Oklahoma State University Athletics
Photo by: Bruce Waterfield
Eleven Reasons Why OSU’s Win Over West Virginia Mattered
October 30, 2016 | Cowboy Football
STILLWATER – The Oklahoma State football team picked up a big win Saturday as the Cowboys knocked off previously unbeaten West Virginia, 37-20, at Boone Pickens Stadium. The win improved OSU's season record to 6-2 and marked the 100th career win for coach Mike Gundy. Some key notes on the win:
The Oklahoma State win…
• Marked the 100th win of Mike Gundy's career, which makes him one of only seven active FBS coaches with at least 100 wins at their current school. The other six are Bill Snyder, Bob Stoops, Gary Patterson, Kirk Ferentz, Nick Saban and Kyle Whittingham.
• Improved OSU to 4-1 in Big 12 play, marking the seventh time in the last nine years OSU has won at least four of its first five Big 12 games.
• Made OSU bowl eligible for a school-record 11th straight season.
• Marked the Cowboys' second win over an opponent ranked in the top 25 of the Associated Press poll this season.
• Marked the sixth time that the Cowboys have beaten a team ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll since 2008.
• Marked the 19th OSU has beaten an opponent ranked in the top 25 of the Associate poll since Mike Gundy took over as head coach in 2005.
• Marked the 12th time that the Cowboys have beaten a ranked opponent at Boone Pickens Stadium under Mike Gundy.
• Tied the all-time series between OSU and WVU at 4-4.
• Moved the Cowboys to 3-2 against West Virginia since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2012.
• Improved OSU to 31-7 in their last 38 home games under Mike Gundy.
• Improved OSU to 41-17 in Big 12 Conference games since 2010.
Standout performers included the following:
Offense
Mason Rudolph | Quarterback | 6-5 | 235 | Junior | Rock Hill, S.C.
• Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph accounted for four touchdowns in leading the Cowboys to a 37-20 win over No. 10 West Virginia, who entered the game undefeated and leading the Big 12 by holding conference opponents to an average of only 14.3 points per game.
• Rudolph completed 26-of-36 passes for 273 yards and three touchdowns against zero interceptions and he also rushed five times for 10 yards and a score. According to ESPN, his adjusted QBR against the Mountaineers was 90.4.
• The win over the Mountaineers marked the second time in as many years that Rudolph has led the Cowboys to victory over a team ranked in the top-10 of the Associated Press poll. It was the fourth time in his career and the second time this season that he has quarterbacked OSU to a win over a ranked opponent. With Rudolph starting at quarterback, the Cowboys are 18-5 during his career.
• On the year, Rudolph has completed 185-of-291 passes for 2,532 yards with 17 touchdowns against only two interceptions. He is one of only three quarterbacks nationally with at least 250 pass attempts and two or fewer interceptions.
• Rudolph's 273 passing yards against West Virginia pushed his career total to 7,155 passing yards – making him one of only two active Big 12 quarterbacks with more than 7,000 career passing yards.
Defense
Vincent Taylor | Defensive Tackle | 6-3 | 310 | Redshirt Junior | San Antonio, Texas
• Oklahoma State defensive tackle Vincent Taylor was the most dominant player on the field during the Cowboys' 37-20 win over No. 10 West Virginia, piling up six tackles and setting new career highs with 2.5 sacks and 3.0 tackles for loss. He also forced a fumble and broke up a pass.
• Taylor was responsible for one of the most important plays of the game when he sacked West Virginia quarterback Skyler Howard at the WVU 10 yard line and simultaneously forced a fumble that was recovered by Oklahoma State, who found the end zone two plays later to take a lead that it would not surrender.
• Taylor added a 17-yard sack and teamed up with Vili Leveni to produce another sack later in the game to further douse West Virginia's chances.
• On the year, Taylor (a midseason first-team All-Big 12 selection by ESPN.com) has 30 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 6.5 tackles for loss, two fumbles forced and leads the nation with three blocked kicks.
Special Teams
Zach Sinor | Punter | 5-10 | 215 | Junior | Castroville, Texas
• Zach Sinor was a central figure in Oklahoma State's 37-20 win over No. 10 West Virginia, as he averaged 44.8 yards per punt and downed three of his four punts inside the 20-yard line.
• With Sinor deserving a good bit of the credit, West Virginia's average starting field position was its own 24-yard line. For comparison, OSU's average starting field position was its own 43-yard line.
• Sinor's four punts yielded just one punt return yard for West Virginia. Two of his punts against the Mountaineers went for 50 yards or more, including a 59-yard blast that flipped the field at a time in the fourth quarter when West Virginia was threatening to gain momentum. He punted it from the OSU 26-yard line and it was downed at the WVU 15.
