What to Expect from Oklahoma State Interim Coach Doug Meacham

A former Cowboy will be Oklahoma State’s head coach this weekend, but it won’t be Mike Gundy.

On Tuesday, OSU announced the firing of coach Mike Gundy in his 21st season at the helm. Following his firing, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that offensive coordinator Doug Meacham will be taking over as the interim.

After a coach is fired midseason, the interim label typically goes to a coordinator, leaving Meacham and Todd Grantham as the likeliest options for the Cowboys. Considering Meacham had prior experience as a coach in Stillwater and played his college ball with the Pokes, it probably wasn’t a difficult decision.

Meacham has never been a head coach before, mostly being an assistant or an offensive coordinator throughout his coaching career that spans nearly four decades. A teammate of Gundy’s at OSU in the 1980s and an assistant under Gundy for his first eight seasons as OSU’s head coach, Meacham’s coaching style likely won’t differ much.

Of course, the Cowboys aren’t necessarily making this change with the 2025 season in mind. Gundy’s firing gave the Cowboys an opportunity to get a head start on a seemingly inevitable coaching search.

Still, Meacham will be thrust into a tough position, set to lead the Cowboys going into the team’s Big 12 opener in just four days. While results had been varied at some of his previous stops, Meacham has been able to lead some electric offenses as a coordinator and assistant coach, particularly at TCU.

Over the past two decades, Meacham has coached in the Big 12 in all but two seasons, making him more than aware of what the conference slate has to offer. OSU’s expectations were already at the lowest of the Gundy era, and with Meacham stepping in as interim, those expectations might have taken another hit.

The hope for OSU is that Meacham can provide a spark for the Cowboys going into Big 12 play. While all signs point to OSU conducting a thorough coaching search, the next couple of months should also act as an audition for Meacham.

Although it seems unlikely that OSU would hire Meacham as the head coach for 2026 and beyond, he will have an opportunity to make his case for the role on and off the field. While miraculously leading OSU to a bowl game might earn him a contract, Meacham has never been in this position before, and this could be an interesting experience for everyone involved.