West Virginia is preparing to face Oklahoma State this weekend, as they look to bounce back from a tough loss to Houston last Thursday.
Oklahoma State is riding a lot of positive momentum into Saturday afternoon’s contest, having won two straight, with both wins being over ranked teams. The first of the two was a 29-21 win over Kansas State and the second was a 39-32 win over Kansas. The Cowboys are 4-2 on the year and 2-1 in the Big 12.
Offense
Oklahoma State identifies the most with their running game. The Cowboys have running back Ollie Gordon who is sixth in the Big 12 in yards per game with 89. Gordon has 87 carries for 534 yards on the year and four touchdowns. He also has 17 catches for 180 yards and a score.
At quarterback, they are led by Alan Bowman, who has completed 57 percent of his passes for four touchdowns, and three interceptions. He has thrown for 1,084 yards and added 10 yards and a score on the ground this year.
Bowman is most successful on underneath routes, as on passes behind the line of scrimmage or from 0-9 yards, he is completing 81 percent for 663 yards and two scores. On passes that travel 10 arm ore yards, he has a 37 percent completion percentage, for 421 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions.
Bowman has two targets in Jaden Bray and Brennan Presley. Bray has 23 catches for 296 yards, while Presley has 27 catches for 217 yards and three touchdowns. He also has four carries for 22 yards and a touchdown as well.
On the offensive line, the left side is where WVU will want to attack when trying to get after Bowman. Left tackle Dalton Cooper has a 69.6 pass block grade per Pro Football Focus, and left guard Jason Brooks has a 58.9 pass block grade.
Defense
On defense, the Cowboys have been most successful getting after the quarterback as well as forcing interceptions.
In their last two wins, Oklahoma State has forced five interceptions. The combination of Nickolas Martin and Collin Oliver are some of the best in the Big 12 at tackling. Martin is second in the Big 12 in tackles, third in TFL’s, and sixth in sacks. Oliver is right behind him at fifth in the Big 12 in TFL, and ninth in sacks.
Oklahoma State is really good on fourth down as well, as they have a 25 percent conversion rate which is tops in the Big 12. Cameron Epps is the best on Oklahoma State’s defense in interceptions with two this year.
