Oklahoma State Football: 3 Big Reasons They Walked All over Missouri

After giving the Missouri Tigers a 45-24 thumping this past Saturday, the Brandon Weeden-led Oklahoma State Cowboys had to be pleased.

In a conference road game that many thought could produce a slip-up, the Cowboys played very well, winning by three touchdowns.

How they did it might be even more impressive than the fact that they did indeed do it. There are three big reasons Oklahoma State did what it did.

The first one might surprise you.

An Opportunistic Defense

Oklahoma State is known for its offense—and rightly so.

People often get hung up on how many yards the defense gives up, painting the picture of a team that has to outscore everyone.

However, Oklahoma State’s defense is not built to shut people down, but rather to bend but not break, waiting until the other team makes a mistake. The Missouri Tigers obliged.

The Cowboys defense forced four turnovers, three of which were interceptions.

Oklahoma State’s defensive front was able to get pressure on Missouri quarterback James Franklin. Two of the three interceptions were partially swatted at the line of scrimmage—the other avoided that fate barely, only to fall into the waiting hands of junior cornerback Broderick Brown.

The Oklahoma State defense has had this same way of operating all season. They lead the nation in turnovers forced.

In fact, they are tied with some obscure team in that stat (LSU, anyone?).

A Good Rushing Game

Missouri came into this game as the best rushing team in the Big 12 (238.1 per game).

They exceeded their average, rushing for 248 yards as a team.

While Oklahoma State rushed for just 195 yards, they averaged 6.3 yards per carry (compared with Missouri’s 4.8) and scored three rushing touchdowns to just two for Mizzou.

Oklahoma State may not have out-rushed the Tigers, but they definitely kept up with them.

Oklahoma State has a very good rushing game when they choose to give their backs enough carries. Running backs Joseph Randle and Jeremy Smith ran for a total of 209 yards and three touchdowns (two Missouri sacks brought the team total down to 195).

Much like the defense, the running game is overlooked but solid. That’s why this team will continue to beat people.

Brandon Weeden

This guy is finally starting to turn some heads and for good reason.

He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the nation and is proving it each and every week, leading the Cowboys to a 7-0 record thus far.

In this game, he went 33-of-49 for 338 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. The interception was a bad one in the red zone, but the completion percentage is misleading.

The Cowboys receiving corps dropped seven passes before halftime and probably more later on (this writer stopped counting).

Weeden’s demeanor was as important as his arm in this game, especially with Missouri gaining back momentum and cutting the Cowboys’ lead to seven going into halftime.

Weeden leads the team by staying calm and not letting mistakes bother him.

That leadership is the biggest reason why the Cowboys won this game and will win the rest of their games as well.