Baby Steps: Cowboys Come Back to Beat Chippewas

  The weather was not favorable for the Oklahoma State Cowboys when they rolled into Central Michigan to face the Chippewas, the offense sputtered and coughed before hacking up the lead in the third quarter. and no OSU fan felt like Mason Rudolph was going to win the Heisman, or that the Cowboys even looked like a team that got snubbed from the AP Top 25 rankings. The Cowboys looked average at best. Thats was the only thing that most spectators back in Oklahoma could agree on. But luckily for the Cowboys, they have Central Arkansas this week, and there should be some massive improvement coming from the Pokes. At least, that's what fans should expect from Mike Gundy and his squad.

Cowboy quarterback, Mason Rudolph (2) passed for
266 yards and also scored on a 21-yard rushing play to
lift the Pokes to a 24-13 win last week.

  In his postgame press conference, Gundy told the media that his kids just didn't feel the urgency when they arrived at Kelly-Shorts Stadium, and that was apparent! Not until Central Michigan took a 13-10 lead in the third quarter, did OSU seem to "wake up"! That attitude is not going to fly when Big 12 teams come knocking on the door for the Pokes, but I don't think they will have any lackadaisical mindset when it does come time to play the big boys. The only issue I see is that maybe the coaching staff was too relaxed when it came to Central Michigan. You'd never guess that if you talked to Gundy, but when you're a 17-21 year old guy, it's easy to look ahead to more formidable opponents. When in high school, my team never worried about many opponents, we were the top dog. But when our rivals came into town or we were in a playoff game, we were locked in and ready. If OSU can get their players to realize that every game is important, just like my former coaches did, then you'll see Central Arkansas leave Boone-Pickens Stadium with their tails tucked and the bus warming up after halftime.
 Just something to think about, as Oklahoma State takes on the Central Arkansas Bears on Fox Sports Oklahoma at 7:30 ET on Saturday night, and hopes for their continued quest to breach the Top 25 to be fulfilled by the end of this month.