Five Things We Learned in Oklahoma State’s 42-28 Win Over UCF
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STILLWATER, Okla. — The Oklahoma State Cowboys had to overcome a salty performance by the UCF Knights to claim a 42-28 victory on Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium.
The Cowboys (4-1, 1-0 in Big 12) were a little sluggish coming out of the gate after a bye week. They didn't have the energy their head coach Eric Morris wanted. But in the second half they delivered, as the defense finally figured out UCF's short-range passing attack and the offense busted out big plays late in the game.
And that Evan Jackson touchdown return on the fumble certainly helped.
Here are the five things we learned from Saturday’s game.
Eric Morris Was Nervous About This Game
The Cowboys were off after the West Virginia game, and while Cowboys head coach Eric Morris attempted to keep everybody moving in the same direction, he admitted that he was worried about this game against UCF. In fact, he further admitted that he didn't tell anyone that he was worried. Why?
While the Knights had two losses, both were to FBS power conference teams, and both were close. Plus, he knew a coach on that UCF sideline well.
“That game made me more nervous than I let anybody on to, just because I knew how good they were, how good they were stopping the run,” he said. “I've known their defensive coordinator for a long time. I think he's really talented at what he does.”
UCF’s DC is a name familiar to football fans in the state of Oklahoma — Alex Grinch. He was the DC at Oklahoma for a while.
Morris probably had some concerns after that fumble by Caleb Hawkins on the initial drive. He probably also had concerns after his defense struggled to stop UCF's offense in the first half. But those worries went away in a second half in which Oklahoma State differentiated itself as the better team.
Drew Mestemaker Can Play Clean Football
“He’s not afraid to get in there and make a hard catch.”
— Matthew Postins (@PostinsPostcard) October 10, 2026
Oklahoma State QB Drew Mestemaker on WR Justin Bowick’s one-handed grab in the first half against UCF. #OkState #GoPokes pic.twitter.com/Bz7pi8qMuC
One of the big discussion points going into this game was ball security. Quarterback Drew Mestemaker was responsible for seven turnovers in the first four games of this season. Contrast that to his 2025 season at North Texas where he threw nine interceptions and didn't fumble the ball.
Morris said earlier in the week that they had been talking about it for two weeks. Mestemaker played a clean game on Saturday. He didn't turn the football over and only took one sack, which admittedly was on him. He held the football too long. But otherwise, he completed 70% of his passes, threw for 324 yards and threw two touchdown passes.
The secret? Not thinking about it.
“It's not like I was going into this game saying, “Don't throw picks,” he said. “I've just got to stick to my process. Obviously I'm not trying to throw picks. But just sticking to my process and going out there and getting through my reads and let it go works.”
Eric Morris Will Run a Tight End
Tight end Morgan McPhaul’s rushing touchdown in the first quarter was a fit of creativity on Morris’ part. Mestemaker said after the game that he never would have thought to run the tight end out of the diamond formation as the main ball carrier. He also wouldn't have thought to use defensive end Malik Charles as a blocker, something Morris was training Charles to do last week during the bye.
But Morris decided to add the play earlier in the week to address the Cowboys’ red zone issues.
“[Cowboys special teams coach Drew] Svoboda came into my office when I put that play in so they could see it before we met as a staff and he said, ‘Coach, are you really handing the ball to Morgan?’ I said, ‘Yeah, man, he’s 250 pounds, he’s a great athlete. He’s going to push his way in there.’”
That was Oklahoma State’s second touchdown of the game. It helped spark the offense in a way it hadn’t been sparked to that point.
Evan Jackson Can Run and Pick Up a Football
It wasn't hard to believe that Oklahoma State’s defense forced a turnover that turned into a defensive touchdown. The Cowboys have been on the precipice of that a couple of times this season. But it was the way that Oklahoma State produced that defensive touchdown on Saturday that was intriguing.
UCF quarterback Keyone Jenkins threw what ended up becoming a backwards pass that his receiver didn't catch. On the play, Cowboys safety Evan Jackson vaulted over the intended receiver, stepped back on the ground and picked up the football in stride to run for a 28-yard touchdown.
It was a defensive play that basically sealed the game for Oklahoma State. And it might have been the most impressive athletic play all day. After the game, someone asked Jackson how he did that. He didn't have a great explanation.
“I can't even tell you,” he said. “It's just all adrenaline, seeing the ball on the ground the mentally it see ball, get ball.”
Jackson had a good day and not just because of the touchdown. After Mose Phillips III came up with a shoulder injury and missed the second half, his safety position was Jackson's to play. Jackson was the starter at the beginning of the season but lost the job a couple of weeks ago to Phillips. Does this represent a change? We'll see when the depth chart comes out on Tuesday.
Luke Webb is Growing Indispensable
Oklahoma State DL Luke Webb describes his key fourth-and-1 stop against UCF on Saturday. #GoPokes #OkState pic.twitter.com/wCj7pPyKWm
— Matthew Postins (@PostinsPostcard) October 10, 2026
The Cowboys pride themselves on a defensive line rotation that includes nearly 12 people. Its defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity’s goal to keep his line as fresh as possible. If you look at snap counts, most of the linemen don't play more than 30 snaps a game. But tackle Luke Webb is beginning to make a case for more playing time.
Webb made two impressive plays on fourth down on Saturday. The first was in the second quarter when he was able to push through the Knights offensive line and tackle running back Duke Watson. It didn't result in a change of possession, but it was still impressive to watch him knife through the offensive line.
The second one was much more critical. Late in the fourth quarter with Oklahoma State leading, Webb once again pushed through the Knights offensive line and tackled Landon Chambers behind the line of scrimmage. This time, the Knights did not convert, the Cowboys got the ball back and three plays later Mestemaker threw Wyatt Young a touchdown pass.
“They gave me a pass look, but something just told me it was gonna be a run up the middle and I was like, ‘All right, here we go,’” Webb said. “I just went forward and I really messed it up.”
I hear Webb's name more each name Oklahoma State plays. I don't know that he'll become a starter this year, but he's turning into one of the most valuable depth pieces on the Cowboys front four. Saturday's performance was just further proof.
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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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