Cowboys Insider: Oklahoma State Can’t Avoid Big 12 Title Game Questions Anymore

STILLWATER, Okla. — The question took Oklahoma State head coach Eric Morris a second to wrap his brain around.

He was asked if he had paid attention to what had happened in the Big 12 as his Cowboys were beating the Colorado Buffaloes, 57-24. Morris's reply?

“What happened?” Morris said.

He was told that No. 8 Texas Tech lost to Cincinnati and that No. 2 BYU lost to UCF in double overtime. Did that have any meaning for him?

“I just think we're not to that place building this program,” Morris said. “We’re still in the trenches right now and trying to control what we’re doing. We have so many issues and we must continue to grow and get those fixed.”

First, I have a hard time believing the former Texas Tech wide receiver who would basically walk across hot coals for the legendary Mike leach didn't know that his alma mater lost a game that started at 11 a.m. on a Saturday. I was watching my alma mater, Stephen. F. Austin, beat Southeastern Louisiana on my iPad WHILE I was watching the OSU game.

I think he probably knew what happened in the Tech game.

Now the BYU loss? Let's cut Morris some slack. That game bled well into the Oklahoma State start time. But his point was about keeping his kids focused on what's coming next week against Iowa State. He was basically saying, “We're not scoreboard watching.”

That's fine. That's what we're here for. Saturday was a good day for the Cowboys and the questions about a Big 12 race are now impossible to avoid. Oklahoma State is in it.

Eric Morris’ New Mission: Keep Cowboys Focused

“What happened?”

When #GoPokes Coach Eric Morris was asked if he knew what happened in the Big 12 today. #Big12FB pic.twitter.com/8SG8pAFPlH
— Matthew Postins (@PostinsPostcard) October 25, 2026

Ask any Cowboys fan before the season if they would have taken 5-2 in the first seven games of the season and they would have happily done so. Some perspective. The Cowboys have now won more games this season than they won in the 2024 and 2025 seasons combined. One more victory in the Cowboys will go back to a bowl game for the first time since 2023.

This program hit rock bottom last year. What Morris has done in less than a year is parade-worthy. But it’s October now. The Big 12 seasons is about to reach the halfway point. The reality is the Cowboys are in the race to get to the Big 12 Championship game, whether Morris wants to talk about it or not.

Utah remained undefeated after beating Houston on Saturday and if you didn't stay up to watch the end of the game well you missed a good one. The Cougars nearly figured out a way to win that game. But that's life in the Big 12 the rest of the way. Every game is going to be close for the-now five teams that are bunched at the top of the standings with one or fewer losses.

That includes the Cowboys, whose only loss is to Houston. The other 3-1 teams are the BYU Cougars, the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Arizona Wildcats, who have rebounded from their Big 12 opening loss to BYU and are now 3-1.

So long as Oklahoma State doesn't lose a second Big 12 game it has a chance to get to the title game in Arlington for the first time since 2023. Now, the Cowboys need help and that's where the unbalanced schedule doesn't help them. The Cowboys don't get a crack at Utah, BYU or Arizona. Their only game against that collection of teams is against Texas Tech on Nov. 14. Utah did Oklahoma State a favor by beating Houston because the Cougars have a tiebreaker over the Cowboys.

So, let's build a pathway for Oklahoma State to get there, shall we? For one, Cowboys fans are big Utah fans now. It would be best for Oklahoma State if Utah won out and finished undefeated because that would mean the Utes would beat BYU, giving the Cougars a second loss. That eliminates BYU.

Oklahoma State HAS TO beat Texas Tech. A second loss would eliminate the Red Raiders. As for Arizona, the Cowboys need help from somebody — and they may get it. Arizona has by far the most challenging schedule down the stretch in Big 12 play among those five teams as they must play both Texas Tech and Utah. If Arizona manages to run that gauntlet, then go ahead and send the Wildcats to Arlington. No arguments from me.

That's the most reasonable path for Oklahoma State to get to the title game. Oh, I forgot. The Cowboys MUST win out. If we're talking about realistic scenarios there's no pathway for the Cowboys to get to the title game with two losses.

I mean I didn't do the math but logically speaking either one of these other teams is going to finish with just one loss or because Oklahoma State will have played so few of them, they'll lose on tiebreakers in the event that the second spot is decided by a group of two-loss teams. I promise if it’s mid-November and OSU is still in it, I’ll do the math.

And that's really the point that Morris was trying to make when he was asked that question on Saturday. There are five games left. So many things can happen down the stretch. I wouldn't give you good odds that Oklahoma State could finish the season 5-0. But stranger things have happened. As long as OSU keeps winning, strange things CAN happen.

“I think this is a humbling game,” Morris said. “We’re going to stay here in our little space in Stillwater and just try to continue to get one week better.”

One week better is beating Iowa State on Halloween and letting the chips fall where they may. But more than halfway through the 2026 season, the Cowboys have something they didn't have in either of their last two seasons — control of their own destiny. Not total control, but reasonable control.

And for a program trying to rebuild from the ashes of a 1-11 season, that's more than anyone could have asked for.

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