Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Travel to Dallas to Face Mustangs
September 15, 2003 | Cowboy Football
Oklahoma State [2-1]
vs. SMU [0-2]
Saturday, Sept. 20, 2003 • 6 p.m. [CST]
Gerald J. Ford Stadium [32,000] • Dallas, Texas
TV - Fox Sports Southwest • radio - Cowboy Radio Network
internet broadcast - www.okstate.com
Cowboys Head for Dallas to Face SMU
Trying to extend its winning streak to three, Oklahoma State heads to Dallas, Texas, this week and a Saturday night date with SMU. It will be the only non-conference road outing of the season for O-State, and the first time the Cowboys have played a game in Dallas since 1996 when they faced Texas Tech at Texas Stadium in Irving. It will also mark the first time OSU has faced SMU in Dallas since 1950. It will be the first of three trips to the Lone Star State for Oklahoma State in 2003. The Cowboys will also travel to College Station to face Texas A&M and Waco for a game with Baylor. Saturday night's game at SMU's Gerald J. Ford Stadium is scheduled to kick off at 6 p.m. (CDT).
On Television
Saturday's game with SMU will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Southwest. Bill Land will handle play-by-play duties, while Gary Reasons will provide expert analysis. John Rhadigan will provide color commentary from the sidelines.
Wrapping Up September
Saturday night's game at SMU will also wrap up September for OSU. The Cowboys have an open date next week (Sept. 27) before springing back into action on Oct. 4 when Louisiana-Lafayette visits Boone Pickens Stadium in the final non-conference game of the regular season. O-State will be looking to end September on a positive note and, in fact, remain unbeaten in the month. The Cowboys' lone loss to date came on Aug. 30 at Nebraska. A victory at SMU this week would make the Cowboys 3-0 for the month. Oklahoma State has been perfect in September nine times since 1958, the latest coming in 1997 when the Cowboys defeated Louisiana-Lafayette, Fresno State and Louisiana-Monroe to go 3-0 in September. Prior to 1997, you have to go back to 1988 when the Pokes defeated Miami (Ohio) and Texas A&M to experience a 2-0 September. Other unbeaten Septembers since 1958 include 1973, 1975, 1983, 1984, 1985 and 1987.
Records/Rankings
Oklahoma State is 2-1 on the young season and is 0-1 in Big 12 Conference play. The Cowboys have won two straight since dropping the season opener at Nebraska, a loss that also dropped them out of the Top 25 polls. OSU was 24th in both the preseason and week one polls and have received votes the past two weeks. If the ESPN/USA Today poll were extended, OSU would be ranked 43rd this week. Five past or future OSU opponents are ranked in the newest Top 25 poll. Oklahoma (No. 1), Kansas State (sixth), Texas (No. 13), Nebraska (15th) and Texas A&M (No. 20) are all included on this week's list. SMU is 0-2 on the year after losing its season opener to Texas Tech and following that with a 10-7 loss at Baylor on Saturday.
Looking For a Road W
Oklahoma State will travel to Dallas for its Saturday night game against SMU looking for a non-conference road victory that would be just the third for the Cowboys since 1997. The Cowboys lost their lone non-conference game away from Stillwater a year ago in a 39-36 decision in Shreveport to Louisiana Tech. In 2001, the Cowboys lost at Southern Miss in the season opener, 17-9. OSU's last non-conference road victory came in 2000 when the Cowboys upended Tulsa, 36-26, at Skelly Stadium in Tulsa. In 1999, OSU lost to Mississippi State, 29-11, and in 1998, the Cowboys lost at Tulsa, 35-20. OSU's last non-conference, regular-season road triumph was on Sept. 6, 1997, when the Cowboys recorded a 31-7 win at Louisiana-Lafayette.
OSU-SMU, Briefly
There's much more on the Oklahoma State-SMU series elsewhere in this release, but this Saturday night will mark the 11th meeting between the two schools and the eighth time the Cowboys and Mustangs have met in Dallas. SMU leads the all-time series with OSU by a 6-2-2 margin, and the Cowboys will be looking for their first win ever against SMU in Dallas. OSU is 0-5-2 against the Ponies away from Stillwater. The two ties came in 1924 and 1933. The Cowboys last met SMU on its home turf in 1950, losing by a 56-0 count. This year's game is the second game of a four-year contract between OSU and SMU. The teams met last year at Lewis Field with the Cowboys winning, 52-16.
