Oklahoma State vs. South Dakota State: Game Preview

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00:00This line less than double digits for today's opener in

00:06Stillwater. It's Oklahoma State against South Dakota State.

00:11Now, the Pokes enter this year ranked inside the top twenty

00:14reach the big twelve championship game a season ago

00:17and they return virtually everybody this season under Mike

00:21Gundy who enters year number twenty at the helm. A nine and

00:24a half point number Kev against a darn good South Dakota State

00:28team that has won two consecutive FCS National

00:31Championships is riding a twenty-nine game winning

00:34streak. The last loss for the Jackrabbits was in the 2022

00:38season opener against an FPS foe. That was Iowa. The game

00:42that will forever live on in infamy in Iowa City for the

00:46Iowa touchdown, two safeties, and a field goal. The Hawkeyes

00:49won seven to three but South Dakota State can play football

00:53and their quarterback Mark Granowski is back. The FCS

00:57offensive player of the year. How competitive is the Pokes

01:00opener today against the Jackrabbits in Stillwater?

01:02Look, I I think obviously South Dakota State is getting a

01:05lot of respect but you mentioned the North Dakota

01:07State game that was played against Colorado and this is

01:10where again I can kind of trip myself up with some spread man

01:13here but Oklahoma State who I think if they played Colorado

01:17would be laying ten and a half fourteen or at least over a

01:22touchdown. Right. Bare minimum. Is laying the same number that

01:25Colorado was laying in North Dakota State. Now, that

01:28probably speaks to the fact that North Dakota State's come

01:30back a bit. South Dakota State's now kind of the

01:33predominant powerhouse at the FCS level or so we think. I

01:38know Gronkowski's back. Everybody else though for the

01:40most part is gone. So, it makes for a really tricky spot here.

01:44I have opted though to respect the FCS champs though if I hear

01:49too much positivity on this desk, I probably will stop that

01:52and just bet this Oklahoma State team that I adore. I've

01:55played under fifty-four and a half. I think the Jackrabbits

01:58are going to score. Their offensive coordinator who's got

02:00the goods is at Northwestern now. I think there's a lot of

02:03change here year over year and Gundy out of conference, slow

02:07plays things. So, I'm not sure he's going to look to touch

02:11thirty-five, forty-two type of points in the game like this.

02:13In recent years, they've struggled without a conference

02:16competition. They lost to South Alabama last year thirty-three

02:19to seven. Again, it comes down to the consistency for me guys.

02:23On the defensive side of the ball, this is a defense in

02:25Oklahoma State last year not dominant since Jim Knowles

02:29moved on to Ohio State. They allowed 166 rushing yards per

02:32game, 275 in regards to the secondary and only had twenty-

02:36seven total sacks giving up 41% of third down defense. To me,

02:40this is a blue collar team in terms of South Dakota State

02:44held opposing offenses to eighty-nine rushing yards per

02:46game. Only 166 in the back end and Alan Bowman even though

02:52he's experienced guys. Fifteen touchdowns, fourteen

02:55interceptions. He's been inconsistent and turnover prone.

02:58Oklahoma State might win but I'm going to take the points

03:01with the Jackrabbits. Says a lot about you, Lacey Guy. Last

03:04year, fully in on the pokes to make a run to the big twelve

03:07championship game and Oklahoma State did just that. Not feeling

03:11as optimistic about this team this year but maybe you should

03:15because Ollie Gordon II, the nation's leading running back

03:17is back. More than 1700 yards on the ground. Twenty-one

03:21touchdowns only behind Blake Corum ran for 118 yards in nine

03:26of the fourteen games that Oklahoma State played a season

03:29ago but your concerns defensively are very sound for

03:32the Cowboys. They've given up at least twenty-nine points per

03:35game each of the past two years when Jim Knowles left Stillwater

03:38and went to Columbus as the defensive coordinator for Ohio

03:42State. They were the worst total defense last year in the

03:45big twelve. More than 441 yards per game given up in the worst

03:49passing defense in the big twelve and again, Mark

03:52Gronowski can do a lot for SDSU. The FCS Offensive Player

03:58of the Year a season ago. The best passer rating at that

04:00level of football. Twenty-nine touchdowns to only five INTs.

04:04More than 400 yards using his legs as well and eight

04:08touchdowns. South Dakota State best scoring defense at the

04:11FCS level allowing just 9.3 points per game.

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