Oklahoma State University Athletics
Gundy, Players Meet with Media After First Spring Practice
March 25, 2025 | Cowboy Football
STILLWATER – Head coach Mike Gundy and Oklahoma State's four rostered quarterbacks met with the media following a two-hour, non-padded workout at the Sherman E. Smith Training Center on Tuesday afternoon. Here are some of their comments:
Head Coach Mike Gundy
On getting acclimated with all of the new staff and players:
"I'll feel my way through it the next six months and see how it feels, but it's been OK. Once we got settled in after about a month of offseason training, it felt normal, and then of course recruiting picks up, so that feels normal. Recruiting's different, but it still felt normal."
On his new coordinators:
"I like where they're at. We'll see but the structure, the organization, the concepts, what they're trying to get accomplished, they're football guys. They like football. Of course, their families aren't here now but when I leave, they're all still there working. They don't take lunch breaks. They're old school guys. They're just there working all the time, so from that standpoint, it's been good."
On having four quarterbacks that can compete for the starting job:
"It's rare that we have [that many] guys that we think are good players. Rangel's played some. [Maealiuaki Smith]'s played a little bit. Zane [Flores] has not touched it. Really, Hauss hasn't played much either. So, there won't be many schools in your power four that are going to have the flexibility that we do right now. In my opinion, moving forward it's going to be difficult. We're in a good situation right now. We've just got to play through it. One thing that's not in place is enough reps. There's just not enough reps for all the quarterbacks, so between Kevin [Johns] and Doug [Meacham], they've got to do a good job of managing those reps to try to get a couple guys at least ready for August."
On the offensive line:
"We don't know a lot about the guys that are going to play just because they don't have much experience, but I have a lot of faith in the two guys coaching them. Really three [because] you've got Grant Garner. So, we've got three former players that are coaching the offensive line. I look at Andrew [Mitchell] and Cooper [Bassett] and I remember them as young guys and now they're grown men with families and very established coaches. Mitchell was a coordinator last year, and then we just brought Grant Garner in to help also."
On the state of team:
"I feel good about what we have. The numbers that we had the other day from testing, strength, numbers, agility numbers, speed numbers, I'm good. We have enough to be successful, now they've got to go play and we've got to get them coached up."
Hauss Hejny
On the quarterback room:
"Oh, it's awesome. There's three good dudes in the quarterback room along with me [in] Garret, Zane and [Maealiuaki Smith].We're all just helping each other out and learning the system all at the same time, so it's been good."
On competition among the quarterbacks:
"You know competition's always high. I mean it's football. We all know we want to be a starter, so you know we're just doing our best every day to compete, but also be respectful of each other, so that's what it's about."
On why he chose Oklahoma State:
"So, I got in the portal and [Doug] Meacham obviously took the job here and then Coach Johns, the quarterback coach, took the job up here as well. I had a great relationship with both of those dudes through recruiting and obviously being at TCU, I knew Meacham really well. So, it's been great to finally be in the same building with both of them and grow and learn together and from Coach Johns and what knowledge they have to give me, so it's been awesome."
Zane Flores
On what he's learned in his time in Stillwater:
"I'd probably just say the mental game as a quarterback. In high school, if you're just a freak athlete, you can get away with a lot of things, but in college it really forces you to lock into the mental side, reading defenses, protections and all that. So, I'd say the mental side is where I've grown the most."
On what it will take to win a quarterback competition:
"I mean obviously as a quarterback you've got to be a leader. You've got to be competitive, and you've got to know what you're doing in the film room and all that. All four of us I think right now are doing a good job at that."
On if he's enjoying learning under Kevin Johns:
"Yeah, one hundred percent. Coach Rattay had his things that you know he coached on. Coach Johns has his things. I think taking what they both say, you know they're both great coaches, so kind of taking what they're both saying and applying it to my game is good."
Garret Rangel
On battling for the quarterback job:
"It's going to be good. We've got a bunch of good guys in the room. That's how it is every year, it's always a competition. It's going to be fun to compete and battle it out each practice and every day. I'm just looking forward to it and getting better and working on my craft and doing what I can to help the team win."
On building chemistry with new pass catchers:
"We got some work in the winter a lot. It's been good so far. Now, it's our real first day, so everyone is going like 100 times faster. So, just getting them out there with the defense going full speed too. It's just been good to get out there and see what they can do and let them go up and make a play. So, it's been good so far."
On Doug Meacham's offense:
"I love it. He wants us to throw the ball almost every play and I love that. We have the keys to the car, which is how it should be. I'm excited to be in it and looking forward to growing and learning with him."
Maealiuaki Smith
On the first practice of the spring:
"I was good. It felt good to be out here again. It felt like it wasn't too long ago that we were here, but it felt good to be back on the field with a bunch of new guys and a bunch of guys that are returning. It felt good to be out here."
On becoming the starter at the end of last season:
"It was a lot, but it wasn't too much that I could control. At the beginning of the season, I wasn't taking as many reps, and then once I was the two, I was taking a lot more reps and preparing like I was going to play. So, it was a lot of stuff going on, but I had a good amount of help from the coaches and the team, and I felt good going out there for both of those games."
On what he took away from his experience last season:
"Just confidence now that I've done it before. I've played in four games on the field now, knowing that I could do it and how it feels at away games and being home and having a feel for college offense."