Trying to Extend Another Streak
When the Cowboys face SMU Saturday night, they will be trying to win their fourth-straight non-conference game. Since 2001, the beginning of the Les Miles' era of OSU football, the Cowboys are 7-3 vs. non-conference opponents, losing to Southern Miss in 2001, while falling to UCLA and Louisiana Tech in 2002. The Cowboys are 6-1 vs. non-conference opponents in Stillwater over the same time period but, as mentioned previously, a win Saturday night in Dallas would be the first non-league, regular-season road victory since 2000, and the first of the Les Miles' era of Oklahoma State football.
The Last 10
Oklahoma State continues to build on momentum established a year ago that is carrying forward in 2003. With two wins in its first three outings of the new season, the Cowboys have now won eight of their last 10 games, dating back to Oct. 19, 2002, when OSU defeated Nebraska, 24-21. The Cowboys finished last season winning six of seven and have started 2003 with two of three victories. OSU's current streak of success matches a similar streak that carried over from the final game of the 1996 season through the ninth game of the 1997 season. Prior to that streak, you have to go back to 1988 to find a more successful 10-game stretch.
Cowboys Last Week
Oklahoma State won for a second straight week at Boone Pickens Stadium with a 42-3 win over Southwest Missouri State. OSU jumped to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and didn't glance back. A crowd of more than 42,000 watched Cowboy tailback Tatum Bell score four touchdowns and rush for 143 yards on 21 carries. Fellow tailback Seymore Shaw added 107 yards on just 10 carries as the Cowboys combined for 417 yards of total offense, 264 of which came on the ground. All-America wide receiver Rashaun Woods had another outstanding day with four catches for 71 yards and a touchdown. Rashaun's brother, D'Juan, also hauled in four catches for 40 yards. Oklahoma State's defense limited SMS to 219 total yards, 117 through the air of 102 on the ground. OSU's defense also came up with two big interceptions, one by Darrent Williams and one by Robert Jones that ended a potential SMS scoring drive. OSU's defense limited the Bears to just two possesions within the redzone, resulting in only a field goal. The Cowboy defense had 10 tackles behind the line that resulted in minus 33 yards and three of those were quarterback sacks.
OSU-SMS Game Notes
Oklahoma State's win over Southwest Missouri State moved the Cowboys' all-time record over the Bears to 4-0 ... the three points scored by SMS represented the lowest opponent total against O-State since the Cowboys shut out Northwestern State on Sept. 29, 2001 ... the OSU victory moved the career record of head coach Les Miles to 14-13, marking the first time in two-plus seasons Miles' record has been over the .500 mark ... Seymore Shaw's 53-yard run for a touchdown in the fourth quarter was the longest TD run of his career ... with Shaw and Tatum Bell both over the 100-yard mark, it marked the first such occurrence for OSU since Nathan Simmons and Tony Lindsay eclipsed that mark against Louisiana-Lafayette on Nov. 14, 1998 ... two players gained their first OSU playing time against SMS. Tight end Tremayne Standberry and defensive back Grant Jones both played for the first time. Defensive back Jamar Ransom recorded the first sack of his career in the win over Southwest Missouri State.
SMU Last Week
While Oklahoma State was defeating Southwest Missouri State in Stillwater, SMU traveled to Waco where the Mustangs were downed by Baylor, 10-7. SMU jumped on top first and led 7-0 after a five-yard pass from Richard Bartel to Matt Rushbrook with 13:33 left in the second quarter. Baylor got on the scoreboard midway through the second quarter on a 47-yard field goal, and the teams went into the halftime lockerroom with SMU leading, 7-3. Baylor scored the only touchdown of the second half with 12:08 remaining in the third quarter. The Bears made the 10-7 score stand. The game was nearly even, both on the scoreboard and statistically. Each team had 11 first downs, while SMU had 98 rushing yards to Baylor's 80. SMU had 106 passing yards while Baylor had 102. Each team turned the ball over once, both on interceptions. SMU was led on the ground by Kaylon Kincade who had 30 carries for 113 yards. Bartel completed 12-of-25 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown. The SMU quarterback was sacked twice. Bartel's leading receiver was Blake Warren, who had three catches for 29 yards. Two other Mustang receivers had three catches each. On the defense side, SMU was led by D.D. Johnson who had 11 tackles, including two for loss, and a forced fumble. Brian Bischoff had nine solo tackles and had one of SMU's 4-1/2 quarterback sacks.
