Oklahoma State Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium
Since the early 2000s, the Oklahoma State Cowboys have become one of the most competitive college football programs in the country. That's in large part due to head coach Mike Gundy, who joined the team in 2005 and steered the Cowboys to the 2011 national championship after an overtime win over Stanford in the Fiesta Bowl. Oklahoma State has won over 20 bowl games, including a 2018 Liberty Bowl victory over the Missouri Tigers, and 10 conference titles. The team plays in Boone Pickens Stadium, which has been in operation since 1920 and seats over 55,000 people.
Oklahoma State Cowboys Football History
The Cowboys played their first season in 1901, when they were still known as the Oklahoma A&M Aggies. In fact, the team wouldn't be christened the Cowboys until Oklahoma A&M changed its name to Oklahoma State in 1957. The team was a member of the Big Eight from 1960 through 1995, and joined the Big 12 Conference in 1996. Oklahoma State's most famous player is Barry Sanders, a formidable running back who won the 1988 Heisman Trophy and later became a perennial Pro Bowler with the Detroit Lions. The squad was also coached by future NFL legend Jimmy Johnson between 1979 and 1983.
Oklahoma State's most notable opponent is their fellow Big 12 Conference member the Oklahoma Sooners. The two teams face off annually for a game that's a marquee part of the schools' Bedlam Series, although their first meeting in 1904 was particularly memorable: A punt went backward into a creek with freezing water, which sent both teams scrambling for the ball and kickstarting a fierce rivalry that endures today. Oklahoma State also has a long-standing rivalry with another Big 12 Conference member, the Texas Tech Red Raiders. The two teams have met on a consistent basis since 1935 and play each other once a year.
