Five Things to Watch as Oklahoma State Football Prepares for First Scrimmage
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When Oklahoma State had football coach Eric Morris told reporters when his two scrimmages would be, you could tell he was looking forward to their importance.
The Cowboys are set to scrimmage on Saturday at 11 a.m. and it's an opportunity for Morris and his staff to get a situation report on where his team is at.
There are still more practices ahead then there are behind the Cowboys going into their season opener with Tulsa and few things are settled. Short of playing another team, this is Morris’ best opportunity to see where his team is at.
Here are 5 things to watch as Oklahoma State prepares for its first scrimmage.
The Offensive Line Competition
This is the one position group Morris put a timetable on from the beginning of fall camp. He wants to have a good handle on his rotation by the end of this first scrimmage. That most likely means identifying 8 to 10 players that offensive line coach Cody Crill can work with the rest of camp to determine the starting lineup and rotations.
Morris’ reasoning is sound. He wants those players to work together and build chemistry since most of them have not played together.
There are a couple of factors to keep in mind on Saturday. First, Braydon Nelson is still working back from an injury, and Morris has not said whether he will play. Morris is not worried about mental reps due to Nelson’s knowledge of the offense. He just wants him physically right for the regular season.
Second, many of the lineman will move from position to position as Morris and Crill try to figure out who works best where.
There are some good guesses here as to who makes the rotation, but most of the offensive lineman will play at least a little. Morris’ words after the scrimmage will be the best guide to who impressed and who didn’t.
The Backup Quarterback Competition
One of the most important competitions is who will back up Drew Mestemaker. he is the clear starter, and one can argue that if he gets hurt for any length of time the Cowboys are in trouble. But someone will have to take those snaps.
The competition appears to be narrowed down to veteran Grant Jordan, who played at both Yale and UMass, and freshman Broderick Vehrs, who Morris pointed out early in camp had impressed him with his ability to pick up the offense.
It would be unusual for a head coach to trust a true freshman as the primary backup. But Jordan's body of work is wrapped up in one solid season at Yale in 2024. In other words, there's daylight. And the scrimmage is the first chance for both to impress Morris and quarterbacks coach Sean Brophy in “live fire.”
How Much Progress Has the Defense Made?
By the regular season opener against Tulsa the offense will likely be more cohesive than the defense. That's a product the talent Morris has brought in on that side of the football. There is more productivity, more explosiveness and more experience.
But the defense must be better than a year ago and they must show some things on Saturday in the scrimmage.
They must show the ability to rush the quarterback more consistently. They must show they can contain backs like Caleb Hawkins on the edge. And they must show better coverage downfield in one-on-one passing situations. Defensive scoring defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity has emphasized competition, and the scrimmage is the first opportunity for competition to turn into production. This will go a long way toward determining early rotations and roles.
Special Teams Work
This may not seem important to fans, but it's important to Morris and his staff. Morris said on Saturday that the last handful of roster spots on game days and the travel roster will be taken up by “four-unit special teamers.” In other words, players that can help him on both punt and kickoff units.
Expect a special teams session with an emphasis on seeing where different backup corners, wide receivers and linebackers can fit in.
The punting and kicking jobs are locked in but Morris and his special teams coordinator, Drew Svoboda, will want to make sure that things are operating smoothly.
Handling the Heat
It's mid-August and it will be 11 a.m., so it's going to be hot. And Morris admitted last weekend that some of the scheduling for practice and scrimmages are by design. He knows what the game windows are for Big 12 games. He scheduled this scrimmage early to emulate what an early game window would look like for his players. The other scrimmage, set for next Saturday, is scheduled for 6 p.m. That emulates another window.
Morris has been moving around his practices to help get his players used to playing in different times of the day and in different television windows because he knows the schedule for Big 12 games is flexible on game times.
But Morris will also be looking to see how his players handle the heat — and not just in game action. He was unhappy with their conditioning after the first workout but backed off that a few practices later. Now he'll get a chance to see just how well conditioned his team is going into the second week of full workouts.
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Matthew Postins is the publisher of Oklahoma State on SI. He is an award-winning sports journalist who was formerly the editor of the College Football America Yearbook and covers the Big 12 Conference for Heartland College Sports.
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