Touchdown Tatum
Tailback Tatum Bell set a new single-game career high with four rushing touchdowns in the win over Southwest Missouri State. The four touchdown mark is just one short of the school record of five set previously by Terry Miller and equalled by Barry Sanders. Bell's four touchdown performance comes just one week after a three touchdown performance in an OSU win over Wyoming. Against the Wyoming Cowboys, Bell had 21 carries for 215 yards and three touchdowns, and was named the Big 12 Conference's Offensive Player of the Week. Bell's numbers over the past two games are fairly impressive. Against Wyoming and SMS combined, the DeSoto, Texas, senior has 42 carries for 358 yards and seven touchdowns. Over those two games, Bell has averaged 8.52 yards per carry and averaged scoring one touchdown every sixth carry.
Well on His Way
Through three games of the 2003 season, Bell has now carried the ball 65 times for 445 yards and seven touchdowns. His season numbers also include a per carry average of 6.8 yards and a per game average of 148.3 yards. His early pace is torrid, and its a pace that would give him more than 1,700 yards for the season if he maintains that 148-yard average over the 12-game regular season.
Charting Tatum Bell
Bell's 143 yards against SMS gives him 2,568 yards for his OSU career and leaves him currently in eighth place on the OSU career rushing chart. Bell will have a chance to continue his move up the career list. He will go into this week's game against SMU just 130 yards behind Shawn Jones, who had 2,698 yards in his career and is seventh on the list. Bell is 359 yards behind Gerald Hudson, the 1990 NCAA rushing leader, who had 2,921 yards and is ranked sixth. Bell needs 432 yards to become the sixth running back in OSU history to rush for 3,000 yards or more. To move past Ernest Anderson and into fifth place on the career list, Bell needs 962 yards.
The New Career Yardage Leader
All-America wide receiver Rashaun Woods used an eight-catch, 152-yard performance against Wyoming to move past Hart Lee Dykes and into the top spot on the Oklahoma State career receiving list. Dykes established the previous record in a phenomenal Cowboy career between 1985 and 1988. His 3,172 yards and 29 career touchdowns appeared safe for many seasons. Woods, however, has exploded to the career yardage record. OSU's extraordinary pass catcher is the current Big 12 Conference career leader in receiving yards and receptions, and is tied with Texas' Roy Williams on the Big 12 career TD chart. Woods has had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, including the OSU single-season record of 1,695 yards a year ago. His 17 touchdowns in 2002 also established a new Cowboy record.
One Away from Touchdown Record
With the career yardage record already under his talented belt, Woods went into Saturday's game against SMS needing one touchdown to tie Dykes' career record for touchdown receptions. The career-tying touchdown came with 9:12 left in the first quarter of a 42-3 win. The 38-yard pass from Josh Fields lifted Rashaun into a tie with Dykes for the career lead.Woods' next touchdown will give him every major OSU receiving record.
Fields Surpasses 4,000-Yard Mark
Junior quarterback Josh Fields used a 153-yard passing performance in OSU's win over SMS to reach the 4,000-yard mark for his Cowboy career. Just three games into his junior season, Fields now has 4,081 career passing yards and is just the fourth quarterback in OSU history to reach that mark. Only Mike Gundy (7,997 yards), Toné Jones (4,812) and Tony Lindsay (4,002) had reached the 4,000-yard mark at Oklahoma State. What's more impressive is that Fields reached that mark quicker than any quarterback in Cowboy history other than his current position coach Mike Gundy. Saturday's win over SMS marked the 22nd Oklahoma State game in which Fields has appeared. With 4,081 career yards, Fields is currently third on OSU's all-time passing chart, 731 yards behind No. 2 Toné Jones and 3,916 behind Gundy.
Defense Stout vs. Bears
Oklahoma State's defense came out strong in the 42-3 win over Southwest Missouri Saturday night. The Cowboys forced SMS to punt after each of its first six possessions and the seventh possession ended with an OSU interception. OSU established the defensive momentum early, with the very first SMS possession netting just 12 yards on seven plays. On their second possession, SMS gained just three yards in a four-and-out series.
Darrent Steps Up
Defensive back Darrent Williams came up big in the win over Southwest Missouri State. Williams, known throughout his OSU career as a big playmaker, did just that in the 42-3 win. Williams led the Cowboy defense with four solo tackles and three assists. He also had a tackle for loss, a pass deflection and his first interception of the season.
How About The Youngsters
Several first-year players are making an impact on the defensive side of the ball. Junior-college transfer Robert Jones came up big against SMS with six total tackles and an interception in the endzone. Jon Holland continues to throw in impressive performances. Against SMS, Holland had six total tackles. True freshman Brad Girtman was credited with three solo tackles and an assist in the lopsided win over the Bears. Jamie Thompson, Freddie Sinclair, Victor DeGrate and Marquee Fountain also had statistics in Saturday's win.
