The Cowboys have flourished with a three-quarterback system
BY JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Find more Bedlam coverage: Read all of this week’s preview stories and analysis on the Bedlam football game.
As the quarterbacks turn?
During Mike Gundy’s pre-Bedlam press conference,
he talked about Oklahoma State’s everchanging
quarterback situation
and said this: “That
has been a total soap opera
for the most part, but a good
one."
Give the Cowboys an
Emmy for how they have
coped with drama at the
game’s most important position.
Three quarterbacks have
started for OSU in one season
for only the fourth time
since Gundy’s playing career
ended in 1989. The other
“Three’s Company” seasons
ended with losing records.
This time, with Wes Lunt alternately replaced
by understudies J.W. Walsh and Clint Chelf, OSU is rolling along like
“M*A*S*H.” Lose a character.
Plug in a new guy and the ratings
stay high.
The Cowboys — 7-3 and
positioned at No. 22 in the AP
poll — have clinched a winning
record, and they rank
No. 3 nationally in scoring
and total offense.
Gundy was asked to talk
about what his team has accomplished
thus far, and he
said it all starts with the three
young men who have played
quarterback.
“I think the best way to describe
it is sometimes when
you have a quarterback controversy,
or a two- or threequarterback
system, team
members can pick a side,”
Gundy said.
“That hasn’t happened
with our team, and we’ve
been very fortunate. I think
the reason why is all three
players are unselfish. They
come from good families
and are raised right. They’ve
bought into the system, and
the supporting cast has been
very good."
Gundy wants no part of a
quarterback controversy. He
has been there and done that
and didn’t like it.
“We had the quarterback
race with Bobby Reid and Zac
Robinson that went through
spring and fall camp,” Gundy
said during a preseason interview,
indicating he wasn’t
comfortable with media
speculation about that QB
competition and the effect it
had on players.
“At that time, I said if we
ever got in that situation
again, I wanted to name a
quarterback so our team
knew who was going to take
the first snap in September."
And that’s what Gundy did
in 2012. The starter’s job was
up for grabs after Brandon
Weeden’s departure. Lunt,
Walsh and Chelf participated
in a quarterback derby during
the spring.
Lunt, who left high school
a semester early to compete
for the job, was designated
the starter and seemed to
gain separation from pursuers
during fall camp. He started
the first two games and set
a Big 12 freshman record with
436 passing yards in a loss at
Arizona.
Then came knee and ankle
injuries that sidelined Lunt
for three games. He returned
to play a game and a half before
being dealt a blow to the
head in a loss at Kansas State.
Lunt got medical clearance
to return to duty and reportedly
could be a two-minute
drill operator. Because the
offense has been productive
with others at the helm, he
can use the rest of the season
as a healing period, if needed.
Walsh began the season
as the No. 2 quarterback and
made three starts before sustaining
what Gundy (factoring
in recovery time) termed
a season-ending injury.
Walsh said he never once
considered his fracture to be
season-ending. He returned
to duty as a situational specialist
in a victory over Texas
Tech last weekend.
“I think it healed a lot faster
than we all thought it would,”
Walsh said.
“It’s a testament to the
trainers. They had a great
plan for me. … I stayed off it as
best as I could, and (strength
coach Rob) Glass did a lot
with my leg, strengthening it
and he gave me a lot of tips —
not tips, but (said) just drink a
lot of milk. It worked."
Walsh said he isn’t angling
for a milk commercial. Meanwhile,
Chelf has become
OSU’s new pitch man.
A junior who backed up
Weeden for two seasons,
Chelf had to swallow his pride
after finishing third behind
two freshmen in the spring.
“It says a lot about him that
he was willing to stick it out
and stay around for the team
even though things weren’t
going his way,” senior guard
Lane Taylor said.
Chelf got a chance to prove
he was better than advertised
when he was pressed
into duty at Kansas State. He
threw for 233 yards in 25 minutes
and — if it’s not broke,
don’t fix it — has started both
games since.
Gamer? Todd Monken said
that’s probably an overused
term. It’s this simple: Chelf
played well and teammates
played well around him.
“I am happy for him,” the
offensive coordinator said. “I
am happy for our team."
Gundy joked during a press
conference that you usually
work on quick kicks if you are
down to a third quarterback.
But this soap opera had a
different plot twist.
NO. 22 OSU
AT NO. 14 OU
2:30 p.m.
Saturday
Owen Field,
Norman
TV: ESPN-25
Radio: KMOD
fm97.5, KTBZ
am1430, KITO
fm96.1 (OU feed);
KFAQ am1170
(OSU feed)
Records: OSU 7-3,
5-2 Big 12; OU 8-2,
6-1 Big 12
Last meeting:
OSU claimed the
Big 12 title with a
44-10 win in
Stillwater in 2011.
Jimmie Tramel 918-581-8389
jimmie.tramel@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
OSU quarterback
Clint Chelf
takes a snap
behind Devin
Davis against
West Virginia
in Stillwater
earlier this
month. Chelf
finished third
in the spring
quarterback
competition,
but he has
made his mark
this season.
MICHAEL WYKE/
Tulsa World
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