Oklahoma State University Athletics
How Oklahoma State Has Fared vs. the Big 12
September 20, 2014 | Cowboy Football
STILLWATER - Big 12 play starts for the Oklahoma State football team Thursday and if recent history reveals anything, it's that the Cowboys are to be taken seriously.
Under coach Mike Gundy, OSU has finished no lower than third place in the Big 12 standings every year since 2009. Only two teams in the Big 12 have posted a winning record against the league every season since 2008: Oklahoma State and Oklahoma. During that span, the Cowboys are 37-14 against Big 12 opposition.
The Pokes are 12-2 in their last 14 Big 12 conference games played in Boone Pickens Stadium.
So what does that mean? It means OSU football has risen to the point where it's winning at a level of consistency never before seen in Stillwater.
Ask anyone who has known Oklahoma State football for any stretch of time and they'll tell you - the Cowboys are in the midst of the best sustained period of success in the history of the program.
How did OSU get to this point? It did so by finding ways to win conference games in a variety of ways.
The Cowboys have won more than their share against ranked opponents, compiling eight wins over ranked Big 12 teams since 2011, with two of those wins coming over conference opponents that were in the top 10.
They have won at home, again, 12-2 in their last 14 Big 12 conference games played in Stillwater.
They have won on the road, going 15-6 in their last 21 Big 12 conference road games.
They have won with different quarterbacks.
They have won with different offensive coordinators. They have won with different defensive coordinators.
They have won with players who went on to become first-round picks in the NFL Draft (six since 2009 to lead the Big 12 and rank third nationally). They have won with players who were overlooked, but went on to become important members of the team.
The list goes on.
So with OSU's 2014 depth chart largely populated by players who have never played in a Big 12 game, a fifth-place finish was the preseason prediction for the Cowboys.
That provides an opportunity for OSU to prove it's not ready to surrender its spot among the Big 12 elite.
It also provides an opportunity for the Cowboys to prove once again that they are to be taken seriously.
