(STILLWATER, Oklahoma / March 27, 2018) – The Oklahoma State football team finished its first practice of the spring early Tuesday morning, holding a two-hour practice session at the Sherman E. Smith Training Center from 6-8 a.m.
The Cowboys donned helmets, jerseys and shorts for the opening day and stayed inside the practice facility during a cool, rainy morning in Stillwater.
Coach Mike Gundy stopped after practice to discuss the first workout and the Cowboys’ status moving into spring ball. His comments:
Coach Mike Gundy
On the first day:
“I thought it went great. Everybody was here and ready to go at 5:55. We actually didn’t start until 6, but there’s always a lot of excitement when you get to come back out and start with football. We’ve got so many new guys that I was excited to watch them coach. It was a great experience.”
On new Defensive Coordinator Jim Knowles:
“I think he’s doing good. He’s getting to know our players and obviously our coaching staff. It’s going to take him some time. When you come in and you haven’t been around the Big 12 and/or even our team – it will take him a little time to adjust and get to know everybody, but I think he’s going to be a great fit.”
On the culture at Oklahoma State:
“The culture is what makes us go. We’ve got quality young people in the organization that will step up for the departure of Mason (Rudolph) and James (Washington) and Tre (Flowers) and those guys. The young ones have seen the way they’ve handled themselves and what they’ve put into this organization. We’ve created that culture that allows us to be successful.”
On what he wants to accomplish this spring:
“Well we’ve got to find out who the guys are that need to step up and make plays this year. We know about Justice. We know about Brailford. It’s always the ‘tweeners’ – the guys that have redshirted or that didn’t play as much last year that have to step up and play 30 or 40 plays in the game – they need to establish themselves in the spring so they can have a good offseason.”
WATCH: Coach Gundy post-practice interview.
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