Oklahoma State University Athletics
Friday, September 19
Stillwater, OK
6:30 p.m. CT
Oklahoma State University
vs
Tulsa
Gundy, players preview Gateway First Bank Turnpike Classic matchup against Tulsa
September 15, 2025 | Cowboy Football
STILLWATER – Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy and four players met with media at Boone Pickens Stadium on Monday to preview the 2025 Gateway First Bank Turnpike Classic against Tulsa. Some of their comments:
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy
On the history of the Gateway First Bank Turnpike Classic:
"It's been a good game. It's a feasible game. It's not really costly, and attendance is beneficial for both schools. You used to get a lot of young men playing against each other that played against each other growing up. Now with the portal it's a little different. It's a good series for all of the right reasons. It's easy to get back and forth."
On what stands out about Tulsa:
"They played better last week, in my opinion, and they've improved. They have the other quarterback that's playing now. It looks like to me he's a bit more comfortable. They've gotten better, and I thought they played their best game last week. They continue to improve, and they're young. They've got new guys and such. They're working through the same issues that a lot of schools are."
On OSU's run game:
"I think that we'll improve in the run game. I think we have enough to be successful in the run game to get to where we need to be to balance our offense."
On what a successful run game looks like:
"I used to always say four-and-a-half yards per carry, but I've noticed that recently it's not as prominent as it used to be. Teams are more physical up front. There are better athletes up front on defense than there have been in years past. I think if you could average four yards a carry, it's a successful night."
On Trent Howland:
"We've got a number of backs that are doing a good job but he, prior to turning his ankle out there, was running good; running with confidence. He's a little bit older, a bit more mature than some of the other guys. He brings a little bit of a different quality to the table. When he's had opportunities, he's played well for us."
On Bryan McCoy Jr.:
"The first thing is, he's still got a lot of room for improvement. But you bring up a good point, because the reason is it's really important to him. Like, really important. You have friends or colleagues you work with who get upset for no reason, and you're like, 'Why are you so upset?' It's because everything matters to him. He wants it to be perfect all the time. He wants to do good so bad. We've all been around people like that, but he's like that all the time, and why he performs at a pretty high level. He's still making an adjustment, too, to this level, with the speed of things and all that. Some of those guys saw things they hadn't seen last week, so they're still making those adjustments. But it's very important to him. He has a willingness to do whatever it takes to be successful. He's one of the guys you don't have to worry about. You know he's going to max himself out."
On how they treated the bye week:
"The same. What we're really working on is getting better at who we are. Our schemes, offense, defense and special teams. Developing some of the younger players and our newer players, more so than worrying about the next game."
On evaluating game film with only two weeks of film:
"We look at missed assignments, fundamentals, technique, and we look at coaching. We can get a pretty good feel from it, but those are the things I look at that we have to improve on that we worked on last week. I thought that we tried to do too much based on their (Oregon) talent and just tried to make too many things up instead of just being who we are and what we can be. I think they understand. In any game, win or lose, my job is to critique all those areas and have a discussion about them the next day, which is usually a Sunday. Which is what I've done for 21 years, and that was just a message I gave you at that point for what I thought took place, and so we had shared that and worked on that the past four days."
On Zane Flores:
"He's got a ways to go. We had things that we had talked about, and every play that he is in is going to help him down the line. Every game that he's in, every practice that he's in is going to help him move forward. I've said this for years, and I'll say it again: there's no fast-forward button, in my opinion, with a young quarterback. It takes time and takes experience. Our Job is to put him in a position that gives him the best chance for success."
Offensive lineman Bob Schick
On the team's response to the Oregon game:
"I think during the bye week it kind of helped us to come together a little bit. I was kind of wondering what it was going to be like and how we were going to respond and attack this bye week, and it's been really good to see guys more coming together and more investment and just trying to pour more into the program and what we can do."
On the team's goals against Tulsa:
"Really, personally, and as a unit too, we want to prove that we can go out there and score, we can drive, we can hold our blocks, we can make stops on defense and stuff. Just, really go out there and prove all the naysayers wrong."
On Coach Gundy's leadership following the loss to Oregon:
"I can imagine, as a coach, it could be hard to talk after a loss like that, but he took ownership of the stuff that he could improve on and reminded each of us to look in the mirror and take ownership of what we could do better."
