Mike Gundy reacts to frustrated Oklahoma State fans amid struggles

After beginning its season with a 3-0 record, Oklahoma State has lost three straight games. Following the team’s 38-14 loss to West Virginia on Saturday, Cowboys head coach Mike Gundy addressed Oklahoma State fans who have expressed their frustration with the team’s recent performances.

“My job is to pay attention to the game and not pay attention to the crowd,” Gundy said. “My job is to not talk to the fans. My job is to coach the team. That’s what my job is. Everybody that pays and comes to a game has a right to display whatever action they feel comfortable with. I don’t have an issue with that.”

The Oklahoma State faithful have plenty to be upset about. In its blowout loss against the Mountaineers, Oklahoma State only tallied 227 total yards of offense while WVU amassed 558.

When Oklahoma State’s offense was able to piece together a successful drive, it rarely found the end zone. The Cowboys committed two turnovers in the loss while West Virginia committed none.

Oklahoma State fans have been particularly frustrated with the team’s failure to utilize running back Ollie Gordon II, who was the 2023 Doak Walker Award winner — an honor annually given to the best running back in the nation.

Through five games this season, Gordon has only recorded 384 rushing yards and four touchdowns. For reference, Gordon finished the 2023 campaign with 1,732 yards and 21 scores in the ground game.

It’s been a surprising turn of events for the Cowboys, who entered the season as one of the favorites to win the Big 12. Now, Mike Gundy is simply searching for a way to keep his team focused on improving.

“Keeping them motivated is really my job, but these are grown men. They need to motivate themselves. This has to be important to them,” Gundy said. “They’ll come back and practice really well, but that’s my responsibility.

“But I also believe that we’ve instilled things in them since they walked in this door from day one that’ll help them stay motivated, but those are things that I will look for over the next five or six days and really keep an eye on.”

Oklahoma State will enjoy a bye this week before squaring off against BYU on Oct. 18 at 10:15 p.m. ET. The game will air live on ESPN.