Mike Gundy has had an extremely successful career at Oklahoma State. Now in his 20th season in Stillwater he has a 169-85 record and has led the Cowboys to 18 consecutive bowl games. But things are now unraveling. This process started rather slowly but has sped up quickly and hit its new peak earlier this week when he did the unacceptable. Coach Gundy decided to turn against the fanbase that has supported him for two decades.
Oklahoma State is having a bad season. The defense can’t stop anyone, and a running game led by a preseason Heisman Trophy favorite, Ollie Gordon, has been surprisingly disappointing. All of this has led to six straight losses and a 3-6 overall record. The Cowboys streak of 18 consecutive bowl games is on life support and many in Stillwater are unhappy with the direction of the program.
And if Coach Gundy thought the fanbase was already unhappy, his comments earlier this week just threw gasoline on the fire. During his weekly press conference done over Zoom, he was asked about the negativity around the program. You can listen to his comments here:
https://twitter.com/TJEckertKTUL/status/1853525397780254858
Not much surprises me anymore but hearing a head coach who has been at the same program for 20 years say “the people who are negative and voicing their opinions are the same ones who can’t pay their own bills” about the fanbase who helps pays his $7.75 million salary this season at a state university caught my attention.
Coach Gundy is known as a unique individual. He is known as someone who will speak his mind and isn’t bashful in front of a microphone. But I also thought that he was smarter than this. Not surprisingly, an apology followed on Tuesday night:
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https://twitter.com/CoachGundy/status/1854002918548193386
However, this apology is too little too late and should mean little to nothing to the fanbase. The two-sentence scripted apology written on someone’s notes app which was posted on the night of Election Day as a way to bury it shouldn’t erase his comments from Monday. Those comments were detailed, thought out and from the heart. The apology was none of those.
So, what happens now? Oklahoma State, led by the highest paid head coach in the Big 12, has three games remaining this season against TCU and Colorado on the road and Texas Tech at home. Winning all three to earn bowl eligibility seems borderline impossible. With a losing season likely, Oklahoma State’s first since 2005, the administration will have some very important decisions to make.
And whatever support he had around Stillwater about his future with the program likely evaporated earlier this week. Coach Gundy has had a fantastic career at Oklahoma State, but as everyone knows, all good things come to an end.