On the progression of the offensive line:
"It's been really good to just see the young guys come in and step up and fill the roles that need to be filled. We were talking about Nuku [Mafi] moving from the right side to the left side, to see him come in and step up like that. Grant [Seagren] coming in on the right side, hopping in at tackle, and having a great game."
Defensive back Kenneth Harris
On the defense's response to the loss to Oregon:
"The defense that you saw in spring and fall camp is not the defense that showed against Oregon. I think with the bye week, it gave us some time to reflect and get back on track and play Oklahoma State defense."
On the magnitude of the Tulsa game:
"I mean, every game is big, not just Tulsa. Every game is big. Every game is a chance for us to show our capabilities and the way we play defense. It's not just about Tulsa. It's about every game, so I feel like every game is a big game to showcase Oklahoma State defense."
On Coach Dean Marlowe:
"Coach Marlowe's been amazing; he's been a blessing. He's helped elevate my game in tremendous amounts of ways and I'm very thankful for him."
On his Oklahoma State football journey:
"I love Oklahoma State, and I believed in myself. It's simple. I love Oklahoma State, I love being here and I just believe in myself. I could've transferred, taken the easy way out, gone somewhere I could've played instantly, but it wasn't about instant gratification. I wanted to prove myself. I wanted to prove that I could play here, so I stuck it out and I grinded hard, and it paid off."
Wide receiver Shamar Rigby
On how the coaches are bouncing back after the Oregon loss:
"They're not badgering us about it, but they are coaching harder for sure. They want us to succeed this season. They want us to be great, and I don't blame them for that."
On how easy moving on from a game like Oregon is:
"It sticks with you for a little while. You never want to go out like that. I feel like we were good enough to compete with them. Maybe we didn't have a game plan right, or we weren't executing with our plays, but it definitely sticks with you for a while."
Linebacker Brandon Rawls
On how it felt to get back on the practice field:
"It felt good. After last week's loss the team was kind of down, but we turned around quickly. The next day, Coach Gundy gave us a good talk in the team room, and everybody was ready to go that same Sunday. Everybody was flying around in practice."
On Coach Grantham's attitude since Oregon:
"Coach Grantham is always fired up. He's the same dude. He still is every day of practice, bringing intensity, pushing us to be the best we can be."
On him and Bryan McCoy Jr.:
"Our linebacker room is kind of young, so Bryan and I, being old, our love for football really helped drive the chemistry in the room. The other guys saw us. Saw how we watched film; saw how we take notes. They're able to learn along with us."
Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy
On the history of the Gateway First Bank Turnpike Classic:
"It's been a good game. It's a feasible game. It's not really costly, and attendance is beneficial for both schools. You used to get a lot of young men playing against each other that played against each other growing up. Now with the portal it's a little different. It's a good series for all of the right reasons. It's easy to get back and forth."
On what stands out about Tulsa:
"They played better last week, in my opinion, and they've improved. They have the other quarterback that's playing now. It looks like to me he's a bit more comfortable. They've gotten better, and I thought they played their best game last week. They continue to improve, and they're young. They've got new guys and such. They're working through the same issues that a lot of schools are."
On OSU's run game:
"I think that we'll improve in the run game. I think we have enough to be successful in the run game to get to where we need to be to balance our offense."
On what a successful run game looks like:
"I used to always say four-and-a-half yards per carry, but I've noticed that recently it's not as prominent as it used to be. Teams are more physical up front. There are better athletes up front on defense than there have been in years past. I think if you could average four yards a carry, it's a successful night."
On Trent Howland:
"We've got a number of backs that are doing a good job but he, prior to turning his ankle out there, was running good; running with confidence. He's a little bit older, a bit more mature than some of the other guys. He brings a little bit of a different quality to the table. When he's had opportunities, he's played well for us."
On Bryan McCoy Jr.:
"The first thing is, he's still got a lot of room for improvement. But you bring up a good point, because the reason is it's really important to him. Like, really important. You have friends or colleagues you work with who get upset for no reason, and you're like, 'Why are you so upset?' It's because everything matters to him. He wants it to be perfect all the time. He wants to do good so bad. We've all been around people like that, but he's like that all the time, and why he performs at a pretty high level. He's still making an adjustment, too, to this level, with the speed of things and all that. Some of those guys saw things they hadn't seen last week, so they're still making those adjustments. But it's very important to him. He has a willingness to do whatever it takes to be successful. He's one of the guys you don't have to worry about. You know he's going to max himself out."