Scouting the Mustangs
This weekend's meeting will mark the home opener for SMU, and will conclude a stretch of three consecutive contests against Big 12 foes. The Mustangs opened the 2003 season with a 58-10 loss in Lubbock against Texas Tech before falling, 10-7, in Waco against Baylor. SMU outgained the Bears by a 204-182 count, but suffered key turnovers, providing Baylor with a pair of scoring drives that covered 24 yards combined. Keylon Kincade rushed for 113 yards in the loss, while D.D. Johnson and Brian Bischoff combined for 21 tackles to lead the Mustangs defensively.
SMU returns eight starters on each side of the ball from last year's squad that went 3-9 in its first year under the direction of head coach Phil Bennett. Offensively, the Mustangs are led by senior tailback Keylon Kincade, who enters this weekend's contest 36 yards shy of cracking the 2,000-yard barrier for his career. On the defensive side of the ball, senior linebacker Brian Bischoff leads the squad with 22 tackles and is on the Butkus Award Watch List.
OSU-SMU Series ... SMU Lead 6-2-2
Saturday's meeting will mark the 11th time the two schools have met on the gridiron, with the Mustangs holding a 6-2-2 advantage. With their 52-16 win last year in Stillwater, the Cowboys snapped a three-game winning streak in the series by SMU. Last year's matchup ended a 52-year hiatus in the series. Nine of the 10 previous meetings took place from 1922-1950, including the last contest in Dallas (a 56-0 Mustang victory in 1950). OSU has never won in Dallas, with SMU holding a 5-0-2 advantage at home.
Head Coach Phil Bennett
Phil Bennett is currently in his second year as the Mustangs head coach and is no stranger to the Big 12 Conference, having played for Texas A&M from 1974-77 and coached at four of the league's schools. Bennett served as the defensive coordinator for Kansas State for three seasons prior to his arrival in Dallas. The 15th head coach in school history, Bennett also worked as the defensive coordinator at five other schools, including Iowa State and Texas A&M, during his 24 years as a college coach. Bennett also served as the secondary coach and co-recruiting coordinator at Oklahoma in 1998.
Mustangs to Watch
QB Richard Bartel — Bartel earned the starting nod in each of the squad's last five games a year ago, completing 60 percent of his pass attempts. He led the Mustangs to all three of their wins on the season, posting a 3-2 record as the starter, and recorded 200-yard passing games three times to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark for the season. Bartel is responsible for the squad's two touchdowns this season, completing a five-yard scoring toss against Baylor and a nine-yard touchdown pass against Texas Tech.
LB Brian Bischoff — A preseason member of the Butkus Award Watch List, Bischoff is entering his fourth year as a starter at the outside linebacker position for the Mustangs. He joined the SMU program as a walk-on, and entered the 2003 season with 29 career starts, including 21 in a row. Through two games this season, Bischoff has recorded a team-best 22 tackles, including 12 stops at Texas Tech, to push his career total over the 200 mark (218).
RB Keylon Kincade — Kincade enters his senior campaign coming off one of the best statistical seasons in school history. The Troup, Texas, native carried a school-record 327 times, bettering Eric Dickerson's old mark of 255, for 1,279 yards and seven touchdowns. His yardage total was the third-best in SMU history and led to second-team All-WAC honors. Kincade came into the 2003 season ranked 15th on the school's all-time rushing chart with 1,758 yards. After his 113-yard performance against Baylor, he surpassed three players, including Doak Walker, and now has 1,964 yards. Kincade recorded eight 100-yard rushing games last season for the Mustangs. A preseason Doak Walker Award Watch List member, Kincade rushed for 93 yards in the season opener against Texas Tech.
CB Jonas Rutledge — Rutledge has been a mainstay in the Mustangs defensive secondary, starting 33 of the 35 games entering the 2003 season. The Gainesville, Fla., native recorded 40 tackles, one interception and 11 pass breakups last season. Rutledge earned first-team All-WAC honors in 2001 after picking off four passes for 147 yards in returns and breaking up 16 passes. Also a dangerous return man, Rutledge is currently second on the school's all-time list with 1,450 kickoff return yards. Entering his senior season, seven of his runbacks have gone for at least 50 yards.
Odds and Ends
SMU is one of just six Division I-A schools that has has at least five bowl champions from last year on its 2003 schedule ... assistant coach Eric Roark was a three-year letterman at Oklahoma State under Jimmy Johnson ... four players with Oklahoma ties dot the SMU roster: Ervin McGee (Ardmore), Cory Muse (OKC Millwood), Zac Simmonds (Tulsa Union) and Keith Williams (Tulsa Washington).
