The day after Troy
Published: 9/28/2008 10:04 PM
Last Modified: 9/28/2008 10:04 PM
The opening September (and technically late August) stretch has concluded. Oklahoma State is 4-0 and now ranked 21st in this week's Associated Press poll.
There are many reasons to be excited about this OSU team. The offense is simply splendid. The potent big-play makers on that side of the ball will give the Cowboys a chance to win every week. The defense will not confuse anybody for the 1985 Chicago Bears. But the defense has displayed enough improvement the first few weeks of 2008 to give hope that a big season might be in store.
OSU took care of business in the nonconference portion of the schedule. The Cowboys have endured a few bumps and bruises, but only suffered one significant injury (punishing safety and special teams performer Lucien Antoine's season-ending knee injury).
Big 12 Conference play starts this week against Texas A&M, a team that is struggling this season. Yet, the Aggies have had OSU's number the past four years. If the first four games are any indication, the Cowboys will be ready to play the Aggies and the other seven Big 12 opponents on the schedule.
Game balls
***Zac Robinson: The junior quarterback had his best game of the season in the 55-24 win over Troy. Robinson hit 13 of his first 14 passes en route to a 16-of-21 night for 254 yards and three touchdowns. Robinson's reads in the run game, whether it was handing off and making option pitches, or just keeping the ball himself were flawlessly executed.
***Kendall Hunter: Spud is the best running back in the Big 12. Four consecutive games of more than 100 yards to open the season – including Saturday's 169-yard effort – have put the sophomore among the nation's elite runners at 154.5 yards per game.
***Offensive line: The O-Line down in Norman has been hyped as the nation's best unit. But the O-Line group in Stillwater is not too shabby either. Russell Okung, Andrew Lewis, David Washington, Steve Denning and Brady Bond have done an excellent job to open holes for the nation's leading rushing attack and fourth-best offensive attack.
***Jacob Lacey: The senior cornerback had eight tackles and an interception against the Trojans. The veteran is battle-tested and primed for a strong Big 12 season.
Cowboy checklist
***Defensive big plays: Lacey's interception was one of three takeaways forced by the OSU defense. Entering the Troy game, the Cowboys only had forced three turnovers. But OSU still ranks 115th out of 119 teams in sacks (2) and 116th in tackles for lost yardage (13). At some point, the defense is going to have to deliver a few difference-making plays.
***Discipline: OSU had 13 penalties total in the first two games. In the last two games, the Cowboys have committed 13 and 9 penalties, respectively. While OSU is improved across the board, it is not improved enough to overcome a high number of infractions each week.
---Matt Doyle
Written by
Bill Haisten
Sports Writer
