Cowboys know Justice Hill needs more carries

STILLWATER — Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich knows the numbers, and he doesn’t like them.

Forty-six carries through four games for his star running back, Justice Hill.

“That’s not enough for a great player,” Yurcich said. “Gotta be more touches.”

Hill has been productive behind sketchy offensive line play. He has 388 rushing yards and five touchdowns, averaging 97.0 yards per game and 8.4 per carry. Yet he has averaged only 11.5 rushing attempts per game.

Hill had 111 yards on 12 carries in last week’s loss against Texas Tech, but seven of his 12 carries went for 3 yards or less. He also had two receptions for minus-2 yards.

Nine of Hill’s rushes came in the first half, when OSU initially took a 17-14 lead before falling behind 24-17 at the break. Texas Tech took a two-touchdown lead in the third quarter.

“We got behind in the third quarter, and that didn’t help,” OSU coach Mike Gundy said. “If we were able to go back and do it again, you’d like to have pumped it to him about 18 times in that game.

“When you get behind late in the third quarter, you’ve got to start saving clock, but sure would like to have him touch it a few more times.”

Clint Bowen has Kansas defense improving

Clint Bowen’s coaching career at Kansas has spanned nearly the entire spectrum of possibilities.

A native of Lawrence, Kansas, who played defensive back for the Jayhawks from 1991-94, Bowen is in his 20th overall year on the coaching staff. He got his start as a defensive graduate assistant in 1996.

He has coached nearly every position group on both sides of the ball, served as special teams coordinator and briefly in 2014, as interim head coach. Now, he’s the team’s associate head coach, while serving his second stint as defensive coordinator.

The Jayhawks are second in the Big 12 in points allowed, giving up 18.3 per game, though the schedule hasn’t been incredibly challenging.

“They try to bring guys off the edge and corral the middle of the field,” Gundy said. “They force the ball outside and rally to make tackles.”

Homecoming game vs. Texas sold out

Oklahoma State’s Oct. 27 Homecoming game against Texas is officially a sellout, according to the Oklahoma State Athletics Twitter account.

The kickoff time for the game will not be known until at least mid-October.

For OSU, the game will follow a bye week, setting up a challenging final five weeks of the regular season that includes a home game against West Virginia and road trips to Baylor, Oklahoma and TCU.

Tickets are still available for purchase through secondary markets, including vividseats.com.