech to just 205 yards of total offense, 94 of which belonged to Tech's Ricky Williams. The Aggies had 153 yards rushing and 79 yards passing. Their leading rusher was Dante Hall with 67 yards on 26 carries.
TRICK OR TREAT -- Oklahoma State will be playing a football game on Halloween for the seventh time since 1959. The Cowboys have done well in the last six games played on Oct. 31, carving a 4-2 record.
Halloween Fare ...
Date Opponent Site Result Oct. 31, 1959 Marquette Milwaukee W 18-12 Oct. 31, 1964 Tulsa Tulsa L 61-14 Oct. 31, 1970 Kansas Stillwater W 19- 7 Oct. 31, 1981 Missouri Columbia W 16-12 Oct. 31, 1987 Kansas State Stillwater W 56- 7 Oct. 31, 1992 Kansas Lawrence L 26-18
OSU SLATE ONE OF THE TOUGHEST -- Including this week's game against Texas A&M, Oklahoma State's 1998 football schedule has included four teams that were ranked in the top 25 at the time of the game and one (Texas Tech) that broke into the national rankings the following week. That's five opponents in OSU's first eight games that have been ranked. As far as Big 12 teams go, that equals the most ranked teams on any schedule. Only Kansas, which also has five, can stake the same claim.
Opponent rank (at Site Result game time) Mississippi State 24 H W 42-23 Nebraska 2 N L 24-17 Texas Tech NR A L 24-17 Kansas State 4 A L 52-20 Texas A&M 8 H
WRAPPING UP THE OU WIN -- The 50,614 in attendance at Lewis Field Saturday night witnessed a bit of OSU football history. The Cowboys defeated Oklahoma in Stillwater for the first time since 1966. In doing so, this year's Pokes became the first OSU team to post three wins in four seasons over OU since the teams of 1930, 1932 and 1933. OSU's most successful era against its in-state rival was from 1922 to 1934, when the Cowboys won five, lost three and tied five.
BACK-TO-BACK BEDLAM WINS -- Oklahoma State posted a second straight win over Oklahoma for the first time since 1965-66 and for just the fourth time in the 93-year history of the series.
Year Result Site Coach 1932 7-0 Stillwater Lynn Waldorf 1933 13-0 Norman Lynn Waldorf
1944 28-6 Oklahoma City Jim Lookabaugh 1945 47-0 Norman Jim Lookabaugh
1965 17-16 Norman Phil Cutchin 1966 15-14 Stillwater Phil Cutchin
1997 30- 7 Norman Bob Simmons 1998 41-26 Stillwater Bob Simmons
SIMMONS DOES IT -- Oklahoma State's Bob Simmons, with a 3-1 record vs. Oklahoma in his first four years, joins a very elite group of OSU coaches. Only one other OSU coach had three career wins against Oklahoma. Lynn Waldorf was 3-0-2 against the Sooners during his five-year tenure. John Maulbetsch, Jim Lookabaugh and Phil Cutchin are the only other previous OSU coaches to have more than one win over Oklahoma.
Coaches vs. OU Coach Years Record vs. OU Lynn Waldorf 1929-33 (5) 3-0-2 Bob Simmons 1985-present (4) 3-1 Earl Pritchard 1917-18 (2) 1-1 John Maulbetsch 1921-28 (8) 2-4-2 Jim Lookabaugh 1939-49 (11) 2-8-1 Jim Stanley 1973-78 (6) 1-5
COACH BOB SIMMONS -- Oklahoma State's Bob Simmons is seven games into his fourth season and will carry a career record of 20-22 into this week's game against Texas A&M. Simmons was named OSU's 20th head football coach on Dec. 16, 1994. Three years and seven games later, he has established OSU as one of the top football programs in the Big 12 Conference. He guided the Cowboys to a 4-8 record in 1995; a 5-6 mark in 1996 and an 8-4 record a year ago. Simmons' 1997 squad finished with OSU's best record in a decade and made an appearance in the Builders Square Alamo Bowl. He guided the Cowboys into the national rankings a year ago, climbing as high as No. 12 and finishing 25th.
SIMMONS TO COACH IN HULA BOWL -- Oklahoma State's football boss has been selected to coach in the 1998 Hula Bowl, to be played in January in Honolulu. Simmons will help guide the north squad.
