TULSA - OKLAHOMA STATE GAME PREVIEW

Defense surveys the San Jose State offense

TULSA - OKLAHOMA STATE GAME PREVIEW

9/13/2019 10:06:00 AM | Football

Tulsa Hosts OSU in Bank of Oklahoma Turnpike Classic

GAME 3: TULSA (1-1, 0-0 American) vs. OKLAHOMA STATE (2-0, 0-0 Big 12)
Date/Time:	Saturday, Sept. 14, 2:35 p.m. (CT)
Site:	Tulsa, Oklahoma
Stadium:	Skelly Field at H.A. Chapman Stadium (30,000)
Coaches:	TULSA – Philip Montgomery (Tarleton State '95), 5th year OKLAHOMA STATE – Mike Gundy (OSU '90), 15th year
TV:	ESPN 2
Talent:	Beth Mowins (pxp), Anthony Becht (analyst), Rocky Boiman (sidelines)
Tickets:	Purchase TIckets
Radio:	Big Country 99.5 FM or Online
Talent:	Bruce Howard (pxp), Rick Couri (analyst), Jeremie Poplin (sidelines)
Live Stats:	Live Stats
Series:	OSU leads 40-27-5
First Meeting:	Oct. 16, 1914 (OSU, 13, Tulsa 6), Stillwater, Okla.
Last Meeting:	Aug. 31, 2017 (OSU 59, Tulsa 24), Stillwater, Okla.
Game Notes:	Tulsa (PDF) \| Oklahoma State (PDF) \| American Athletic Conference (PDF)

The 73^rd meeting in the Bank of Oklahoma Turnpike Classic between Tulsa and Oklahoma State makes its way to H.A. Chapman Stadium this Saturday.

The 2:30 p.m. game, televised on ESPN2, will be played on a sun-filled day with temperatures expected to top out at 90-degrees. The series has been relatively tight through the years, but OSU has held dominance in the recent past as the Cowboys are riding a series-high 6-game winning streak.

Many are anxious to see the matchup between the powerful OSU offensive attack and what has been a pretty stingy Tulsa defense. But, this OSU offense is at another level with its ability to run and pass the ball equally effective.

The OSU offense has been dominant and explosive in its opening two games, ranking among the top-10 for total offense with 567.5 yards per game and for scoring with 54 points per game.

Red-shirt freshman Spencer Sanders got the call at quarterback for the Cowboys in the season opener and has responded by completing 74 percent of his passes for 453 yards and 6 TDs and running for another 80 yards per game in two games.

Chuba Hubbard is just another in a long line of great OSU running backs as the sophomore averages 136.0 yards leading the Cowboys run game that averages just under 260 yards per game. OSU has also had its share of outstanding receivers and this year is no different as 6'0" junior preseason All-American Tylan Wallace has been one of the nation's top receivers through the first two games.

When you talk about what makes a receiver explosive, Wallace checks all the boxes. He has 272 receiving yards and 5 TDs on just 10 receptions in OSU's two games.

The Cowboys offensive front stands 6'5", 304 pounds and has 87 career starts, led by senior left guard Marcus Keyes' 39 career starts.

The Hurricane defense has held its first two opponent – #18 Michigan State and San Jose State – to an average of 325 yards per game, including 111 on the ground and 214 through the air. Tulsa has averaged 6.5 TFLs a game, but has not been able to capitalize on takeaways, forcing only one turnover in 8 quarters,

Upfront, senior end Trevis Gipson has been a menace as 4.5 of his 8 total tackles have resulted in tackles for lost yardage. Joining Gipson on the line in Tulsa's 3-3-5 alignment is sophomore nose guard Jaxon Player and senior tackle Shemarr Robinson.

Tyarise Stevenson, Cullen Wick, Deven Lamp and Anthony Goodlow have received quality minutes in helping keep a fresh group of linemen on the field for the Hurricane.

The Tulsa linebacker corps is one of the top units in the American Athletic Conference, not to mention the country. Senior MIKE linebacker Cooper Edmiston leads the Hurricane in tackles with 19 stops on the year, while last season he was the team leader for tackles (113), interceptions (4) and fumble recoveries (4). WILL linebacker Zaven Collins was named Freshman All-America by USA Today and the FWAA after totaling 85 tackles and a team-high 9.5 TFLs. He has tallied 13 tackles this year, while senior Diamon Cannon mans the STAR position as the starter for a second straight year.

Reserves Yohance Burnett, Treyvon Reeves and Robert Revels III have each seen significant playing time in their careers at linebacker.

Tulsa's secondary is long and athletic and returned 40 starts among eight players – corners Reggie Robinson II, Akayleb Evans and Allie Green, safeties Manny Bunch and Brandon Johnson as well as nickel safeties Bryson Powers, TieNeal Martin and Cristian Williams.

Bunch leads the way in tackles with 16, while Johnson has 14 stops and 2 pass-break-ups. The corners – Evans, Green and Robinson – have combined for 16 tackles and 4 PBUs.

While the Cowboys offense has put points on the board in rapid fire fashion, the Cowboys defense has been effective against the opposition. OSU has held its opponents to averages of 383 yards and 25 points in the first two games.

A revamped defensive front has seen each of the four linemen starting their first two career games this season. Among those four, two are Tulsa-area high school talents, including end Brock Martin from Oologah and Bixby's Brendon Evers at one of the tackle spots.

The linebacker corps for the Cowboys is active and physical with a pair of juniors in the starting lineup – Malcolm Rodriguez from local Wagoner High School and Canadian import Amen Ogbongbemiga. The duo leads the way for the OSU defense with 20 and 17 tackles, respectively. Ogbongbemiga has a team-high 3.5 TFLs for 21 yards and 2 sacks for -19 yards.

The OSU secondary seems to always be talented and physical and this year is led by corners Rodarius Williams and A.J. Green, as well as safeties Tre Sterling and Kolby Harvell-Peel. Williams has garnered 13 tackles, while Sterling has 10 stops and 2 pass break-ups on the season.

Tulsa's young offense made significant strides last week in a 34-16 win over San Jose State, but this week the Hurricane will have to be even more productive offensively.

The strength of the Hurricane offense last year was its run game with the duo of Shamari Brooks and Corey Taylor II, as the pair combined for 1,813 yards and 18 touchdowns. Last week, Brooks had his 9^th career 100+ rushing game with 140 yards, while a newcomer on the scene, TK Wilkerson, joined in with 92 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Zach Smith is settling into the role of starting quarterback. Last week, Smith completed 75-percent of his passes for 283 yards and one TD.

His two main targets have been sophomore Sam Crawford, who caught 9 passes for a career-best 137 yards last week, and junior Keylon Stokes, who has 8 receptions for 100 yards this season. Stokes led the Hurricane in receiving yards with 575 yards on 41 receptions in 2018, while senior Keenen Johnson totaled 438 yards a year ago.

Tulsa's young offensive front came into the season with just 27 career starts after losing three starters who started 128 games. The line is led by senior left tackle Chris Ivy, Jr. and sophomore left guard Chris Paul, who have combined for 24 of the entire starting offensive linemen's 28 combined starts. Center Gerard Wheeler and right guard Dante Bivens made their first career starts last week, while right tackle X'Zauvea Gadlin has started both contests this year.

Tickets are still available for the game. Fans can call 918.631.GoTU (4688) or go online at TulsaHurriane.com. The TU ticket office also opens Saturday morning from 9-12 pm, and stadium gates and ticket booths will open at 1:00 p.m.