STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy has had enough of the distractions that go along with this new era of college football.
There’s so much to navigate now with the transfer portal and name, image and likeness deals, and Gundy has drawn the line.
“I told the players there’s no negotiating now,” he said. “Portal’s over. All negotiation’s history. Now we’re playing football. Just coaching and playing football.”
Gundy has turned the focus to the Aug. 31 opener at home against South Dakota State.
“The business side of what we do now is, we have to have those conversations with them,” he said. “Tell your agent to quit calling us and asking for more money. It’s non-negotiable now. Start again in December.”
Gundy should be excited about football. Led by running back Ollie Gordon II, the Cowboys enter the season ranked No. 17 in the AP Top 25.
Gordon won the Doak Walker Award last season as the nation’s best running back, and he is the Big 12’s preseason offensive player of the year. He could have left, but he chose to stick around and play for a team with a significant amount of returning talent.
Oklahoma State should be a contender for the Big 12 title and a spot in the College Football Playoff.
“You can tell the team is really hungry,” Gordon said on media day. “We have a lot of returners back and we can’t be complacent. I feel like we haven’t shown any part of being complacent. We’ve all been practicing like we haven’t been here before and it’s been a really great thing.”
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