PLAYERS TO WATCH
–WR Landon Wolf led Oklahoma State in receptions for the second straight game, catching six passes for 63 yards in the loss to Iowa State. Wolf emerged as an inside receiver after a senior, Jalen McCleskey, announced he was transferring after four games. Wolf also led the Oklahoma State receivers in a Sept. 29 win at Kansas. He also scored a touchdown for the second straight week.
–RB Justice Hill was limited to 66 yards on 24 attempts, a 2.8-yard average (his worst against a Big 12 rival), in the Iowa State defeat. Hill was coming off his best performance of the season with 189 yards at Kansas. He carried 31 times in that win after averaging just 11 carries through the first four games. Hill was dumped for 18 yards in losses by an Iowa State defense that administered 16 tackles for loss.
–TE Jelani Woods, a redshirt freshman, caught his first touchdown pass and had two receptions for 33 yards against the Cyclones. Thinning depth among the Oklahoma State receiving corps could make it possible for the 6-foot-7 Woods to become a more frequent target. Another tight end (called Cowboys backs in the Oklahoma State system), Sione Finefeuiaki, had a TD catch earlier in the season.
–DE Jordan Brailford added another sack in the Iowa State loss to bring his season total to eight, easily the best among Big 12 defenders. Brailford was in on four tackles, while the Cowboys had four sacks among their eight tackles for loss.
SERIES HISTORY: Oklahoma State leads Kansas State 39-25. A 45-40 upset win by the Wildcats last year in Stillwater removed the Cowboys from consideration for the Big 12 championship game, as well as a remote chance for the College Football Playoff. The Wildcats soared to a 29-point advantage before the Cowboys rallied and actually had a chance to win the game late.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “I like to tell the players that the mistakes on Saturday, they are my mistakes. There is no finger-pointing. We had some matchup problems (against Iowa State), but that is not the players’ fault. That is my fault. It is my job to put them in better positions to succeed, no matter where we are at. When you score as many points as our offense did, we should win games.” — Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.