Game Notes: Cowboys Head to West Virginia for Final Road Game of 2019

Complete Notes

The Basics
The Oklahoma State football team (7-3 overall; 4-3 Big 12) travels to Morgantown for an 11 a.m. CT clash with West Virginia (4-6 overall; 2-5 Big 12) on Saturday. OSU is in search of its fifth straight win over the Mountaineers overall and its third straight win in Milan Puskar Stadium.

On the Air
The game will be televised by ESPN2 with Beth Mowins, Anthony Becht and Rocky Boiman on the call. The contest will also be carried live on the Cowboy Radio Network, with Dave Hunziker handling play-by-play, John Holcomb providing analysis and Robert Allen reporting from the sideline. Fans outside of the Cowboy Radio Network can listen to the OSU broadcast for free through TuneIn Radio or the TuneIn Radio app.

In the Rankings
OSU moved up in the rankings this week, as it was slotted at No. 22 in the AP poll and No. 23 in the coaches poll. Entering 2019, OSU had reached the top 15 of the AP poll at some point in 10 of the past 11 seasons. OSU had also seen a top 10 ranking in the AP poll at some point in eight of the past 11 seasons. OSU was voted 22 in last week's College Football Playoff rankings, and this week's CFP rankings will be released on Tuesday, Nov. 19. OSU has appeared in the CFP rankings four of the past five seasons. West Virginia is not ranked.

The Series
Saturday's game marks the 11th meeting between Oklahoma State and West Virginia, with the series dating back to 1928. The 2019 season also marks the eighth consecutive year the teams have met. OSU owns a 6-4 all-time series advantage, with the series tied at 2-2 in games played in Morgantown. OSU has won four straight games against the Mountaineers, as well as each of the past two played in Morgantown. A win Saturday would extend the longest win streak for either team in the series. Coach Mike Gundy is 5-2 in his career against West Virginia, while WVU coach Neal Brown is facing the Cowboys for the first time.

Oklahoma State from a Distance
The story of the season so far has been the emergence of Heisman Trophy candidate Chuba Hubbard, who leads the nation in nearly every statistical rushing category, including rushing yards, rushing yards per game, all-purpose yards, yards after contact (via Pro Football Focus), yards per carry (min. 20/game) and more. His average of 172.6 rushing yards per game is 26.3 better than second-place Jonathan Taylor of Wisconsin. For perspective, the spread between first place and second place is greater than the difference between second-place Taylor and the nation's seventh-place rusher. Hubbard's rushing yards through 10 games are better than three of the past four running backs to win the Heisman Trophy and eight of the 12 running backs to win the Heisman Trophy since 1980. Defensively, the Cowboys have put together their best performances over the past three games, forcing 10 turnovers in the past three games alone. Kolby Harvell-Peel has put together a convincing résumé to earn first-team all-conference honors at safety, ranking No. 3 in the FBS in passes defended and No. 4 in the FBS with five interceptions this season. On top of that, he set an OSU single-game record with six pass breakups at Iowa State, which also ties for the highest single-game total of any player in the FBS this season.

An Oklahoma State Win Would...
• Mark the 10th time in the past 12 seasons it has won at least eight games.
• Give it five straight wins over WVU to extend the longest win streak for either team in the series.
• Make it 4-2 in road games this season.
• Make it 7-4 all-time vs. West Virginia and 3-2 all-time vs. WVU in Morgantown.
• Improve Mike Gundy's career record vs. WVU to 6-2.
• Improve it to 33-13 in its past 46 games overall and 47-19 in its past 65 games overall.
• Improve Mike Gundy's record in Big 12 games to 77-51.
• Improve it to 58-30 in Big 12 Conference games since 2010.
• Make it 68-13 in its past 81 games vs. unranked opponents, dating back to 2010.
• Give it wins in 27 of its past 32 games when playing as an AP ranked team vs. an unranked opponent.

Notable Streaks and Trends Entering the Game
• OSU is 20-7 in its past 27 games decided by fewer than 10 points.
• OSU has scored on its opening drive in 12 of its past 19 games.
• OSU has won 25 of its past 27 games when leading at halftime, dating back to Sept. 17, 2016.
• OSU has outrushed its opponent in 27 of its past 37 games and in 29 of its past 40 games.
• OSU has had at least one 100-yard receiver in 19 of its past 28 games.
• OSU has had a 100-yard rusher in 26 of its past 37 games.
• OSU has forced a turnover in 44 of its past 50 games and in 53 of its past 60 games, dating to 2015.
• Dating back to 2005, OSU is 37-2 when not committing a turnover.
• Dating back to 2008, OSU is 61-6 when winning the turnover battle.
• OSU has won three straight overtime games.
• Chuba Hubbard has rushed for at least 100 yards in each of the past eight games, which marks the longest active streak in the FBS.
• Chuba Hubbard has rushed for at least 100 yards in 12 of his past 14 games. He has a rushing touchdown in every game this season.
• Dillon Stoner has at least one catch in 34 of his past 35 games.
• Matt Ammendola has made 18 of his past 22 field goal attempts.
• OSU has scored on a play of at least 50 yards in six straight games.
• OSU has won 67 consecutive games when holding its opponent to fewer than 20 points, dating back to Sept. 13, 2003 – the longest active streak in the nation.

Game Notes: Cowboys Head to West Virginia for Final Road Game of 2019

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Matt Ammendola

Kolby Harvell-Peel

Chuba Hubbard

Dillon Stoner

Oklahoma State University Athletics