Mike Gundy on J.W. Walsh: ‘He’s a Hero at OSU’

I know we joke all the time about J.W. Walsh being the conquering hero of Stillwater, Oklahoma, but Mike Gundy literally used that language in his exit interview with the Tulsa World on Thursday.

“J.W. was so special to us,” said Gundy. “He had a great (senior) year. Could he have (transferred) somewhere else and started? I don’t know. J.W. is a smart guy. He knows he’s not going to play professional football. He’s a hero at OSU. He always will be. He set himself up for what he wants to do, which is coach.”

A hero!

And you can see why Gundy (and everyone) says things like that with this emotion from No. 4 after that stinging Sugar Bowl loss.

#OKstate QB J.W. Walsh's opening statement to reporters after the Sugar Bowl loss pic.twitter.com/WG6cpn2v2u

— Kyle Fredrickson (@kylefredrickson) January 3, 2016

Walsh really was great all year though. He emptied the tank. His kiss in the Superdome to the OSU faithful was perfect.

https://vine.co/v/ibq1dM6QAQT

He’ll go down like Big Country and Desmond Mason and Josh Fields before him. Not as the best ever, but as a semi-mythical figure in Oklahoma State sports history.

In his final season (most likely), J.W. Walsh, as a backup quarterback, scored a touchdown in all 13 of #okstate's games.

— Nathan Ruiz (@NathanSRuiz) January 2, 2016

Long live The General.