Sept. 13, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Rice at No. 16/17 Oklahoma State
Sat., Sept. 19 :: 6 p.m. CT :: Boone Pickens Stadium (60,218 cap.)
TV: None
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network (Dave Hunziker, John Holcomb and Robert Allen)
Internet: okstate.com
Satellite Radio: Sirius Channel 213 and XM Channel 141
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Week Three
The No. 16/17 Oklahoma State Cowboys will host their third straight game and their second straight Conference USA opponent when the Rice Owls (0-2) visit Boone Pickens Stadium Saturday night for a 6:05 p.m. kickoff. There is no live television of the game.
The Cowboys Quickly
Oklahoma State is 1-1 and coming off a 45-35 loss against the University of Houston. The Cowboys trailed 24-7 at halftime, but rallied to take two second-half leads before falling in the fourth quarter. The loss was OSU's first to an unranked opponent since 2007 (Texas A&M).
September Setup
Oklahoma State is 20-5 since 2003 when playing in September. Only once during that period (in 2007) has OSU dropped more than one game in September. The Cowboys haven't dropped two straight September games since 2000 when OSU lost consecutive games to Southern Mississippi and Texas. Under Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State is 14-4 in September.
Non-Con Numbers
Under Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State is 15-5 against non-conference competition. That record includes a 1-2 mark against Conference USA opponents.
OSU And Rice
The Cowboys lead the all-time series with Rice, 2-0-1. The first meeting took place in 1914 but the two schools have met just three times with the last coming in 1923. In the only previous Stillwater meeting, Oklahoma A&M picked up a 21-0 victory over the Owls in 1922.
Staff Ties
There are several ties between the Rice coaching staff and the Oklahoma State staff.
• Jerry Pickle serves as the Owls' director of football operations. He spent 24 years at Baylor and crossed paths with head coach Mike Gundy and co-offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Joe Wickline. Rice's Darrell Patterson was on the Baylor staff in 2002 along with Joe Wickline.
• Rice's head strength coach, Jared Kaaiohelo, is a native of Edmond and a graduate of Oklahoma Christian University.
• Rice assistant Rick LaFavers was a graduate assistant coach at Alabama when OSU defensive back Jason Jones was completing his playing career with the Crimson Tide. He also spent time at Texas A&M with OSU recruiting coordinator Johnny Barr.
• Rice's Chuck Driesbach coached at Wake Forest during OSU offensive coordinator Gunter Brewer's undergraduate days. He also coached at Ole Miss for Billy Brewer, Gunter's father.
• Rice's Ed Zaunbrecher was on the staff at Marshall with Gunter Brewer.
Polling Places
Oklahoma State remains firmly nestled in the Associated Press top 25, despite falling from its highest ranking in 24 years. The Cowboys were ranked No. 5 entering the Houston game. Following the loss, OSU checks in at No. 16 this week in AP balloting and No. 17 by the coaches.
Polling Numbers
Facts and figures regarding the Cowboys and the Associated Press poll:
• Dating back to last season, Oklahoma State has now appeared in 15 straight AP polls. It is the longest stay by the Cowboys in the national polls since the 1987 and 1988 seasons when OSU was ranked in 26 straight polls.
• The Cowboys were ranked in the AP's preseason poll for the first time since 2003 when Les Miles' eventual Cotton Bowl team was No. 24.
• OSU's debut position of No. 9 was an all-time best for the school in the preseason polls, besting the 1985 team, which was ranked No. 16. It was OSU's first-ever preseason top-10 ranking.
• When OSU reached No. 5 in the polls (Sept. 8) it was the school's highest ranking since 1985.
• Under Mike Gundy, the Cowboys are 6-5 when playing as a member of the AP top 25. Four of the five losses have come against ranked opponents and three of the five losses came to teams ranked higher than OSU. Last year, OSU's three regular-season losses were against teams ranked No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 in the AP poll at the time of the OSU game.
