ASU is just one game away from locking in bowl eligibility and the Sun Devils will get the chance to do so against Oklahoma State who is still searching for its first win of the season in the Big 12.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Oklahoma State (3-5, 0-5) is on a five-game losing streak and has been decimated by injuries this season after going 10-4 overall and 7-2 in the conference a year ago. The Cowboys beat Texas A&M 31-24 in the 2023 TaxAct Texas Bowl.
While there were a plethora of defensive mishaps last week, OSU fell to Utah by just three, 22-19. Oklahoma State had a huge fourth quarter with 16 points, but were just unable to catch the Utes in the end.
With it being Oklahoma State’s homecoming game on Saturday and knowing how hungry they are to get its first Big 12 victory of the season, Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham expects the Cowboys to throw everything at his team.
“This is a team that’s won seven games for almost, I think, 20 years in a row and it’s their homecoming. We’re going to get their very, very best and Coach Gundy has been doing this a long time at the highest levels amongst anybody in college football,” Dillingham said on Monday.
So far this year, OSU quarterback Alan Bowman has shown flashes of brilliance while also being on the wrong end of a mistake. Through eight games, he nearly has as many touchdown passes (14) as he does interceptions (10).
Gaining a wealth of experience and becoming a veteran leader, Bowman started his collegiate career seven years ago at Texas Tech, then transferred to Michigan in 2021 and flipped to Oklahoma State last season.
Sharing his thoughts on what Bowman can do and how big of a threat he is to the Sun Devils’ defense, Dillingham knows he has the ability to cause major damage if he is given the chance.
“Last week, I think he threw for over 300 yards (359 vs. Baylor) and a high completion percentage. He’s a veteran who completes a high percentage of his balls over time that you aren’t going to spook with much. That’s due to seven years of college football and the new age of college football. I am sure for him, he would obviously like more wins in the win column, that’s every team in the country,” Dillingham said. “This is a veteran that won the job last year and at prior school, this is somebody who is definitely capable of putting up big numbers.”
When ASU and OSU clashed last year in Tempe, the Cowboys were nationally ranked and ended up winning 27-15 over the Sun Devils in non-conference play. Bowman completed 11-of-16 passes for 113 yards and star running back Ollie Gordon II had nine carries for 53 yards and a touchdown.
Having two drastically different seasons from then to now, there are changes both programs have made and Dillingham sees some similarities of the Cowboys’ schemes that he is relaying to his team to be prepared for.
“They are completely different from last year. Brought in a new coordinator last year but is still there… For us, the most similar from a scheme perspective of how they are playing football is probably a Utah,” Dillingham said. “That would be the most similar from a schematic standpoint right now, but they are changing quite a bit from earlier in the year to now. You not only got to prepare for what they are doing but what they have in their arsenal.”
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers the Phoenix Mercury, Suns and ASU Athletics for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