1997 HONORS -- OSU's football coach was the recipient of numerous awards following the Cowboys' 8-4 bowl season of a year ago. He was the Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year, according to league coaches. He was a regional Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association and was a finalist on several national coach-of-the-year lists. He was the Black Coaches' Association's National Football Coach of the Year and on the receiving end of numerous in-state awards.
Simmons' Record School/ Year/ Record/ Notes Bowling Green 1975 8-3 Bowling Green 1976 6-5 Toledo 1977 2-9 Toledo 1978 2-9 Toledo 1979 7-3-1 West Virginia 1980 6-6 West Virginia 1981 9-3 Peach Bowl West Virginia 1982 9-3 Gator Bowl West Virginia 1983 9-3 Hall of Fame Bowl West Virginia 1984 8-4 Bluebonnet Bowl West Virginia 1985 7-3-1 West Virginia 1986 4-7 West Virginia 1987 6-6 Sun Bowl Colorado 1988 8-4 Freedom Bowl Colorado 1989 11-1 Orange Bowl Colorado 1990 11-1 Orange Bowl Colorado 1991 8-3-1 Blockbuster Bowl Colorado 1992 9-2-1 Fiesta Bowl Colorado 1993 8-3-1 Aloha Bowl Colorado 1994 11-1 Fiesta Bowl As a Head Coach Oklahoma State 1995 4-8 Oklahoma State 1996 5-6 Oklahoma State 1997 8-4 Alamo Bowl Oklahoma State 1998 3-4 First home win over OU since 1966 Totals 3+ years 20-22
This Week's Opponent ... Texas A&M
THE SERIES -- Oklahoma State's series with Texas A&M has been short but lively. The teams have met just 13 times with A&M holding a 9-4 overall lead. The Aggies are 5-1 vs. the Cowboys in College Station but just 2-2 vs. the Pokes in Stillwater. Texas A&M will be making just its third trip to Stillwater since 1920.
ABOUT THE AGGIES -- Coming off back-to-back Big 12 South Division championships, the Aggies are poised to do it again. At 4-0 in league play, the Aggies have four regular-season games remaining. After Saturday's game against OSU in Stillwater, A&M hosts Oklahoma and Missouri before closing out the season against Texas at Austin. The Aggies were 9-4 a year ago and welcomed back 42 lettermen and 19 starters.
ON OFFENSE -- Texas A&M features a balanced attack led by Dante Hall, who has rushed for 750 yards and scored eight touchdowns. Quarterback Randy McCown has played in seven games for A&M and thrown for 639 yards and three touchdowns. Texas A&M is averaging 180.9 rushing yards and 133.6 passing yards per game.
ON DEFENSE -- One of the toughest defenses in the country is led by linebacker Dat Nguyen, who has 78 total tackles through eight games. Nguyen has 52 solo tackles and 26 assists to go along with two sacks and nine other tackles for loss. He also has one interception and one fumble recovery and has caused two fumbles. As a unit, Texas A&M is allowing an average of 97.5 rushing yards and 173.9 passing yards.
COACH R.C. SLOCUM -- Texas A&M's head coach is eight games into his 10th season and will bring a career record of 90-25-2 into Saturday's game against Oklahoma State. Slocum is a 1967 graduate of McNeese State and is 2-0 vs. Oklahoma State.
LAST YEAR IN COLLEGE STATION -- Oklahoma State dominated 20th-ranked Texas A&M for more than three quarters but couldn't pull off the win. Going overtime for a second straight week, Oklahoma State lost to the Aggies by a 28-25 margin in front of more than 60,000 at Kyle Field. OSU had more first downs (22-20) and more total offense (402-381) and led 22-7 with just 14:57 left in the game. A&M scored twice, on a two-yard run by Hall and a 25-yard pass Stewart to Cole. A two-point conversion after the second TD knotted the score at 22 and sent the game to overtime. OSU started the overtime on offense and produced a 39-yard field goal by Tim Sydnes. Texas A&M then won the game on a six-yard run by Hardeman.
LAST TIME IN STILLWATER -- Texas A&M converted three Oklahoma State turnovers into 21 points and rallied for a 38-19 win on Lewis Field. OSU led 13-10 at halftime after a five-yard run by David Thompson and two second-quarter field goals by Tim Sydnes. The second half belonged to Texas A&M. The Aggies scored 14 points in the third quarter and 14 more in the fourth to pull away.
