Kansas State opponent preview: Oklahoma State players to watch

For the fifth time this season, Drew Galloway of KSO takes a peek at a few players to watch on each side of the ball for the upcoming Kansas State opponent. Head coach Chris Klieman and the Wildcats head to Oklahoma State on Friday.

Quarterback Alan Bowman

Like with most teams, it all starts with the quarterback at Oklahoma State. The Cowboys have actually tried three different quarterbacks this season. Alan Bowman, Gunnar Gundy and Garrett Rangel have all played at different parts of the season. In fact, all three played in each of the first two games.

Which one will Kansas State see?

Bowman has now won the job outright and was the only quarterback to play for the Cowboys versus Iowa State. The senior is in his second stint in the Big 12 after playing at Texas Tech before transferring to Michigan.

This season has not gotten off to the best of starts for him. He is only completing 53 percent of his passes and has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns. K-State clearly has an advantage at that spot on the field.

Running back Ollie Gordon

Sophomore running back Ollie Gordon is probably the best skill position player for Oklahoma State. He probably isn’t being utilized enough, either. Gordon is only averaging 9.25 carries per game, but is averaging 6.2 yards per carry.

Remember, Kansas State is not only inexperienced on defense as a whole, but especially at the linebacker spot with the loss of Daniel Green for the season. Interestingly enough, that could mean more Jake Clifton in Stillwater who is a native of Oklahoma.

I would anticipate a bit more balance from the Cowboys Friday night as Gordon had a season high 18 carries against the Cyclones and had 121 yards. However, his stats against Iowa State are a bit misleading. He had 71 yards on one carry and just 50 on the other 17 attempts.

In the games prior to the conference opener, Gordon only tallied 19 total carries.

🟣 #3MAW w/ @360vodka@jlkurtz and @Cole_Manbeck are joined by Kansas State running back DJ Giddens to discuss his big performance in the Wildcats' win over UCF!

— KC Sports Network (@KCSportsNetwork) September 28, 2023

Wide receiver Jaden Bray

Another young player leading the team in multiple categories is wideout Jaden Bray. He is on top of both receptions and yards for Oklahoma State with 18 and 215, respectively. With that being said, he’s not reached the end zone.

Bray is a big-bodied receiver at 6-foot-2 and hauled in four passes for 55 yards in the Cowboys’ last contest versus Iowa State. Bray could also be a familiar name to some since K-State recruited him out of high school.

Safety Kendal Daniels

Kendal Daniels makes it three consecutive underclassmen to make the list for the Cowboys. The sophomore is the team leader in tackles with 31 and has 1.5 tackles for loss.

As a redshirt freshman last season, Daniels broke out with 71 tackles and three interceptions. For his efforts last season, he was named the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year by the coaches. Daniels was also an All-Big 12 second team pick by the coaches.

Linebacker Collin Oliver

It is interesting to note that Collin Oliver is a linebacker now after spending the last two seasons as a defensive end. In the switch to the 3-3-5 defense, Oliver has converted to linebacker like Khalid Duke did at one point for Kansas State.

Even with the switch to linebacker, Oliver has still been a productive player. He is third on the team in total tackles with 25 and leads the Cowboys in tackles for loss with five. Oliver also leads the team in forced fumbles with two.

As a freshman in 2021, Oliver had a massive season. He was No. 7 in the FBS in sacks with 11.5 and was a unanimous selection for Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year by the coaches. Last season Oliver led Oklahoma State in sacks with five and quarterback hurries with 12.

Linebacker Nickolas Martin

K-State also recruited Nickolas Martin at one time.

He played in all 13 games as a redshirt freshman last season and recorded 15 tackles while mainly playing special teams. Martin has been a regular at linebacker this season and is second on the team in tackles with 28.

He is also second on the team in tackles for a loss with four and tied for the team lead in sacks with two.

The Cowboys have really struggled getting to the quarterback and Martin is the one player providing a constant pass rush. Not only is he tied for the team lead in sacks but he leads the team in quarterback hurries with two.

Oklahoma State has only tallied five quarterback hurries in the first four games but have allowed 26.