Oklahoma State Ranked Among CBS Sports’ Bottom 25

On Saturday, the Oklahoma State Cowboys suffered their worst loss in the Mike Gundy era, falling 69-3 to the now-fourth-ranked Oregon Ducks.

Then-No. 6 Oregon was seen as the better team even heading into the matchup, though the Ducks left little room for doubt. They garnered a quick 20-0 lead in the first frame, pouring on points with simple offense and not letting the Cowboys muster much themselves.

Back-to-back pick sixes from Zane Flores in the third quarter would cement it as an all-time hopefully forgettable loss for Gundy and co. Unfortunately, the team showed plenty of the same issues that plagued them the season before, when they failed to win a conference game in finishing the season on a nine-game losing-streak.

Now, it seems the national stage has taken notice of OSU’s struggles — CBS Sports ranked the Cowboys among their “Bottom 25” teams.

In a sub-heading deemed “Cratering Cowboys,” CBS Sports’ David Cobb didn’t hold back on the Pokes’ struggles: 

Oklahoma State suffered its worst loss since the week before it became a state in 1907,” Cobb wrote. “As the Cowboys fell 69-3 at Oregon. The Cowboys have now dropped 10 straight against FBS foes, which is the worst active streak of any Power Four team and the longest such stretch in program history.”

The only teams ranked lower than OSU were Georgia State, Ball State, Georgia Southern and No. 1 Akron. Other notable teams on the full list were Iowa, Florida, North Carolina, West Virginia and UCLA.

Oklahoma State is amid a bye week, which it will hopefully use as a reset of sorts, before an in-state matchup against Tulsa next week. From there, the Cowboys begin conference play, starting with Baylor on Sept. 27.

OSU should still have plenty of chances in the Big 12 Conference, if they're able to shake off the Oregon loss. The Big 12 doesn't seem to have any truly dominant teams, appearing wide-open for those competitive enough.

Right now, that doesn't seem to be the Cowboys. But some quick fixes during the bye week, mixed with the return of starting quarterback Hauss Hejny — who suffered a foot injury in the season opener — could put OSU back into the mix.