Oklahoma State Opponent Review: UCF Wins Big 12 Opener Without Starting QB
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The Oklahoma State Cowboys have a Big 12 win. That’s saying something.
The Cowboys went on the road and defeated the West Virginia Mountaineers, 41-24, ending an 18-game Big 12 regular season losing streak. The Cowboys’ last Big 12 win was in their 2023 season finale against BYU.
Entering its bye week, Oklahoma State has a tremendous amount of momentum and gets the opportunity to heal up players that have been banged up the past few weeks.
Meanwhile, the rest of the conference kept rolling. Week 4 meant that every Big 12 team has played at least one conference game. And when it comes to the teams Oklahoma State has on its remaining schedule, there were some interesting results.
So, as the Cowboys get ready for the bye week, here is our weekly check-in to see how the rest of the Oklahoma State Cowboys’ 2026 opponents performed in Week 4:
Week 4 OSU Opponents Results
OSU Opponent | Opponent’s Opponent | Result | OSU Opponent’s Record |
|---|---|---|---|
Tulsa | at Arkanas | Lost, 34-6 | 3-1 |
Oregon | at USC | Won, 41-27 | 3-1 (1-0) |
Murray State | vs. Southern Illinois | Lost, 46-6 | 1-4 (0-1) |
UCF | vs. TCU | Won, 21-13 | 3-1 (1-0) |
at Houston | at Georgia Southern | Won, 42-28 | 3-1 (0-1) |
Colorado | at Baylor | Lost, 23-13 | 2-2 (0-1) |
at Iowa State | vs. Utah | Lost, 31-27 | 2-2 (0-1) |
at Kansas State | at Cincinnati | Lost, 31-26 | 3-(0-1) |
Texas Tech | vs. Sam Houston | Won, 49-14 | 4-0 (1-0) |
at Arizona State | Bye | Bye | 2-1 (1-0) |
Kansas | Bye | Bye | 1-2 (0-1) |
Notable Games
OSU’s Next Opponent: UCF
QB Controversy in Colorado
ISU, K-State Start with Losses
1. OSU’s Next Opponent: UCF
The Cowboys won’t see the Knights for two weeks, but UCF picked up a significant win by defeating TCU, 21-13, in their Big 12 opener in Orlando. It was significant because for the second straight game the Knights were without quarterback Alonza Barnett III.
Quarterback Keyone Jenkins was insanely efficient, going 19-of-20 for 160 yards and a touchdown. He did lose two fumbles. The Knights got a rushing touchdown from Taevion Swint and Landen Chambers. The Knights defense forced TCU quarterback Jaden Craig into two interceptions. The Horned Frogs also lost two fumbles.
UCF was outgained by nearly 100 yards on offense but still won with a fourth-quarter touchdown.
It was a gritty, grimy kind of win, the kind that shows you a team that get it done without their starting quarterback. A road trip to Houston is next, followed by the trip to Oklahoma State. It could be a defining stretch to UCF’s season if it wants to get to a bowl game — at minimum.
2. QB Controversy in Colorado
Oklahoma State won’t see the Colorado Buffaloes for a few weeks, but head coach Deion Sanders may have a quarterback controversy on his hands.
The Buffs started the season with Julian Lewis at quarterback, and he started on Saturday against Baylor. But Lewis struggled to get the ball down the field and the Buffs only scored three first-half points. Lewis was 11-for-16 for 75 yards but it wasn’t enough. So, Sanders went to Isaac Wilson, the former Utah quarterback who is Lewis’ backup.
He got the Buffs, back in the game, as he went 12-for-25 with 156 yards and a touchdown. He tied the game on a touchdown pass to Joseph Williams, but the Bears rebounded with 10 points to break a 13-13 tie and win the game, 23-13.
Colorado gets Texas Tech next week, followed by a bye week and then Utah before they see the Cowboys on Oct. 23 for OSU’s homecoming. It’s probably best to wait to break down that QB film a little longer until Sanders figures out the quarterback situation.
3. ISU, K-State Start With Losses
The Cowboys won't play Iowa State and Kansas State until the end of October and in early November and they represent Oklahoma State’s only back-to-back road trips of the season. But it's notable that both the Cyclones and the Wildcats lost their Big 12 openers.Iowa State hosted Big 12 frontrunner Utah at Jack Trice stadium and the Utes walked away from Ames with a 31-17 victory over the Cyclones. Iowa State did make this game interesting down the stretch, but Utah running back Wayshawn Parker had a career high 174 yards rushing to keep the Utes undefeated.
Kansas State played its first road game of the season and lost to undefeated Cincinnati 31-26. K-State had a 17-10 lead at halftime but fell behind after the Wildcats allowed 14 third-quarter points to the Bearcats, who have not played a game outside of Cincinnati this season. Kansas State quarterback Avery Johnson threw 50 times in this game and finished with 292 yards passing and a touchdown.
Both the Cyclones and the Wildcats are liable to be strong opponents of the Cowboys when they face each other later this season.
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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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