Three Records Fall
The season is just two weeks old, but Oklahoma State has already established three new records. OSU has broken its record for season ticket sales with more than 45,500 purchased. Last year, OSU set a new record with 39,976 season tickets. OSU also set a record with more than 11,300 student tickets sold. And OSU opened the season by establishing a new record for single-game attendance with 53,012 on hand for the Georgia game.
The Happy Returns
Oklahoma State continues to display one of the best return games in the country. Perrish Cox and Dez Bryant have now combined for eight punt/kickoff returns for touchdowns during their careers. Dez Bryant upped that number with his 82-yard punt return for a score against Houston. It was the seventh longest punt return in OSU history and the third longest in the NCAA this year. Oklahoma State has five returns for touchdowns over the last 15 games, including two kickoff returns and three punt returns. Cox is currently No. 21 nationally with a 2009 average of 29 yards per return.
The New Mark
As of Saturday, the Big 12 Conference now has a new record holder for career kickoff return yardage. With his efforts against Houston, Perrish Cox upped his total 2,300 yards to break the old mark of 2,265 held by Josh Davis of Nebraska. Cox is just 130 yards behind Brandon West of Western Michigan, who leads all active NCAA players in that category. For his career, Cox has nine career returns of more than 50 yards and his four returns for a touchdown are tied for the national lead among all active NCAA players. His 74-yard return to open the second half against Georgia led to Cowboy touchdown drive that gave OSU control of the game. Cox already holds the Big 12 record with four kickoff returns for touchdowns. He also has a punt return for a score.
Speaking Nationally
Dez Bryant, the reigning Big 12 special teams player of the year, enters the Rice game second nationally in punt returns with an average of 37 yards per attempt. His three career returns for touchdowns trails only Javier Arenas of Alabama (six) and Brandon James of Florida (four). As a team, OSU is fourth nationally in punt returns (31.75 yard average).
Sharp Start
One of the 2009 question marks entering the season was redshirt freshman Quinn Sharp stepping in to replace OSU's 2008 Ray Guy Award winner Matt Fodge. Two games into his career, Sharp has answered lots of questions.
• He currently leads the country with an average of 49.78 yards per kick.
• Sharp has punted nine times with four of those covering at least 50 yards, including a 61-yarder against Georgia.
• Of his nine punts, five have been downed inside the opponent's 20 (with only one touchback).
• Oklahoma State is fifth nationally in net punting with a 43.78-yard average.
• While handling Cowboy kickoff duties, Sharp has recorded six touchbacks on 11 tries. OSU had 13 touchbacks all of last season on 96 kickoffs.
Get A TO
The Cowboy defense has forced five turnovers through the first two games of the season. OSU has intercepted a pass in each of the first two games (one each by seniors Patrick Lavine and Terrance Anderson) while recovering three fumbles. Through the first two games of the 2008 season, the Cowboys had forced just two turnovers and were still looking for their first interception of the season. In fact, the Cowboys didn't pick off their first pass last season until the fourth game of the year against Troy.
Dez Being Dez
The Dez Bryant Show rolled on against Houston with an 82-yard punt return for a touchdown and 85 receiving yards on just five receptions. For the season, Bryant is averaging 20.2 yards per reception.
• He has 30 touchdowns in 27 career games (including punt returns).
• He is already No. 13 at OSU with 182 career points, inching past Hart Lee Dykes on Saturday.
• He has 2,264 career receiving yards and moved past Adarius Bowman and into fourth place all-time at OSU on Saturday. That yardage total is sixth among active NCAA players.
• He is second among all active NCAA players with 27 TD receptions.
• His career average of 16.4 yards per catch leads all NCAA players.
• He has scored a touchdown in five straight games and 11 touchdowns in his last seven games.
• He is eighth all-time in Big 12 history with 27 receiving touchdowns.
• Last season, Bryant became the first OSU player to lead the Big 12 in scoring with his 126 points.
Air Dez
When combining return game and his 20.2-yard average per catch, Bryant is averaging 24.3 yards per touch. His kickoff return average of 21.5 yards, actually brings down his overall average per touch from the punt and receiving totals.
