Praise on the web
Published: 10/15/2008 11:07 AM
Last Modified: 10/15/2008 11:07 AM
After cruising the information super highway (a.k.a., the Internet), here are a sampling of opinions from various writers about Oklahoma State's 6-0 start to the football season. Enjoy!
Dennis Dodd, CBSSports.com: The way things are shaking out, a Kansas-Oklahoma State Big 12 title game isn't out of the question. If Texas beats Missouri on Saturday then it becomes more likely. Kansas is playing better and has Texas at home later in the season. KU and Missouri meet in Kansas City on Nov. 29. Oklahoma State is playing better than anyone in the conference (that includes Texas). That head-to-head game is Oct. 25.
Tim Griffin, ESPN.com: Biggest surprise: Oklahoma State. Mike Gundy has gone from a laughing stock this time last year to taking his team to its first 6-0 start since 1997. The Cowboys have bolstered their potent offense with an improving defense that shut down Missouri last week, helping to push them into the top 10 for the first time since Gundy was playing quarterback for them in 1988.
Kirk Bohls, Austin American-Statesman: I’ve written the last two Sundays that Oklahoma State is terrific and would beat one of the big three (Texas, OU and Missouri). The Cowboys might beat two of them.
Stewart Mandel, SI.com: Kendall Hunter belongs on all Heisman lists. For all the talk about the Big 12's Heisman-caliber quarterbacks, it's no coincidence that the two victors in the Oklahoma-Texas and Oklahoma State-Missouri clashes were the ones that produced 100-yard rushers. Texas' Chris Ogbonnaya only burst onto the scene two weeks ago, but the Cowboys' sophomore tailback has been quietly churning out big games all season. His 154-yard performance against Missouri marked his fifth 100-yard output in six games (the other: 90 yards against Texas A&M). Watching Hunter plow over Missouri defenders Saturday night, it struck me just how rare a runner he is. In most shotgun-based offenses like Oklahoma State's, the tailback is usually a slasher. While Hunter is listed at just 5-foot-8, 190 pounds, he is unquestionably a power runner. Time and again, he would take the shotgun handoff from Zac Robinson, head straight through the line and start dragging defenders as he ate up chunks of yardage. It makes it awfully tough on opponents when both the Cowboys' pass and run games are equally potent.
---Matt Doyle
Written by
Bill Haisten
Sports Writer
