'We Had Really Good Practices Last Week': OSU Prepares To Take On 13th Ranked BYU On Friday

The Oklahoma State Cowboys, 3-3 on the season, are coming off their first bye week of the season. The Pokes will hit the road on Friday for their second Big 12 road test, as they take on 13th-ranked BYU in Provo, Utah.

Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy met with the media via Zoom Monday in Stillwater to discuss the bye week and preview Friday's game against the Cougars. Here are some of his comments:

 Head Coach Mike Gundy

On what the team did during the bye week:

"We did the things that I mentioned. [We] worked the fundamentals in all three phases. We had really good practices last week and then we had a good workout last night, not really a practice but we got them back together and had a workout last night. We just stressed the things that we feel like we need to get accomplished. We need to be a better run-fit defense, minimize a few of the big plays that we've gotten and then continue to work offensively in rushing the football and being good at our basic play-action passes, which we've worked on from day one. So, there wasn't any big mystery or any big secret to what we tried to get accomplished, just good quality work."

On the state of the team:

"As I mentioned last week, they've been really good. Obviously, they want to win and have success, but I watch their willingness to compete in practice, their attentiveness in meetings and practice, and it's been good. Like I said, they were really good last week. I think that the maturity does help us. I think they understand and they can see where we've been deficient in certain areas and ways to improve that to give ourselves a chance to win the game."

On BYU:

"They're having a great year. Kalani [Sitake]'s doing a great job. They've very mature. They're getting really, really good quarterback play, in my opinion, and they have good players. I think they've got probably three or four guys that are going to get drafted on the team, just what I see from the naked eye. Now, I don't follow up on any of that, but they've got a good team. They're mature. They're playing with confidence. The quarterback's playing really good at this time and they're getting good pass rush. They get good pressure on the quarterback with four-man rush."

On if playing in the altitude will present any challenges:

"I'm sure there could be issues with altitude, these guys now have nutritionists, and we have vitamins and such, things we give them to try and keep their oxygen levels at a high. BYU does not play in a tempo offense, which I think could be a bigger factor, that's not been their history. I don't really feel like that'll be an issue. I've never played there, I've been to Provo a couple of times, but I've never played there. I don't feel like it'll be an issue, in my opinion, with the altitude."

On how Sean Snyder coaches the special teams:

"It's not really more complicated, I just think there's greater detail in the technique that we use. It does take some time and repetition obviously is going to make us all better. I'm seeing the continued repetition in the same areas start to pay some dividends for our team."