HOME-FIELD DISADVANTAGE?
We examine OSU's struggles as a home favorite in the last three years
STILL WATER—The betting line opened favoring Oklahoma State by 5.5 points and has gradually slid to 2.5, but the situation hasn't changed.
The Cowboys are in a spot that hasn't been friendly to them in the last three seasons: playing at home against a Big 12 team they're expected to beat.
The Pokes take on TCU at
2:30 p.m. Saturday at Boone Pick ens Stadium ass light favorites. And OSU is likely to again be favored against Kansas in two weeks.
In each of the previous two seasons, OSU has lost at least two Big 12 games as a home favorite: Texas Tech and Iowa State last year, and TCU and Kansas State in 2017. The Cowboys were favored in their loss to Baylor earlier this year.
During that same span, OSU has won as a home favorite against Baylor and Kansas in 2017, and Kansas State earlier this year. The Pokes' only home wins in Big 12 play last season were as underdogs against Texas and West Virginia.
With three wins in their last eight conference games as home favorites, it's hard to know what to expect from the Cowboys on Saturday against a TCU team that has shown spotty improvement and flashes of talent, highlighted by last week's 37-27 win over Texas.
At 5-3 overall this season, the Cowboys need to build on the momentum from last week's road upset of Iowa State, and that begins with attacking the unfavorable trend as home favorites.
“Sounds like I need to pick up point-shaving for a side job,” OSU coach Mike Gundy joked when asked about the trend Monday. “I wasn't aware of that, because I never know what this spread is.
“If I knew (how to change it), I would have already done it.”
The home struggles have been a point of frustration for the Cowboys. The unexpected losses to TCU and Kansas State in 2017 were thorns in the side of a team that still won 10 games.
Last year's roller-coaster s eason was inexplicably strange in its own right.
These Cowboys want to end the frustrations now. The Big 12 standings have become a jumbled mess, and OSU is one game out of third place with home games against TCU and Kansas, and a road trip to West Virginia leading up to the regular-season finale against Oklahoma in Stillwater.
First-year offensive coordi nator Sean Gleeson is doing his part to change the Cowboys' mindset.
“Coach Gleeson told us last week to go into each week like we're 0-0,” senior center Johnny Wilson said. “I think that's helping the guys really forget about the past games and focus on the game we have coming up.
“It's frustrating, but we can't really dwell on it. We get that Sunday after the game to look at everything, and then we forget about it. It's good for us to get that mental stress off, and focus on the next team.”
“Coach Gleeson told us last week to go into each week like we're 0-0. I think that's helping the guys really forget about the past games and focus on the game we have coming up.”
Senior center Johnny Wilson