Could there be more changes happening in the state of Oklahoma?
The school’s board of regents met Friday morning and is reportedly at an “impasse” with coach Mike Gundy, according to ESPN.
Sources: Mike Gundy is in a standoff with Oklahoma State. He tells people they have come to him and asked him to take a restructured contract, which is expected to include a pay cut. But they haven’t given him any details yet. pic.twitter.com/rCXlHRQ29b
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 6, 2024
Oklahoma State went 3-9 in 2024. It was the worst season of Gundy’s twenty-year tenure. After the board meeting on Friday, Chairman Jimmy Harrel said “we have a plan.” The board was in executive session Friday for “information relevant to the employment of Oklahoma State University football personnel.”
According to multiple reports, Oklahoma State will offer a restructured contract for Gundy. According to ESPN, Gundy could be fired for cause if he doesn’t accept the deal.
According to USA Today’s salary database, Gundy is the 17th highest-paid coach in college football on an annual basis with total compensation of more than $7.7 million. His buyout is just over $25.3 million. If he is fired for cause, Oklahoma State can argue that Gundy is not owed anything from the buyout.
Oklahoma State recently fired both its offensive and defensive coordinators after a dismal season. Oklahoma State’s offense was plagued by turnovers and the defense allowed nearly seven yards per play and 36 points per game.
The porous season came just a year after the Cowboys played Texas for the Big 12 title and won 10-4. Oklahoma State opened the season as the favorite in the Big 12, but went 0-9 in Big 12 play. RB Ollie Gordon rushed for more than 850 fewer yards in 2024 than he did in 2023, when he finished seventh in the Heisman voting.
Gundy also didn’t do himself any favors when he had to apologize “to those who offended my comments during Monday’s media call” for comments in November about fan criticism. Because OSU was 0-6 in the Big 12, Gundy said that “most people are weak” when things don’t go well and even went so far as to say “in most cases the people who are negative and their opinions express the same ones who can’t pay their own bills.”
Oklahoma State had gone to 18 straight bowl games under Gundy in a streak dating back to his sophomore season. The school’s three wins were its fewest since a 3-8 season in 2000.
