Oklahoma State University Athletics
Photo by: OSU Athletics
Gundy, Cowboys Talk Bedlam Win, Matchup at UCF
November 06, 2023 | Cowboy Football
STILLWATER – Head coach Mike Gundy and several players met with the media Monday in Stillwater to discuss Oklahoma State's Bedlam victory and first ever matchup with UCF. Here are some of their comments:
Head Coach Mike Gundy
On staying focused after the Bedlam win:
"One of the reasons I'm really pushing moving forward – we have to every week. I always say that. Whether you have a great win or you have a tough loss, you always have to move forward. For me to not address the situation now and moving forward would be a mistake in my opinion. That's why I am moving forward because otherwise, this won't move forward. It's too big of a situation in the state of Oklahoma to just go away in one or two days, so that's why we as a staff have done that. I addressed that this morning in the staff meeting. I don't want to hear about it anymore. I don't want to hear about what's going on. The goofy texts, the fans that were having fun, we're moving forward. You're moving forward, I'm moving forward, and my job is to get the team to move forward."
On last week's victory:
"It was a good football game. One thing I said after the press conference after the game that I think is true is that it was a typical Bedlam game. There was big plays, big plays, weird play, weird play, big play, big play, third-and-14 conversion, third-and-16 conversion. In the end, it was two good teams playing football. In the end, in my opinion, we did enough to capitalize on the mistakes that they had made and that's why we won."
On the crowd's impact on Saturday:
"Oh yeah, the electricity was there. The majority of the Bedlam games that we've played, home or away, there's an electricity you feel in your body when you take the field. Just with everything, the crowd, the game, the pageantry of college football that we don't want to lose. That was there pregame for sure."
On Ollie Gordon II's Bedlam performance:
"Obviously, he had a good game, he made plays, made key runs and broke tackles at times. Oklahoma inserted an extra player in the box to stop the run, which we knew they would, that was not a mystery. That's what I would've done, and it helped. The other times he ran through the guy, and he rushed for about 130-140, something like that, against a team like that, they're a good defense and pretty good against the run. So, it was a good day for him."
On Xavier Benson's growth:
"He's reckless with his body. If you want to play well at this level, you have to have the ability to play recklessly with your body and if you get hurt, you get hurt. That's what he's doing. I watch him on video, he's running, he's sliding, he's slamming himself into linemen and giving his body up, so he's playing well. He's really evolved in his mental preparation and how he handles game situations in my opinion. That's where he's made his biggest stride over the last 12 months."
On the offensive line:
"The reason we're playing good is because our offensive line is playing good. Early in the year, for whatever reason, we weren't and we couldn't manage anything. They've picked it up the last how many other games in a row playing physical, covering guys up, which allows us to throw passes, allowing us to become better pass protectors and a little more balanced and gives us a chance. Other than the years when we had (a couple) NFL receivers and NFL quarterbacks, we've always had to stay balanced in order to be good on offense, and that's where we're at this time."
Nose Tackle Justin Kirkland
On staying focused moving forward:
"I think something that we do as a team is keep everything in house very well. Even when we were 2-2 in the season, we don't listen to outside noise. For us, obviously Bedlam is bigger than any other game, but at the same time, it was just a game. So, go take care of business, do it for the community, do it for past players, all that. I'm just glad we were able to go out there and put one together the way we did."
On if he's ever been a part of a field storming:
"That was awesome. The (students and fans) taking the goalposts, stuff like that, seeing pictures of it in a Wendy's parking lot. I mean, that was fun for everybody… I stood at the 30-yard line over there by the goalpost that they took, so I got a full view of them taking it down. I was just looking for my wife and family to come down and hang out with them. It was awesome."
Offensive Lineman Preston Wilson
On the Cowboy culture:
"Having guys like Alan (Bowman), Justin (Kirkland), (Anthony) Goodlow, Dalton (Cooper) - so many transfers that came in and bought into our program is huge because everybody's got a different culture. Wherever they come from, as far as college athletes everywhere, every program is different. The fact that they were willing to come in and be open and (ask) 'how do you guys do things?' They came in and just executed that very well."
