Oklahoma State Football Stock Watch: Five Players Trending to Make Big Moves in 2026
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With nearly 90 new players, the Oklahoma State Cowboys are going to have to find some breakout players all over the roster.
Many of those players are going to get the chance to further impress the coaching staff, including head coach Eric Morris, during fall workouts. Morris already has his eye on some of those players and how they can contribute this season.
Here are five players whose stock is going up in the eyes of Morris and his staff as they head into fall workouts.
WR Chris Barnes
Barnes has already done good things in his college career. At Wake Forest last season, he piled up 953 all-purpose yards and led the Demon Deacons, including a team-leading 39 catches. But at Big 12 media day, Morris was excited about the idea of having Barnes as a deep threat on the edge to help stretch the defense for the other receivers in the offense.
In Morris’ version of the Air Raid, smaller receivers can thrive on the outside. He’s only 5-7, but his versatility makes him the type of player that could gather up to 1,500 all-purpose yards if the Cowboys use him all over the field.
OL Jacob Sexton
Morris and his offensive line coach, Cody Crill, will have to rebuild the offensive line practically from scratch, unless Jakobe Sanders wins a starting job. But Sexton is a key piece of the puzzle. He’s projected to start at the left guard position and while he was a starter at Oklahoma, it was sporadic. His last two seasons at OU were truncated by injury.
The Oklahoma native decided to stay in-state after four years with the Sooners and Morris said that Sexton is one of several linemen who have shown him and Crill during the offseason that there is untapped potential to be a full-time starter — provided he stays healthy. It’s also important to note he won the left tackle job last season before the injury. He’s not restricted to the interior.
DE James Williams
Morris and his staff are high on Williams, who will play his fifth season of college football and with his third team after stops at Nebraska and Florida State. He’s been good, but not great, at any stop. Defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity could have a scheme that that unlocks Williams’ ceiling as an edge rusher.
He got close in 2024 with Nebraska, as he finished with five sacks. But he collected four of those sacks in two games. Morris and his staff hope to get production from Williams that is more consistent over the season, which will be his final one in college.
LB Tate Romney
Morris mentioned Romney a couple of times at media days as one of those non-North Texas transfers that could make a real impact in 2026. The former BYU and Arizona State product has dealt with injuries throughout his career. The hope is that he can make good on being the projected starters that outsiders believe he can be.
In Cassity’s 4-2-5 scheme, Romney figures to start alongside Ethan Wesloski, who starred in the scheme a season ago. If the Cowboys get the 2023 version of Romney, when he finished with 52 tackles, four tackles for loss and one sack. That’s why the Cowboys are so high on what he can do in their defense.
CB Mo Horn
Morris was excited about landing Horn, a four-year collegiate who only played in seven games for Texas Tech last season. But he only had to fire up Oklahoma State’s last game against Texas Tech in 2025 to understand his impact. Horn, then with the Red Raiders, had three pass break-ups in that game. The influx of transfers into Lubbock last season dropped him down the depth chart.
But, in 2024, he finished the season with 56 total tackles, including 31 solo stops and three tackles for loss, as he started every game. Morris appreciates the experience Horn, a senior, brings to a position that is young but does returning LaDainian Fields from a year ago.
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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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