The powers that be with the Oklahoma State Cowboys had seen enough. Despite a long and mostly successful run as Cowboys football head coach, Mike Gundy has been fired.
Gundy, 58, took over the reins at Oklahoma State in 2005. He put together a 170-90 overall record and led the Cowboys to some great heights, but there were also several lows. Most recently, OSU suffered a loss to Tulsa at home, which dropped the Pokes to 1-2 on the season and likely was the straw that broke the camel’s back in Stillwater.
Offensive coordinator Doug Meacham to take over at Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State’s total offense is ranked second-worst in the Big 12 at the time of Gundy’s firing, putting up just 324.3 yards per game. In scoring offense, the Cowboys are even worse. They’re averaging just 14 points per game. For comparison’s sake, Texas Tech is putting up 52 points per contest.
The wisdom of promoting offensive coordinator Doug Meacham to interim head coach may seem a bit faulty in that light, but there is reason to believe that the Cowboys should at least give Meacham the chance to run the show for a bit. First of all, like Gundy was, Meacham is a former Cowboy. He played on the offensive line for Oklahoma State from 1983 to 1987. He was then a graduate assistant at OSU from 1989 to 1991.
Gundy’s ties to the program were part of what made him a legend, so having someone like Meacham as an option to be the next head coach could make sense. He knows Stillwater, and he knows the culture of Oklahoma State football. That’s not a small deal.
Meacham also has an interesting history in coaching. He was the tight ends and wide receivers coach under Gundy at OSU from 2005 to 2012, and he called plays and coached wideouts in stops at Houston, TCU and Kansas before making his way back to Oklahoma State to be the offensive coordinator before the 2025 season.
In 2014, Meacham was a Broyles Award finalist for what he was able to do at TCU. The Broyles Award goes to the best assistant in college football annually. TCU went 12-1 that season while averaging 46.5 points per game and 533 yards per game. Meacham was the co-offensive coordinator and wideouts coach for that squad.
Sure, there absolutely should be questions as to why Meacham hasn’t been able to get Oklahoma State’s offense going in 2025, but it would make sense for the Cowboys to give Meacham the next nine games to figure that out. Meacham is 60 years old, so he’s actually older than Gundy. Perhaps his vast experience in college football will help him replace his former head coach, though.