Head Coach Mike Gundy
On getting acclimated with all of the new staff and players:
"I'll feel my way through it the next six months and see how it feels, but it's been OK. Once we got settled in after about a month of offseason training, it felt normal, and then of course recruiting picks up, so that feels normal. Recruiting's different, but it still felt normal."
On his new coordinators:
"I like where they're at. We'll see but the structure, the organization, the concepts, what they're trying to get accomplished, they're football guys. They like football. Of course, their families aren't here now but when I leave, they're all still there working. They don't take lunch breaks. They're old school guys. They're just there working all the time, so from that standpoint, it's been good."
On having four quarterbacks that can compete for the starting job:
"It's rare that we have [that many] guys that we think are good players. Rangel's played some. [Maealiuaki Smith]'s played a little bit. Zane [Flores] has not touched it. Really, Hauss hasn't played much either. So, there won't be many schools in your power four that are going to have the flexibility that we do right now. In my opinion, moving forward it's going to be difficult. We're in a good situation right now. We've just got to play through it. One thing that's not in place is enough reps. There's just not enough reps for all the quarterbacks, so between Kevin [Johns] and Doug [Meacham], they've got to do a good job of managing those reps to try to get a couple guys at least ready for August."
On the offensive line:
"We don't know a lot about the guys that are going to play just because they don't have much experience, but I have a lot of faith in the two guys coaching them. Really three [because] you've got Grant Garner. So, we've got three former players that are coaching the offensive line. I look at Andrew [Mitchell] and Cooper [Bassett] and I remember them as young guys and now they're grown men with families and very established coaches. Mitchell was a coordinator last year, and then we just brought Grant Garner in to help also."
On the state of team:
"I feel good about what we have. The numbers that we had the other day from testing, strength, numbers, agility numbers, speed numbers, I'm good. We have enough to be successful, now they've got to go play and we've got to get them coached up."
Hauss Hejny
On the quarterback room:
"Oh, it's awesome. There's three good dudes in the quarterback room along with me [in] Garret, Zane and [Maealiuaki Smith].We're all just helping each other out and learning the system all at the same time, so it's been good."
On competition among the quarterbacks:
"You know competition's always high. I mean it's football. We all know we want to be a starter, so you know we're just doing our best every day to compete, but also be respectful of each other, so that's what it's about."
On why he chose Oklahoma State:
"So, I got in the portal and [Doug] Meacham obviously took the job here and then Coach Johns, the quarterback coach, took the job up here as well. I had a great relationship with both of those dudes through recruiting and obviously being at TCU, I knew Meacham really well. So, it's been great to finally be in the same building with both of them and grow and learn together and from Coach Johns and what knowledge they have to give me, so it's been awesome."
Zane Flores
On what he's learned in his time in Stillwater:
"I'd probably just say the mental game as a quarterback. In high school, if you're just a freak athlete, you can get away with a lot of things, but in college it really forces you to lock into the mental side, reading defenses, protections and all that. So, I'd say the mental side is where I've grown the most."
On what it will take to win a quarterback competition:
"I mean obviously as a quarterback you've got to be a leader. You've got to be competitive, and you've got to know what you're doing in the film room and all that. All four of us I think right now are doing a good job at that."
On if he's enjoying learning under Kevin Johns:
"Yeah, one hundred percent. Coach Rattay had his things that you know he coached on. Coach Johns has his things. I think taking what they both say, you know they're both great coaches, so kind of taking what they're both saying and applying it to my game is good."
Garret Rangel
On battling for the quarterback job:
"It's going to be good. We've got a bunch of good guys in the room. That's how it is every year, it's always a competition. It's going to be fun to compete and battle it out each practice and every day. I'm just looking forward to it and getting better and working on my craft and doing what I can to help the team win."
On building chemistry with new pass catchers:
"We got some work in the winter a lot. It's been good so far. Now, it's our real first day, so everyone is going like 100 times faster. So, just getting them out there with the defense going full speed too. It's just been good to get out there and see what they can do and let them go up and make a play. So, it's been good so far."
On Doug Meacham's offense:
"I love it. He wants us to throw the ball almost every play and I love that. We have the keys to the car, which is how it should be. I'm excited to be in it and looking forward to growing and learning with him."
Maealiuaki Smith
On the first practice of the spring:
"I was good. It felt good to be out here again. It felt like it wasn't too long ago that we were here, but it felt good to be back on the field with a bunch of new guys and a bunch of guys that are returning. It felt good to be out here."
On becoming the starter at the end of last season:
"It was a lot, but it wasn't too much that I could control. At the beginning of the season, I wasn't taking as many reps, and then once I was the two, I was taking a lot more reps and preparing like I was going to play. So, it was a lot of stuff going on, but I had a good amount of help from the coaches and the team, and I felt good going out there for both of those games."
On what he took away from his experience last season:
"Just confidence now that I've done it before. I've played in four games on the field now, knowing that I could do it and how it feels at away games and being home and having a feel for college offense."
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Cowboy Football
QB
/ Cowboy Football
QB
/ Cowboy Football
QB
/ Cowboy FootballIntroducing Eric Morris - Oklahoma State Welcomes New Cowboy Football Head Coach
Monday, December 08
One On One with Eric Morris - Inside OSU Athletics
Monday, December 08
Welcome to the Cowboy Family, Coach Morris! #cfb #ncaafootball #collegefootball
Monday, December 08
Head Coach Eric Morris arrives at Boone Pickens Stadium #cfb #ncaafootball #collegefootball
Sunday, December 07
