By Jackson Posey | Sports Editor
The last time Baylor played an Oklahoma State team without Mike Gundy at the helm, John Kerry was running for president.
Gundy, the winningest coach in program history, was fired Tuesday after opening the season. The Cowboys were blown out of the water against No. 6 Oregon 69-3 before their bye week, then limped to a 19-12 home loss to Tulsa. It was Tulsa’s first road win in the Turnpike Classic since 1951, when the Golden Hurricane beat a school then known as Oklahoma A&M College 35-7.
Gundy didn’t make it to the next week. His players found out online that he’d been fired, and the Cowboys (1-2, 0-0 Big 12) will now head into Saturday’s Big 12 opener against Baylor (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) with former offensive coordinator Doug Meacham serving as interim head coach.
Meacham will be the first coach other than Gundy to captain the program against Baylor since 2004, when Les Miles’ Cowboys beat Guy Morriss’ Bears 49-21.
Before Gundy’s firing, Baylor players credited Oklahoma State’s coaches with building a strong program.
“They’re still a great program,” senior safety Devyn Bobby said. “They have a great coaching staff. They’ve got great athletes on the field, so we’ve got to be prepared and ready for them.”
Baylor will kick off against the Cowboys in Stillwater, Okla., at 2:30 p.m. Saturday with an eye on getting back in the win column. The Bears are 0-1 in Big 12 play for the third consecutive season.
“You’ve got to put the focus on what’s next,” head coach Dave Aranda said. “I think once they see the talent that’s there and the potential with this team in Stillwater, they’re going to have a lot of respect for them and know that it’s going to take our best to go over there and get a win.”
It’s a bout between bottom-dwelling defenses — Baylor ranks second-to-last in the Big 12 in EPA per play, while Oklahoma State ranks dead last. They’re the only two teams in the conference whose pass and rush defenses both rank in the bottom four.
Baylor-Oklahoma State might be the worst defensive matchup in the Big 12 this season. Here's how they stack up by EPA/play:
Overall: Baylor (#103) > OSU (#127)
Rush: Baylor (#91) > OSU (#120)
Pass: Baylor (#105) > OSU (#121)The only two Big 12 teams outside the top 100. #SicEm
— Jackson Posey ✞ (@ByJacksonPosey) September 25, 2025
“They play hard,” senior wide receiver Kobe Prentice said of the Cowboys’ defense. “They get after the ball. Their record doesn’t reflect the kind of team they are. They got a lot of talent and they’re gonna be ready to play.”
The Cowboys’ scoring defense ranks 115th nationally, allowing 31.7 points per game, while their scoring offense isn’t much better. The team’s 14.0 points per game, compiled against a schedule that includes Tennessee-Martin and Tulsa, ranks third-to-last nationally. (They lead Northern Illinois and Western Michigan.)
Starting quarterback Hauss Hejny, a Texas product, remains out with an injury he suffered in Week 1. Backup Zane Flores has completed 57.0% of his passes for 417 yards and two interceptions in his absence. The Cowboys haven’t thrown a touchdown pass since the first quarter of their season opener.
“They’re a move-the-pocket type team,” Bobby said. “They will go tempo. They have great athletes on [offense], so we got to do a great job communicating, great job for tackling and execute all the time.”
Baylor enters the weekend as a three-touchdown favorite, but has struggled against interim coaches before. In 2021, TCU fired head coach Gary Patterson ahead of its game against Baylor; interim coach Jerry Kill led the Horned Frogs to a 30-28 upset win in Fort Worth that ultimately kept the Bears out of the College Football Playoff.
Baylor’s road opener against Oklahoma State will kick off at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
