Mike Gundy may have suffered a stunning defeat to BYU Friday night, but the veteran head coach couldn’t deny being impressed by what he saw at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
“They know how to do a game-day atmosphere, I’ll give them credit,” Gundy told reporters following his team’s 38-35 loss. “They do it great. (BYU) is a great addition to our conference. They made a very, very good game-day environment.
“Their student section, they do a great job. They did a great job with the (drone) show, it was really impressive. But I thought our guys handled (the road environment) really well.”
Now in his 20th season at the helm of the Cowboys, Gundy had never coached a game in Provo prior to Friday.
His Oklahoma State squad appeared to have conquered the Cougars, only for Jake Retzlaff to connect with Darius Lassiter for a go-ahead, 35-yard touchdown with 10 seconds remaining to preserve BYU’s unbeaten status and hand Gundy a fourth-consecutive Big 12 loss.
“(Retzlaff) hit a guy (with a pass) and we missed three or four tackles, and (Lassiter) scored a touchdown,” Gundy said of the Cougars’ late miracle. “I wish we would have got him down, but the quarterback made a couple plays. He’s a good player.”
Gundy also offered some kind words for BYU head coach Kalani Sitake, who he had chatted with on the field for more than 10 minutes during pregame warmups.
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“He and I are good friends, I have a lot of respect for him and his family,” Gundy said of Sitake. “He and I have good conversations, we enjoy having a professional relationship. We’re able to spend time together in the offseason … I have a lot of respect for him and for BYU football.”
Though BYU is 7-0 and a legitimate contender for the Big 12 crown, Gundy believes the league’s entropy has made the championship race much more complex, but also that the conference’s future is as bright as ever.
“I’ve said it for a couple years, I’ve said it this summer and I’ll say it again: any team in this league is vulnerable any day,” Gundy said.
“There are guys in this conference that know how to coach football. There are players in this conference that know how to play. Based on how the ball bounces and a turnover or two, just about anybody can beat anybody.
“… The teams that we have brought into our conference have made the Big 12 a really, really good conference. I am excited for the long-term future of this league with the new teams we brought in.”
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