On how they treated the bye week:
"The same. What we're really working on is getting better at who we are. Our schemes, offense, defense and special teams. Developing some of the younger players and our newer players, more so than worrying about the next game."
On evaluating game film with only two weeks of film:
"We look at missed assignments, fundamentals, technique, and we look at coaching. We can get a pretty good feel from it, but those are the things I look at that we have to improve on that we worked on last week. I thought that we tried to do too much based on their (Oregon) talent and just tried to make too many things up instead of just being who we are and what we can be. I think they understand. In any game, win or lose, my job is to critique all those areas and have a discussion about them the next day, which is usually a Sunday. Which is what I've done for 21 years, and that was just a message I gave you at that point for what I thought took place, and so we had shared that and worked on that the past four days."
On Zane Flores:
"He's got a ways to go. We had things that we had talked about, and every play that he is in is going to help him down the line. Every game that he's in, every practice that he's in is going to help him move forward. I've said this for years, and I'll say it again: there's no fast-forward button, in my opinion, with a young quarterback. It takes time and takes experience. Our Job is to put him in a position that gives him the best chance for success."
Offensive lineman Bob Schick
On the team's response to the Oregon game:
"I think during the bye week it kind of helped us to come together a little bit. I was kind of wondering what it was going to be like and how we were going to respond and attack this bye week, and it's been really good to see guys more coming together and more investment and just trying to pour more into the program and what we can do."
On the team's goals against Tulsa:
"Really, personally, and as a unit too, we want to prove that we can go out there and score, we can drive, we can hold our blocks, we can make stops on defense and stuff. Just, really go out there and prove all the naysayers wrong."
On Coach Gundy's leadership following the loss to Oregon:
"I can imagine, as a coach, it could be hard to talk after a loss like that, but he took ownership of the stuff that he could improve on and reminded each of us to look in the mirror and take ownership of what we could do better."
On the progression of the offensive line:
"It's been really good to just see the young guys come in and step up and fill the roles that need to be filled. We were talking about Nuku [Mafi] moving from the right side to the left side, to see him come in and step up like that. Grant [Seagren] coming in on the right side, hopping in at tackle, and having a great game."
Defensive back Kenneth Harris
On the defense's response to the loss to Oregon:
"The defense that you saw in spring and fall camp is not the defense that showed against Oregon. I think with the bye week, it gave us some time to reflect and get back on track and play Oklahoma State defense."
On the magnitude of the Tulsa game:
"I mean, every game is big, not just Tulsa. Every game is big. Every game is a chance for us to show our capabilities and the way we play defense. It's not just about Tulsa. It's about every game, so I feel like every game is a big game to showcase Oklahoma State defense."
On Coach Dean Marlowe:
"Coach Marlowe's been amazing; he's been a blessing. He's helped elevate my game in tremendous amounts of ways and I'm very thankful for him."
On his Oklahoma State football journey:
"I love Oklahoma State, and I believed in myself. It's simple. I love Oklahoma State, I love being here and I just believe in myself. I could've transferred, taken the easy way out, gone somewhere I could've played instantly, but it wasn't about instant gratification. I wanted to prove myself. I wanted to prove that I could play here, so I stuck it out and I grinded hard, and it paid off."
Wide receiver Shamar Rigby
On how the coaches are bouncing back after the Oregon loss:
"They're not badgering us about it, but they are coaching harder for sure. They want us to succeed this season. They want us to be great, and I don't blame them for that."
On how easy moving on from a game like Oregon is:
"It sticks with you for a little while. You never want to go out like that. I feel like we were good enough to compete with them. Maybe we didn't have a game plan right, or we weren't executing with our plays, but it definitely sticks with you for a while."
Linebacker Brandon Rawls
On how it felt to get back on the practice field:
"It felt good. After last week's loss the team was kind of down, but we turned around quickly. The next day, Coach Gundy gave us a good talk in the team room, and everybody was ready to go that same Sunday. Everybody was flying around in practice."
On Coach Grantham's attitude since Oregon:
"Coach Grantham is always fired up. He's the same dude. He still is every day of practice, bringing intensity, pushing us to be the best we can be."
On him and Bryan McCoy Jr.:
"Our linebacker room is kind of young, so Bryan and I, being old, our love for football really helped drive the chemistry in the room. The other guys saw us. Saw how we watched film; saw how we take notes. They're able to learn along with us."
Players Mentioned
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OL
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