Oklahoma State Football 2014 Spring Wrap Up

Strengths and Question Marks

The end result is that the Cowboys are worried about the defense. Starters and major contributors, not to mention NFL prospects and All Big 12 selections, were lost to graduation or other reasons.

The secondary is of greatest concern. This statistic says it all…

Out of 226 tackles registered by a safety in 2013, OSU returns 16.

All four major contributors at safety are gone, and one starter (Kevin Peterson) returns at cornerback. Gone is Justin Gilbert.

Linebacker is not much better, with the departure of All Big 12 selections Caleb Lavey and Shaun Lewis. Ryan Simmons has some huge shoes to fill as the only LB with meaningful game experience.

Defensive line is a mixed bag as far as I’m concerned. The Cowboys are two deep with talent at both DE positions, but the middle of the line is a little suspect. James Castleman returns after enjoying a ton of success alongside Calvin Barnett, but Ofa Hautau is the only backup returning.

Gundy said during spring drills that he liked how the DL looked, and felt it could be one of the best he’s had at OSU. That’s a pretty tall statement after last season’s success.

Special teams will be interesting. Kip Smith did a very serviceable job handling punting and kickoff duties, but true freshman Ben Grogan struggled on FG’s. Gundy has been impressed with Grogan’s improvement this spring, although OSU has several other kickers on the roster.

As for the return game, how can the Cowboys recover from the losses of Justin Gilbert and Josh Stewart? Enter Tyreek Hill, who I will speak more about a bit later.

The only real question on offense revolves around what has been a solid constant during Gundy’s tenure…offensive line.

The departure of one of the top 5 OL coaches in the country to Texas, of all places, has left the Cowboys in the hands of Bob Connelly. Coach Connelly’s most recent college position was a one year stint under Todd Graham at Arizona State in 2012. Last season was spent coaching high school, and Connelly had just accepted a position at Georgia Southern when OSU came calling.

On top of breaking in a new coach, the Cowboys are uncharacteristically thin going into 2014. Graduation (some left with eligibility remaining) has OSU searching for a number of replacements. There are 3 seniors, but they are the only players with significant experience.

Outside of defensive end, all the real strengths for this team reside on offense.

The Air Raid has resulted in Stillwater becoming home to a receiving corp that could annually produce two sets of starters in the Big 12, even with the departure of mainstays Tracy and Charlie Moore, not to mention Josh Stewart, who left early for the NFL. Jahuan Seales, Marcell Ateman, Rashaad Samples, Blake Webb, and Austin Hays headline a young but experienced group, and we’ve barely mentioned Tyreek Hill.

Other than the offensive line, OSU returns experience and depth at all offensive positions except QB, but J.W. Walsh has plenty of experience as a starter and has shown himself to be a durable leader. Whether or not his arm can move the Cowboys’ offense consistently is still a question mark for most fans. Daxx Garman seems to have worked himself into the #2 spot, and highly regarded true freshman Mason Rudolph, who enrolled early, turned heads at times in the spring.

OSU WR/RB Tyreek Hill

Breakout Players

While there are a number of players fans are anxious to see, especially on the defensive side of the ball, none brings more anticipation than speedster Tyreek Hill.

The Big 12 Indoor T&F Freshman of the Year (he only has two years of FB eligibility left) famously posted on Instagram a video of his 80 yard TD run from an OSU scrimmage. It was only up about 15 minutes, but that was all it took for the fans to go nuts. If he stays healthy, his speed will be a difference maker. At one point this year, Hill held the 9th fastest 200 meter time in the WORLD.

HC Mike Gundy and OC Mike Yurcich have both stated they will do whatever is necessary to get him the ball in space, whether at WR or RB. When commenting on Hill early this spring, Gundy said, “He gets from one place to the other extremely fast and looks different than the other players.”

Position Grades

QB…B-

Walsh needs to find the success he had as a freshman when he was one of the tops in the country in QBR. If he struggles as he did in 2013, Clint Chelf is NOT waiting on the sideline to save the day.

RB…A
Des Roland and Rennie Childs will be just fine, and OSU has several other young players who will compete for the important 3rd spot, which Gundy has shown he will utilize quite often, especially late in games.

WR…A+

How anyone doesn’t think this the most talented and deepest group in the Big 12 is beyond me, and there’s only one starter returning. That’s how good this group might be.

OL…B-

While that might not seem all that bad, it’s awful for a team used to A and A+.

DL…B+

The only thing holding this group back from an A is the interior. If that group fills in behind Castleman, the defensive ends could be devastating.

LB…C

Huge question mark. Outside of Simmons (67), the Cowboys only have 30 of the remaining 248 LB tackles returning from 2013.

CB/S…C-

The only thing saving this group is Kevin Peterson. Lots of players need to step up.

Special Teams…B

Much like the offensive line, this doesn’t seem so bad until you realize that OSU had spent the prior years with Dan Bailey and Quinn Sharp.

2014 Expectations

This is a bit of a crap shoot, but my gut says Oklahoma State might be looking at another 8-5 type of season. The defense will be the huge wild card, and with no experience behind Walsh at QB, it needs to be seen whether Walsh and the offense can produce enough points to protect the young linebackers, corners, and safeties. The Cowboys will struggle some this season, but this group could be setting up for some great seasons to follow.

For more expansive coverage of Oklahoma State spring football, including position groups and breaking news, CLICK HERE.

Robert Whetsell of Cowboys Ride for Free provided the information for our Oklahoma State Football 2014 spring wrap up. For more OSU football information, commentary and analysis, you can follow Robert on Twitter @RobertW_CRFF.