Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy delivers stern message about players' focus as season kickoff nears
College football coaches and players juggle multiple responsibilities on and off the field, and the advent of the transfer portal and NIL has given athletes more to consider.
Mike Gundy will soon begin his 20th season coaching the Oklahoma State football team.
The advent of name, image and likeness (NIL) and the transfer portal has drastically shifted the college football landscape. While the changes have introduced numerous benefits for the players, they also come with some drawbacks.
Gundy is making it clear he is not fond of the distractions NIL can bring, particularly as it relates to athletes negotiating potential deals. Instead, he wants the players to focus on the game as the season looms.
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"I told the players there’s no negotiating now," he said. "Portal's over. All negotiation's history. Now, we’re playing football. Just coaching and playing football."
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The Cowboys host South Dakota State Aug. 31 to open the regular season. Gundy said the program is not willing to pick back up conversations with players' reps until later in the year.
"The business side of what we do now is, we have to have those conversations with them," he said. "Tell your agent to quit calling us and asking for more money. It’s non-negotiable now. Start again in December."
Gundy should be excited about the season. Led by running back Ollie Gordon II, the Cowboys enter the season ranked No. 17 in the AP Top 25.
Gordon won the Doak Walker Award last season as the nation's best running back, and he is the Big 12's preseason offensive player of the year. He could have left, but he chose to stick around and play for a team with a significant amount of returning talent.
Oklahoma State hopes to contend for the Big 12 title and a spot in the College Football Playoff.
"You can tell the team is really hungry," Gordon said on media day. "We have a lot of returners back, and we can’t be complacent. I feel like we haven’t shown any part of being complacent. We’ve all been practicing like we haven’t been here before, and it’s been a really great thing."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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