Oklahoma State Ready for Top 15 Matchup with TCU

Saturday, October 15

Fort Worth, TX

2:30 p.m. CT

Oklahoma State University

TCU

October 10, 2022 | Cowboy Football

Complete Notes Available Here

The Basics
The Oklahoma State football team (5-0 overall; 2-0 Big 12) travels to Fort Worth, Texas, this week to face TCU (5-0 overall; 2-0 Big 12), with kickoff scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, October 15, at Amon G. Carter Stadium.

On the Air
The game will be televised by ABC with Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge and Molly McGrath on the call. It 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 The Varsity Network app.

In the Rankings
The Oklahoma State football team was voted No. 8 in the AP Top 25 and No. 7 the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll. It marks the 18th consecutive AP poll that the Cowboys have been ranked in the top 15, which is the longest streak in school history. Including 2022, OSU has now reached the top 10 of the AP poll at some point in 11 of the past 15 seasons and has seen a top 15 ranking in the AP poll in 13 of those 15 seasons. Although the first College Football Playoff rankings won't be released until November 1, it's worth noting that OSU has been part of the CFP rankings in six of the past seven seasons entering 2022. TCU is ranked No. 13 by the AP is No. 15 in the coaches poll.

18 Straight Polls in the AP Top 15
Oklahoma State has been ranked in the top 15 of every Associated Press poll since October 3, 2021, which is a school record streak of 18 consecutive sets of rankings. Here are longest streaks in school history:

            Consecutive Polls in the AP Top 15
            1.          18         (2021-22)
            2.         17         (2016-17)
                        17         (2010-11)
            4.         14         (1984)
            5.         12         (1988)
            6.         11          (1985)
            7.         9          (2008)
            8.         8          (2015)

The Series
Saturday's game marks the 33rd meeting between Oklahoma State and TCU, with the series dating to 1915. The 2022 season marks the 11th consecutive year the teams have met, beginning when TCU joined the Big 12 for the 2012 season. OSU owns a 17-13-2 all-time series advantage, while TCU holds an 8-5-2 advantage in games played in Fort Worth. OSU has won seven of the past 11 in the series, as well as two of the past three. Mike Gundy is 6-4 against TCU and Sonny Dykes is 0-0 as a head coach against the Cowboys.

Oklahoma State from a Distance
The Oklahoma State football team is 5-0 following a 41-31 win over Texas Tech last week. Coach Mike Gundy's team pillars of "Discipline and Toughness" (DAT for short), have continued the success of past seasons into 2022, and the Cowboys have already put up some impressive numbers in all three phases. OSU has the No. 4 scoring offense in the FBS at 45.2 points per game, ranks No. 1 in the FBS with 10.2 tackles for loss per game and is No. 6 in the FBS with 29.8 yards per kickoff return. On top of that, the Cowboys are No. 4 in the FBS in fewest penalties with just 21 total so far this season. The offense has leaned on four-year starting quarterback Spencer Sanders, as the senior now ranks No. 4 in the FBS with 22 points responsible for per game and No. 10 in the FBS with 327 yards of total offense per game. The three players putting up the most all-purpose yards are wide receiver Brennan Presley, running back Dominic Richardson and wide receiver Braydon Johnson. Wide receiver Bryson Green has also come on strong this year and put up a career-best 115 receiving yards last week. The defensive side has continued previous years' success in several areas. In addition to the FBS No. 1 tackles for loss ranking, the Cowboys have also excelled at third down defense (No. 11 at 27.5%) and getting to the quarterback with a Big 12-best 3.2 sacks per game. The defensive line, which is one of the oldest and most experienced in college football, is the anchor of that side of the ball, and double-digit players contribute on the unit every week. Linebacker Mason Cobb has been OSU's leading tackler (7.6 per game), and he now ranks No. 1 in the Big 12 and No. 8 in the FBS with 1.5 tackles for loss per game. Special teams play has also made a big impact this season. In addition to the impressive kickoff return numbers bolstered by Jaden Nixon's 98-yard touchdown vs. Baylor, punter Tom Hutton has downed 58% of his 24 punts this season inside the opponent's 20-yard line to mark the second-best percentage in the FBS, and kicker Tanner Brown has made all 34 of his placekicks with an 8-for-8 mark on field goal attempts.

An Oklahoma State Win Would ...
• Make it 6-0 for the second straight season and for the sixth time in the Mike Gundy era.
• Make it 7-1 in its past eight road games.
• Extend its road winning streak to four games, matching the fifth-longest road winning streak in school history.
• Improve its regular season conference winning streak to eight games, matching the second-longest streak in school history and the longest since the eight-game streak from Dec. 6, 2014 - Nov. 14, 2015.
• Mark its fourth-straight conference road win, matching the fourth-longest streak in school history.
• Improve its record against TCU to 18-13-2 and its record against TCU in Fort Worth to 6-8-2.
• Improve Mike Gundy's record against TCU to 7-4.
• Improve Mike Gundy's record in Big 12 games to 94-56.
• Improve Mike Gundy's record in road games to 54-35.
• Make it 20-2 in its past 22 games overall, dating back to the 2020 season. It would mark the third time in school history that OSU has won at least 20 games in a 22-game stretch. The previous times were included in a 21-2 stretch in the 2010-11 seasons and a 20-1-1 stretch in the 1943-46 seasons.
• Make it 154-68 in its history when playing as an AP-ranked team.
• Make it 141-39 in its history when playing as a higher AP-ranked team than its opponent.
• Make it 8-1 in its past nine and 17-6 in its past 23 games vs. AP Top 25 teams.
• Mark Mike Gundy's 38th career win vs. AP Top 25 opponents. Nick Saban and Dabo Swinney are the only other active coaches with more wins over AP Top 25 teams at their current schools.
• Make it 10-3 in its past 13 games when both teams are ranked in the AP Top 25.
• Improve it to 32-23 vs. AP ranked teams since the beginning of the 2011 season.

Notable Streaks and Trends Entering the Game
• Oklahoma State and Ohio State are the only two FBS teams to win every game by double digits this season.
• Spencer Sanders has thrown for 16 touchdowns against just two interceptions in his past 237 pass attempts for an interception rate of 0.8%.
• OSU has won a school-record 12 consecutive home games.
• OSU has won three consecutive road games.
• OSU has held nine of its past 17 opponents under 100 yards rushing.
• OSU has held 21 consecutive opponents under 200 yards rushing.
• OSU has held 24 of its past 26 Big 12 opponents under their season scoring average.
• OSU has won 81 consecutive games when holding its opponent to fewer than 20 points, dating back to Sept. 13, 2003 – the longest active stretch of time in the FBS and longest since at least 1980.
• OSU has held its opponent scoreless on its game-opening drive in 26 of its past 36 games.
• OSU has held its opponent to less than a 50% third down conversion rate in 29 of its past 30 games.
• OSU is 32-12 in its past 44 games decided by fewer than 10 points.
• OSU is 43-6 in its past 49 games when leading at halftime, dating back to Sept. 17, 2016.
• Dating back to 2005, OSU is 45-4 when not committing a turnover.
• Dating back to 2008, OSU is 72-8 when winning the turnover battle.
• OSU has won three of its past four overtime games.
• OSU has forced 34 turnovers in its past 23 games.
• Over the past 30 games, OSU has held opponents to 126-for-454 (27.8%) on third down.