LINDSAY SAVES BEST FOR BEDLAM -- Sophomore QB Tony Lindsay had his best night of the year in the Oklahoma game, rushing for a season-high 99 yards and completing 16 of 24 passes for 138 yards. While he directed a Cowboys offense that did not commit a turnover, Lindsay accounted for as many points -- 26 on two rushing touchdowns, two passing TDs and a two-point conversion -- as the entire Oklahoma team. For his career, the sophomore has now accounted for 28 TDs (15 rushing, 13 passing).
RIVERS STANDS OUT -- Redshirt freshman TE Marcellus Rivers had a breakout performance against Kansas State, collecting five receptions -- the most by an OSU receiver this year -- for 47 yards and a touchdown. Rivers' success continued against Oklahoma; he had a game-high four catches for 57 yards and his third touchdown of the year.
ALEXANDER'S LEADERSHIP SHOWS -- Senior SS Trent Alexander had one of his finest career nights in the Cowboys' victory over Oklahoma. The team's co-captain, Alexander had a team-high 14 tackles -- 10 unassisted -- against OU and also recorded a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. Alexander is now tied for the team lead in tackles with 48.
FABULOUS FOBBS -- Sophomore TB Jamaal Fobbs did not have a carry against Oklahoma, but he certainly made his mark. Fobbs caught three passes against the Sooners, and his career-long 58-yard kick return was a crucial momentum-swinger that set up OSU's fourth touchdown. After setting a school freshman rushing record last year, Fobbs is ranked seventh in the Big 12 in all-purpose yards (118.6) this season. Fobbs scored on rushes of 55 and three yards against Mississippi State, notching two rushing scores in a game for the first time in his career. He gained a season-high 104 yards against the Bulldogs.
AIKINS SCORES CRUCIAL TDs -- Senior FB Brian Aikins scored perhaps the most important touchdowns in OSU's 41-26 win over Oklahoma. Aikins caught a Lindsay pass in the second quarter for OSU's first score of the game -- and his first career touchdown reception. He scored the 11th rushing TD of his career and his fourth this season in the third quarter, putting OSU in the lead for good. The performance marked the first multi-touchdown game of his career. His first-quarter touchdown against Texas Tech was OSU's first touchdown against the Red Raiders since 1989.
1-3, BUT SOME BRIGHT SPOTS -- Although OSU had lost three straight games before snapping the streak against Oklahoma, the Cowboys have shown in the past four games that they can compete with the nation's best. Here are some highlights from the Cowboys' past four contests:
Opponent Stat (Nat'l Rank) OSU Note Nebraska Rushing Offense (2) Held 'Huskers to 73 rushing yards -- four in first half Rushing Defense (4) Simmons: first back in two years to gain 100 yards vs. NU Scoring Offense (6) NU held almost 20 points under average Texas Tech Rushing Offense (5) Williams held under 100 yards for first time Rushing Defense (4) OSU gains 195 yards, more than double TTU's average Kansas State Scoring Defense (1) OSU's 20 is triple KSU's average Rushing Defense (1) OSU gains 141, double KSU's average Total Defense (1) OSU rolls up 328 yards Oklahoma Total Defense (6) Lindsay (237) nearly matches OU defense's team average; Cowboys score most points vs. OU in 51 years
SYDNES PROVIDES LONG-RANGE FG -- Although he missed a meaningless PAT late in the game, junior PK Tim Sydnes had a big game against Oklahoma. Sydnes, who had hit 46 of his last 47 PAT tries before the late miss, hit two field goals for the second straight game. One of those three-pointers was a 50-yard score in the third quarter, the second-longest kick of his career.
SIMMONS BUSTS OUT -- Junior TB Nathan Simmons had a career-high 148 yards in the Mississippi State game as he crossed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for his career. He followed that performance with probably the best game of his career, rushing for 114 yards against Nebraska. He became the first back in two years to gain over 100 yards against the 'Huskers, who came into the game with the nation's fourth-best rushing defense. Simmons' 62-yard rush against Kansas was OSU's longest since 1995, when David Thompson went for a 91-yard run against Kansas State.
WRIGHT PERFORMS AS EXPECTED -- Junior LB Kenyatta Wright, a preseason candidate for the Butkus Award, has lived up to his billing through the first half of OSU's season. Wright is tied for the team lead in tackles (48) and sacks (four for 31 yards).
