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Notebook: Oklahoma State and Central Michigan

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I posted my 10 thoughts on OSU’s first outing of 2015 earlier but I wanted to empty my notebook of everything I observed and thought as OSU sneaked out of Mount Pleasant with win No. 1 of the season.

• The difference in announcer height for the fellows from ESPNU was flabbergasting.

Screen Shot 2015-09-04 at 1.08.41 AM

• I really enjoyed the John Bonamego story over the last few weeks. He seems like a good dude who just loves coaching football (specifically at Central Michigan). I’ll be rooting for him and them.

• Speaking of Central Michigan, Cooper Rush was kind of really good at times. He also looked like bizarro Brandon Weeden. Both in appearance and ability.

• Jason Sehorn suggested that Oklahoma State should think about changing quarterbacks at halftime. Thanks for playing, Jason.

• Players who looked a lot bigger than last year: Blake Jarwin, Darrion Daniels (because he’s a freshman) and Tre Flowers.

• While we’re here, I really love Flowers. He looks like he’s about 6’6 and hits like it delights him. I could stand for him to wrap up a bit more often, but he and Jordan Sterns are everything I want in my safeties.

• Uni notes: Mason Rudolph gets it with the half sleeves, Gyasi Akem rocking the long sleeves with “WTIB” on the sleeves is awesome and James Washington with the towel hanging out the back end is perfect. All get my stamp of approval. Also, Vincent Taylor is strangely well-uniformed for a large man.

• Per Oklahoma State, dating back to 2005, the Cowboys have won 22 consecutive games when not committing a turnover. Zero turnovers on Thursday. Also, just four penalties (although Mike Gundy said OSU needed to make fewer of them after the game).

• Hey, we have a punter. Zach Sinor averaged (!) 46.8 yards per punt. I don’t want to see him out there five times a day, but if he has to be …

• OSU’s run blocking was better, but not really elite on Thursday. Averaging 4.4 yards per carry is fine in conference play. It’s pretty mediocre against Central Michigan.

• I get the conservative play calling in the first quarter — road games against #MACtion and such — but I really wish OSU had come out with a “we don’t give a ****” swagger that teams like Baylor and Bama seem to have in irrational portions. Go deep early, run interceptions back. Leave no doubt. Alas.

• Question: The opposing team punts one into the sixth row of the stands, does Jalen McCleskey try to catch it? Answer: Absolutely, without a doubt.

• Jhajuan Seales never won’t look like Justin Blackmon to me in that 81

• Monster.

• How cool is this shot?

• This is pretty strong.

• Emmanuel Ogbah had the quietest 1.5 TFL and 1.5 sack night in the history of football. I feel like I barely even saw him and he ended up with some decent numbers. The defensive line generally didn’t get the pressure they needed to in the first half but corrected things in the locker room.

• The linebackers, on the other hand I thought, were underwhelming. It felt like every 3rd and 9 ended with a wide open catch by somebody just sitting in the middle of the field.

• I really loved how quickly the offense was running. I don’t like when that means a sideline screen is coming, but there was an urgency by Rudolph and Co. that wasn’t there with the O at any point last year.

• Walsh looked like he was going to gorge on a graduate assistant when he came in the game in the first half. Dude likes to eat and he was hungry.

• Remember the play that Central Michigan ran in the first half where half its line was lined up wide and its backup QB came in and got obliterated in the backfield? Yeah, Mike Yurcich added that puppy to the playbook before OSU got back to Stillwater.

• On that note, is Yurcich actually bad? I need somebody who goes beyond making Twitter jokes and actually understands football and the personnel (so … not me) to let me know. It doesn’t feel like he’s that great but I’m a disciple of the Dana Holgorsen school of calling plays where plays are ranked by the number of middle fingers next to their descriptions.

• How bizarre (and fortuitous) was Mason Rudolph’s Landry Jones move followed by Zach Crabtree (somehow) falling on the rock in the backfield. That could have been serious danger time if that ball had bounced the other way.

• This was awesome.

• Central Michigan receivers dropped a LOT of passes. Like, a Blake Jackson-level of dropped passes. Also, their receivers were unfathomably skinny. Do they not have a training table?

• I hate to say this, but I would have been making fun of OU and its fans if what transpired on Thursday had happened to them. 1-0 and I’ll take it, but Mike Yurcich is right.

• I’ll leave you with this.

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