On being a leader:
"It's leading by example. If you want somebody to do something, you also have to do it yourself. It's the little things of teaching them the Cowboy culture, this is what we do, this is what we stand for, this is how we play, this is how we act. The Cowboy culture is a real thing. People joke about it and laugh about it, but that really is our culture. The way we act and the way we buy in and the way we work, and it's something that's instilled in us from the coaching staff. It's what makes us great. It's what leads us to success is fallowing and living by their standards."
Wide Receiver Leon Johnson III
On his first Bedlam game:
"It was awesome. There were a lot of people there. I heard there were going to be a lot of people there going into it, but I guess I wasn't really prepared for how many people were there. It was really awesome to experience that for the first time. I've never been to any sporting event where the field has been rushed, so being a part of the team that caused that to happen was incredible. Being run into by fans taking pictures after the games and stuff, it was an awesome experience."
On stepping up when needed:
"Always be ready for anything. The unexpected needs to be expected, honestly. I came in thinking I was going to redshirt, but now that redshirt is gone. I'm showing that I can perform out here and just got to expect the unexpected all the time. It's not tough (losing his redshirt) in the football aspect for me. It's more tough that I thought I was going to have another year with my friends and stuff here, with the coaches and everything and relationships I built outside of football. That's really the tough spot for me, but I'm ready to play. I'm ready to ball out the rest of the season."
Defensive End Kody Walterscheid
On the team's improvement:
"The progress and the confidence I think are both great. This team has come a long way. We are a tight knit group and we're just going to keep doing our thing."
On preparation for UCF:
"We got to do our jobs and stay true to our game plan and we'll get it done… Playing somebody that you've never played before is always different, but we're going to treat it like any other game."
Head Coach Mike Gundy
On staying focused after the Bedlam win:
"One of the reasons I'm really pushing moving forward – we have to every week. I always say that. Whether you have a great win or you have a tough loss, you always have to move forward. For me to not address the situation now and moving forward would be a mistake in my opinion. That's why I am moving forward because otherwise, this won't move forward. It's too big of a situation in the state of Oklahoma to just go away in one or two days, so that's why we as a staff have done that. I addressed that this morning in the staff meeting. I don't want to hear about it anymore. I don't want to hear about what's going on. The goofy texts, the fans that were having fun, we're moving forward. You're moving forward, I'm moving forward, and my job is to get the team to move forward."
On last week's victory:
"It was a good football game. One thing I said after the press conference after the game that I think is true is that it was a typical Bedlam game. There was big plays, big plays, weird play, weird play, big play, big play, third-and-14 conversion, third-and-16 conversion. In the end, it was two good teams playing football. In the end, in my opinion, we did enough to capitalize on the mistakes that they had made and that's why we won."
On the crowd's impact on Saturday:
"Oh yeah, the electricity was there. The majority of the Bedlam games that we've played, home or away, there's an electricity you feel in your body when you take the field. Just with everything, the crowd, the game, the pageantry of college football that we don't want to lose. That was there pregame for sure."
On Ollie Gordon II's Bedlam performance:
"Obviously, he had a good game, he made plays, made key runs and broke tackles at times. Oklahoma inserted an extra player in the box to stop the run, which we knew they would, that was not a mystery. That's what I would've done, and it helped. The other times he ran through the guy, and he rushed for about 130-140, something like that, against a team like that, they're a good defense and pretty good against the run. So, it was a good day for him."
On Xavier Benson's growth:
"He's reckless with his body. If you want to play well at this level, you have to have the ability to play recklessly with your body and if you get hurt, you get hurt. That's what he's doing. I watch him on video, he's running, he's sliding, he's slamming himself into linemen and giving his body up, so he's playing well. He's really evolved in his mental preparation and how he handles game situations in my opinion. That's where he's made his biggest stride over the last 12 months."