THE RUNNING MEN -- OSU's tailback duo of Simmons and Fobbs, combined with the rushing of Lindsay, gives the Cowboys the most potent 1-2-3 punch in the Big 12. Simmons (73.9 ypg) ranks 10th in the league in rushing, with Lindsay (48.6) and Fobbs (47.7) holding down the next two spots in the conference hierarchy. OSU is the only team in the league with three players among the league's top 15 rushers.
HOWELL'S FIRST CATCHES ARE BIG -- Sophomore WR Ethan Howell certainly made the first reception of his collegiate career count. Junior QB Chris Chaloupka and Howell connected on a 64-yard pass in the fourth quarter at Tulsa; it was Howell's first-ever catch, and it was OSU's longest pass play since Gary Porter hit Shannon Culver for an 80-yard gainer against Missouri in 1992. Howell and Chaloupka weren't finished, though; on the next two plays, they connected on passes of 10 and 21 yards, leading to Brian Aikins' one-yard score on the next play. Against Nebraska, Howell topped his Tulsa performance, catching his first touchdown pass -- a 67-yard toss from Lindsay to tie the game in the fourth quarter.
RICHARDSON COMES TO LIFE -- Junior WR Terrance Richardson had his best game of the season against Mississippi State, grabbing four Tony Lindsay passes for 106 yards. He became the first wide receiver at OSU to catch passes totaling 100 yards since Rafael Denson in the 1994 Colorado game (tight end Alonzo Mayes topped the century mark once in each of the last three seasons). His 64-yard reception from Tony Lindsay in the first quarter was the longest reception of his career.
FLAGS HAVE FLOWN -- A disturbing trend in OSU's 3-4 start has been the frequent appearance of penalty flags. The Cowboys have been flagged 73 times for 591 yards this season -- an average of 84.4 yards per game -- and have committed over 100 yards in penalties three times, including 11 flags for 132 yards at Texas Tech. The Cowboys are on pace to break the school-record mark of 797 penalty yards set last season; prior to 1997, the school record had been 712 yards, set in 1951.
FOURTH-DOWN SUCCESS CONTINUES -- OSU converted 12 of 17 fourth-down attempts last season, one shy of the school record, and that trend has continued this season, beginning with the season opener at Kansas. The Cowboys went for it twice in Lawrence and were successful both times. Both attempts extended drives that eventually went for scores. Last season, eight of OSU's 12 successful fourth-down conversions extended scoring drives. OSU is 8 for 12 on fourth down this season, including two memorable plays against Nebraska -- freshman P Scott Elder's 22-yard pass to junior DB Evan Howell on a fake punt and Lindsay's crucial pass to senior WR Sean Love with 10 seconds left.
CHALOUPKA PROVIDES A SPARK -- Chaloupka saw his first playing time as a quarterback (he played at Kansas as a kick holder) in the Tulsa game, and he made the most of his opportunity. Chaloupka directed OSU on scoring drives of 96 and 87 yards and completed nine of 14 passes for 187 yards and a touchdown. He also directed the Cowboys on fourth-quarter touchdown drives against Texas Tech and Kansas State, capping each with scoring passes.
NOT IN OUR HOUSE -- The Basketball Cowboys' 78-game home non-conference winning streak gets all the press, but the OSU football team has an impressive streak of its own. The Cowboys have won 13 straight games against non-league foes on Lewis Field after the Sept. 19 victory over 25th-ranked Mississippi State.
NOTING THE COWBOYS -- Junior TE Garrett Steggs' 41-yard second-quarter reception against NU was the longest of his career and just his third catch this season ... The 24-17 loss to Nebraska marks the closest game in the series since the 'Huskers won 14-10 in Stillwater in 1983 ... The Cowboys held Nebraska to four first-half rushing yards and 73 overall, marking the first time since 1976 that the 'Huskers failed to gain 100 yards on the ground in a regular-season game ... OSU's loss to Kansas State is the Cowboys' 27th consecutive against a top-five-ranked team ... Senior WR Joe Phears attempted and completed the second pass of his career in the Oklahoma game. Like the first, his second toss was a throwback to Tony Lindsay; the pair hooked up for a long gainer against Missouri last season ... The Cowboys' 41-26 victory over Oklahoma marks the most points OSU has scored against its archrival since a 47-0 victory in 1945.
