STILLWATER — In the early weeks of his job as Oklahoma State’s interim football coach, Doug Meacham braced for the incoming wave of apathy.
He anticipated waning commitment, and even less desire from his players in what was already a lost season.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSure, there were some players who left the team and entered the transfer portal in the days and weeks after Mike Gundy’s Sept. 23 firing.
Others opted to redshirt, preserving their year of eligibility for a future season that might matter more.
And a few — though they were never named publicly — kept suiting up but had cashed in their chips on a season they saw going nowhere.
Yet for a team with nothing left to play for, most of these Cowboys somehow kept finding something to play for, even until the final minute of Saturday's season-ending 20-13 loss to Iowa State at Boone Pickens Stadium.
That includes coaches who know they are likely looking for a job next month when newly hired Eric Morris assembles his staff.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut Meacham and interim defensive coordinator Clint Bowen kept the fire lit.
More: Which Oklahoma State football players should new coach Eric Morris try to keep in 2026?
“(Bowen) was talking before the game about how some coaches would just give up, but not our coaching staff,” said senior safety Parker Robertson, the posterboy for OSU’s eternal effort. “Our coaching staff showed up every day and worked like we were an 11-1 team. Props to all the coaches to keep showing up for us.”
And the players followed suit, even when the losing streak grew, ultimately ending with a 19th straight loss against Big 12 competition.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“The Arizona and Houston games, it looked kind of abysmal at times, like this thing might kind of take a nose dive here at some point,” Meacham said. “And it just didn’t do it. Then towards the end of the year, I felt like the arrow was actually pointing upward in terms of strain and play.
“I think what we did was whittle it down with the guys that really care about it, that love the process, enjoy the process, the guys that are willing to be coached and we figured out who those 30 or 40 guys were. And we, as a staff, did a good job preparing and keeping those guys in line and keeping them together.”
The result didn’t produce any wins on the scoreboard, but it kept a competitive team on the field.
Through the end of October, OSU had just one loss by fewer than 18 points — that being the 19-12 defeat to Tulsa that ended Mike Gundy’s 21-season tenure as the head Cowboy.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut in the final four games, the OSU losses were by totals of 17, eight, three and seven.
More: Which Oklahoma State football seniors will be honored vs. Iowa State?
Oklahoma State's Trent Howland (24) scores a touchdown in the first half of the college football game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Iowa State Cyclones at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday Nov. 29, 2025.“They actually excelled,” Bowen said of the team’s late-season response. “I credit our assistant coaches. They continued to battle throughout and we continued to build on them. And those kids, they weren't going to quit on each other because I think at some point in time, they embraced what it meant to be a teammate.
“I never even felt a waver in any of our kids. They focused on doing what was right and what's best.”
Years from now, the internal story of the 2025 Cowboys will be forgotten by most, and nothing more than a sidenote to others.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut for those who were invested in it, that story will never die.
“It’s easy to quit, especially with everything that’s going on,” senior receiver Terrill Davis said. “But I’m thankful for the guys that didn’t give up. They wanted this as bad as I did. I’m thankful for those people.”
Even players who had reasons for their frustration to grow stayed invested.
Senior running back Trent Howland had games in which he was a key piece of the game plan and others where he never saw the field. Yet when he got the call Saturday, he ran with the effort that has come to be expected of him, even scoring one last touchdown in his college career.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“The guys that stayed with us, day-in and day-out, we just show up,” he said. “We tried to figure out different ways to keep this team whole.
“Even though we were coming up short, we kept battling.”
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at [email protected] or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Sign up for the Oklahoma State Cowboys newsletter to access more OSU coverage. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Wins evaded Oklahoma State football, but effort never faded
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