On the offensive line:
"The reason we're playing good is because our offensive line is playing good. Early in the year, for whatever reason, we weren't and we couldn't manage anything. They've picked it up the last how many other games in a row playing physical, covering guys up, which allows us to throw passes, allowing us to become better pass protectors and a little more balanced and gives us a chance. Other than the years when we had (a couple) NFL receivers and NFL quarterbacks, we've always had to stay balanced in order to be good on offense, and that's where we're at this time."
Nose Tackle Justin Kirkland
On staying focused moving forward:
"I think something that we do as a team is keep everything in house very well. Even when we were 2-2 in the season, we don't listen to outside noise. For us, obviously Bedlam is bigger than any other game, but at the same time, it was just a game. So, go take care of business, do it for the community, do it for past players, all that. I'm just glad we were able to go out there and put one together the way we did."
On if he's ever been a part of a field storming:
"That was awesome. The (students and fans) taking the goalposts, stuff like that, seeing pictures of it in a Wendy's parking lot. I mean, that was fun for everybody… I stood at the 30-yard line over there by the goalpost that they took, so I got a full view of them taking it down. I was just looking for my wife and family to come down and hang out with them. It was awesome."
Offensive Lineman Preston Wilson
On the Cowboy culture:
"Having guys like Alan (Bowman), Justin (Kirkland), (Anthony) Goodlow, Dalton (Cooper) - so many transfers that came in and bought into our program is huge because everybody's got a different culture. Wherever they come from, as far as college athletes everywhere, every program is different. The fact that they were willing to come in and be open and (ask) 'how do you guys do things?' They came in and just executed that very well."
On being a leader:
"It's leading by example. If you want somebody to do something, you also have to do it yourself. It's the little things of teaching them the Cowboy culture, this is what we do, this is what we stand for, this is how we play, this is how we act. The Cowboy culture is a real thing. People joke about it and laugh about it, but that really is our culture. The way we act and the way we buy in and the way we work, and it's something that's instilled in us from the coaching staff. It's what makes us great. It's what leads us to success is fallowing and living by their standards."
Wide Receiver Leon Johnson III
On his first Bedlam game:
"It was awesome. There were a lot of people there. I heard there were going to be a lot of people there going into it, but I guess I wasn't really prepared for how many people were there. It was really awesome to experience that for the first time. I've never been to any sporting event where the field has been rushed, so being a part of the team that caused that to happen was incredible. Being run into by fans taking pictures after the games and stuff, it was an awesome experience."
On stepping up when needed:
"Always be ready for anything. The unexpected needs to be expected, honestly. I came in thinking I was going to redshirt, but now that redshirt is gone. I'm showing that I can perform out here and just got to expect the unexpected all the time. It's not tough (losing his redshirt) in the football aspect for me. It's more tough that I thought I was going to have another year with my friends and stuff here, with the coaches and everything and relationships I built outside of football. That's really the tough spot for me, but I'm ready to play. I'm ready to ball out the rest of the season."
Defensive End Kody Walterscheid
On the team's improvement:
"The progress and the confidence I think are both great. This team has come a long way. We are a tight knit group and we're just going to keep doing our thing."
On preparation for UCF:
"We got to do our jobs and stay true to our game plan and we'll get it done… Playing somebody that you've never played before is always different, but we're going to treat it like any other game."
Players Mentioned
LB
/ Cowboy Football
RB
/ Cowboy Football
WR
/ Cowboy Football
NT
/ Cowboy Football
DE
/ Cowboy Football
OL
/ Cowboy FootballTaking on the NCAA Baseball Tuscaloosa Regional - Inside OSU Athletics with Josh Holliday
Friday, May 29
Oklahoma State's #1 Ranked Women's Basketball Portal Class - Inside OSU Athletics with Jacie Hoyt
Wednesday, May 27
Oklahoma State Postgame Sound (5-17-2026) - NCAA Softball Stillwater Regional Final
Monday, May 18
Stanford Postgame Sound (5-17-2026) - NCAA Softball Stillwater Regional Final
Monday, May 18