• On the year, Sinor has punted 39 times for an average of 43.2 yards per punt. Of his 39 punts, 23 have been downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line with only one resulting in a touchback. Sinor has 11 punts of 50 yards or more. Thanks largely to Sinor, Oklahoma State ranks second in the Big 12 and 15th nationally in net punting.
The Oklahoma State win…
• Marked the 100th win of Mike Gundy's career, which makes him one of only seven active FBS coaches with at least 100 wins at their current school. The other six are Bill Snyder, Bob Stoops, Gary Patterson, Kirk Ferentz, Nick Saban and Kyle Whittingham.
• Improved OSU to 4-1 in Big 12 play, marking the seventh time in the last nine years OSU has won at least four of its first five Big 12 games.
• Made OSU bowl eligible for a school-record 11th straight season.
• Marked the Cowboys' second win over an opponent ranked in the top 25 of the Associated Press poll this season.
• Marked the sixth time that the Cowboys have beaten a team ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press poll since 2008.
• Marked the 19th OSU has beaten an opponent ranked in the top 25 of the Associate poll since Mike Gundy took over as head coach in 2005.
• Marked the 12th time that the Cowboys have beaten a ranked opponent at Boone Pickens Stadium under Mike Gundy.
• Tied the all-time series between OSU and WVU at 4-4.
• Moved the Cowboys to 3-2 against West Virginia since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2012.
• Improved OSU to 31-7 in their last 38 home games under Mike Gundy.
• Improved OSU to 41-17 in Big 12 Conference games since 2010.
Standout performers included the following:
Offense
Mason Rudolph | Quarterback | 6-5 | 235 | Junior | Rock Hill, S.C.
• Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph accounted for four touchdowns in leading the Cowboys to a 37-20 win over No. 10 West Virginia, who entered the game undefeated and leading the Big 12 by holding conference opponents to an average of only 14.3 points per game.
• Rudolph completed 26-of-36 passes for 273 yards and three touchdowns against zero interceptions and he also rushed five times for 10 yards and a score. According to ESPN, his adjusted QBR against the Mountaineers was 90.4.
• The win over the Mountaineers marked the second time in as many years that Rudolph has led the Cowboys to victory over a team ranked in the top-10 of the Associated Press poll. It was the fourth time in his career and the second time this season that he has quarterbacked OSU to a win over a ranked opponent. With Rudolph starting at quarterback, the Cowboys are 18-5 during his career.
• On the year, Rudolph has completed 185-of-291 passes for 2,532 yards with 17 touchdowns against only two interceptions. He is one of only three quarterbacks nationally with at least 250 pass attempts and two or fewer interceptions.
• Rudolph's 273 passing yards against West Virginia pushed his career total to 7,155 passing yards – making him one of only two active Big 12 quarterbacks with more than 7,000 career passing yards.
Defense
Vincent Taylor | Defensive Tackle | 6-3 | 310 | Redshirt Junior | San Antonio, Texas
• Oklahoma State defensive tackle Vincent Taylor was the most dominant player on the field during the Cowboys' 37-20 win over No. 10 West Virginia, piling up six tackles and setting new career highs with 2.5 sacks and 3.0 tackles for loss. He also forced a fumble and broke up a pass.
• Taylor was responsible for one of the most important plays of the game when he sacked West Virginia quarterback Skyler Howard at the WVU 10 yard line and simultaneously forced a fumble that was recovered by Oklahoma State, who found the end zone two plays later to take a lead that it would not surrender.
• Taylor added a 17-yard sack and teamed up with Vili Leveni to produce another sack later in the game to further douse West Virginia's chances.
• On the year, Taylor (a midseason first-team All-Big 12 selection by ESPN.com) has 30 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 6.5 tackles for loss, two fumbles forced and leads the nation with three blocked kicks.
Special Teams
Zach Sinor | Punter | 5-10 | 215 | Junior | Castroville, Texas
• Zach Sinor was a central figure in Oklahoma State's 37-20 win over No. 10 West Virginia, as he averaged 44.8 yards per punt and downed three of his four punts inside the 20-yard line.
• With Sinor deserving a good bit of the credit, West Virginia's average starting field position was its own 24-yard line. For comparison, OSU's average starting field position was its own 43-yard line.
• Sinor's four punts yielded just one punt return yard for West Virginia. Two of his punts against the Mountaineers went for 50 yards or more, including a 59-yard blast that flipped the field at a time in the fourth quarter when West Virginia was threatening to gain momentum. He punted it from the OSU 26-yard line and it was downed at the WVU 15.
• On the year, Sinor has punted 39 times for an average of 43.2 yards per punt. Of his 39 punts, 23 have been downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line with only one resulting in a touchback. Sinor has 11 punts of 50 yards or more. Thanks largely to Sinor, Oklahoma State ranks second in the Big 12 and 15th nationally in net punting.
Players Mentioned
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