Cowboy Brew 11/14: In Good Company

Gordon Honored Among Nation's Best

Author

Cowboy Brew Crew
November 14, 2023

Happy Tuesday Cowboys and Cowgirls. To be included among the best is special.

To have earned that spot among the best is even more special.

Enter Ollie Gordon II, who did just that this fall and earned a spot this week among the nation’s best players.

Learn more about his recognition and much more.

What all do we have stirring in today’s Brew! Check it out below!

🎥 The Players’ Voice: Rashod Owens
🏈 Among The Elite
🏀 A True Legend
🤠 And so much more!

🎥 OSU MAX: THE PLAYERS’ VOICE

Rashod Owens is having a breakout season for the Cowboys.

The San Antonio, Texas native is leading Oklahoma State in receiving yards and is second in receptions 10 games into his redshirt junior season.

But Rashod's story is much deeper than what he does on the football field. 

Learn more about overcoming obstacles in The Players' Voice.

🎙 OSU MAX: COACH SMITH ON THE MIC

The Cowboys were impressive in the season-opening win over Bucknell.

Coach Smith sat down and talked about the opener and much more in the first edition of the John Smith Radio Show.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Among The Elite. In no surprise to anyone in Stillwater, Ollie Gordon II has been named among the country’s best.

OG2 earned a spot of one of 17 semifinalists for the 87th Maxwell Award for the Collegiate Player of the Year.

A three-time Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week and four-time Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, Gordon leads the FBS in nearly every major rushing category, including rushing yards (1,250), rushing yards per game (125.0), 200-yard rushing yards (2) and carries of at least 20 yards (17), 30 yards (13), 40 yards (6) and 70 yards (2).

The field of Maxwell Award semifinalists includes two FBS running backs and three total representatives from the Big 12.

🔼 Ya Heard? It didn’t take long for Stailee Heard to make a name for herself.

Helping the Cowgirls to a strong opening week, the newcomer averaged 16.7 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game, while shooting 71-percent from the floor.

Her performance earned her the season’s first Big 12 Freshman of the Week accolade.

She becomes the first Cowgirl freshman to take home a weekly award since February 2021.

🔼 Next Man Up. It had been over a year since former Cowboy Matt Amendola took the field in an NFL game.

That surely didn’t show on Sunday when he drilled a game-winning field goal to help the Houston Texans upset what many consider a Super Bowl contender in the Cincinnati Bengals, 30-27.

Since graduating OSU in 2020, Amendola has journeyed through NFL squads, practice squads and a spot in the XFL.

But on Sunday, he showed nerves of steel as he connected on all three of his field goal attempts in the Texans victory.

He has now made 21 field goals over the course of three seasons for four different teams.

🔼 A True Legend. Last week, the OSU family lost a true legend in so many ways.

L.C. Gordon, a 1961 Oklahoma State graduate and the school's first Black men's basketball player, passed away on Nov. 4, 2023 at the age of 86.

Born June 11, 1937 in Abbeville, Miss. and raised in Memphis, Tenn., Gordon arrived in Stillwater in 1957. Though he scored just 114 points over three varsity seasons (1958-61), he would become one of the most impactful players in Cowboy history, helping blaze a trail for generations of Black student-athletes.

Gordon graduated from OSU with a Bachelor of Science in secondary education and later added master's degrees from the University of Memphis (administration and supervision) and Texas Southern University (physical education).

🔼 Poll Position. For the first time since midway through the 2022 season, the Cowboys have earned a spot in the AP poll in back-to-back weeks.

The Cowboys sit at #24 and #25 in this week’s college football national polls.

Oklahoma State is one of four Big 12 members ranked in the polls, with Texas leading the pack at No. 7 in both and Oklahoma (14/13) and Kansas State (23/24) included as well. Kansas was nearly the fifth conference member to be ranked, receiving votes in both polls this week. 

🎥 OSU MAX: INSIDE THE FILM ROOM

Through the first two games of 2023-24, Mike Marsh ranks second on the team with nearly seven rebounds per game, while also scoring eight points per game and shooting 54-percent from the field.

His size, versatility and athleticism is a big addition to the Cowboys and that is only a portion of what he’s brought to Stillwater.

See that and more in the this edition of the Cowboy Film Room.

🤔 COWBOY TRIVIA

This week, Ollie Gordon II earned his rightful spot among the nation’s best players as a semifinalist for the Maxwell Award.

Gordon currently leads the country with 1,250 yards on the ground.

How many times has a Cowboy led the nation in rushing yards in a season?

Think you got it?

Scroll on down to the bottom of this email for the answer!

🎧 OSU MAX: FACE TO FACE

Fouad Messaoudi is one of the most decorated distance runners in Oklahoma State history. 

Messaoudi has earned numerous All-American honors and Big 12 Championships. But his biggest wins came indoors in 2023 winning the 3,000 meter NCAA title to go along with the Distance Medley title.

Learn more about Fouad and how he got started running in this episode of the Pokes Pod.

📅 COMING SOON…

Thursday, November 16
🏀 Men’s Basketball vs. St. Bonaventure @ 5:30pm on ESPNU (Brooklyn, N.Y.)

Friday, November 17
🏀 Men’s Basketball vs. Auburn/Notre Dame @ TBD (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
🐎 Equestrian at South Carolina @ 9am

Saturday, November 18
🏈 Football at Houston @ 3pm l ESPN2
🐎 Equestrian at Georgia @ 11am
👟 Cross Country at NCAA Championships @ 10:30am (Charlottesville, Va.)

Monday, November 20
🏀 Women’s Basketball vs. Penn State @ 5:30pm (Nassau, Bahamas)
🏀 Men’s Basketball vs. New Orleans @ 7pm

📬 STICK WITH US

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🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Three.

Chuba Hubbard (2019 - 2094), Barry Sanders (1988 - 2850) and Ernest Anderson (1982 - 1877) all led the nation in rushing.

🤠 Enjoy your Tuesday, Pokes!