Oklahoma State Safeties Looking to Lead Defensive Turnaround

One of the Cowboys who will be looking to help turn things around next season is Dylan Smith. The OSU safety is entering his third year with the program and is looking to be a big contributor yet again.

Smith, of course, is one of a few OSU starters returning for next season. After the Cowboys had one of the worst defenses in the country last season, it will be up to Smith and others to turn things around, but he doesn’t want to focus too much on the 2024 campaign.

"Coming in, you kind of want to use it as fuel,” Smith said. “But also, with so many new faces and new staff, it's a whole new slate. Most of the people that were here when that happened, aren't here anymore. You've just got to move past."

As Smith noted, the numerous new faces should help the Cowboys move past that ugly 2024 season. With Todd Grantham coming in as defensive coordinator, he has added an abundance of talent through the transfer portal.

Charlotte transfer Mordecai McDaniel will come into next season as one of the Cowboys’ most experienced defenders. After beginning his career at Florida under Grantham, McDaniel found his way back into the game with the 49ers last season.

McDaniel credited OSU’s recently hired defensive line coach Ryan Osborn for his decision to come to OSU. At Charlotte, Osborn was McDaniel’s defensive coordinator before the two came to Stillwater under Grantham.

"He took me out of juco, kept faith in me at Charlotte and brought me here," McDaniel said. "(Being with him at Oklahoma State) made it more of a family feeling and made me get to know the guys more, to talk and get to know my coaches more, too."

After having a rocky journey to OSU, McDaniel could soon stake his claim as one of the top players on the Cowboy defense. As one of the most experienced players on the entire roster and also having some experience at the power conference level, McDaniel could easily serve as a leader for Grantham and company in 2025.