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How 15 Minutes of Downtime a Day Has Changed OSU’s Season

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What can you do in 15 minutes? Actually the question is probably, what can you not do in 15 minutes if you’re Oklahoma State? For Mike Gundy, this season, the answer is “practice.”

Gundy has long been on the cutting edge of tapering practice time and limiting hits on Sunday-Friday to keep his teams fresh for Saturdays. It’s a big deal to him, and it has seemed to be something that works. He said on Saturday he has taken that to the next level this year.

“Last year we got beat up and got a little tired,” said Gundy on Saturday. “But we also didn’t play very well. We got out of position last year. We got out of position against good teams which makes it really bad. We’ve adjusted our practice routine this year. We’re considerably less overall. I think it paid off for us today.

“Actual on-field time … we’re about 14 hours less of actual on-field practice time cumulative now than we were this time last year. Now you say, ‘it doesn’t seem like a lot.’ Well it does if it’s 15 minutes a day, four days a week. You add it up give or take and we’re about 14 hours less on the field. Knock on wood, it’s helped us from an injury standpoint. And our players seem like they’re fresh. But their attitude is tremendous.”

This is very smart, and it does seem like it has added up. Of course OSU is also facing fewer plays per game on defense this year than last year and not playing those insane 100-play games like it did in 2015. Through 11 games in 2016, OSU’s defense has faced 76 plays per game. Through 11 games in 2015, it had faced 79 a game.

Combine this with the practice time with the fact that, let’s be honest, OSU has gotten a little lucky with injuries this season (and it is also a deeper unit on defense), and now you’re on the precipice of your second Big 12 title in six seasons.

Mike Gundy: time-management guru. Who knew?

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