List of Oklahoma State Cowboys head football coaches

A man wearing sunglasses and a gray suit with a patterned red tie looking over his right shoulder
Current head coach Mike Gundy

The Oklahoma State Cowboys football program is a college football team that represents Oklahoma State University–Stillwater. The team has had 23 head coaches since organized football began in 1901[1] with the nickname Aggies. The team played without a head coach until 1905. The university, then known as Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College, was renamed Oklahoma State University in 1957 and its nickname was changed to Cowboys.[2][3] The Cowboys have played in more than 1,000 games during their 122 seasons. In those seasons, eight coaches have led the Cowboys to postseason bowl games: Jim Lookabaugh, Cliff Speegle, Jim Stanley, Jimmy Johnson, Pat Jones, Bob Simmons, Les Miles and Mike Gundy. Six coaches have won conference championships with the Cowboys: John Maulbetsch, Lynn Waldorf, Lookabaugh, Jennings B. Whitworth, Stanley, and Gundy. Lookabaugh also won a national championship with the Cowboys.

Gundy is the all-time leader in games coached (245), wins (166) and years coached (19), while Waldorf is the all-time leader in winning percentage (.735). Theodore Cox finished his career with a .250 winning percentage, the worst in team history. Of the 23 Cowboy coaches, Maulbetsch, Waldorf, Exendine, and Johnson have been inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame. Three coaches are also graduates of the university: Lookabaugh, Floyd Gass, and Gundy.[4] The first coach was F. A. McCoy, who coached only one season, in 1905. The current coach, Mike Gundy, was hired in January 2005.[5]

Key

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Head coaches

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Statistics correct as of the end of the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season
# Picture Name Term GC OW OL OT O% CW CL CT C% PW PL PT CCs NCs National awards
1 F. A. McCoy 1905 7 1 4 2 .286
2 Boyd Hill 1906–1907 15 2 9 4 .267
3 Ed Parry 1908 8 4 4 0 .500
4 Paul J. Davis 1909–1914 45 28 16 1 .633
5 John G. Griffith 1915–1916 18 8 9 1 .472 0 6 0 .000
6 Earl A. Pritchard 1917–1918 15 8 7 0 .533 1 4 0 0.200
7 Jim Pixlee 1919–1920 16 3 10 3 .281 0 5 0 .000
8 John Maulbetsch 1921–1928 70 27 37 6 .429 10 13 3 0.442 1
9 Pappy Waldorf 1929–1933 51 34 10 7 .735 9 1 0 0.900 3
10 Albert Exendine 1934–1935 20 7 12 1 .375 1 4 0 0.200
11 Ted Cox 1936–1938 30 7 23 0 .233 3 8 0 0.273
12 Jim Lookabaugh 1939–1949 105 58 41 6 .581 19 10 1 0.650 2 1 0 3 1–1945
13 Jennings B. Whitworth 1950–1954 51 22 27 2 .451 11 9 1 0.548 1
14 Cliff Speegle 1955–1962 81 36 42 3 .463 9 19 1 0.328 1 0 0
15 Phil Cutchin 1963–1968 59 19 38 2 .339 14 26 1 0.354
16 Floyd Gass 1969–1971 32 13 18 1 .422 7 14 0 0.333 1969 Big 8 Coach of the Year[8]
17 Dave Smith 1972 11 7 4 0 .636 4 3 0 0.571
18 Jim Stanley 1973–1978 68 35 31 2 .529 19 21 2 0.476 1 1 0 1
19 Jimmy Johnson 1979–1983 57 29 25 3 .535 18 15 2 0.543 1 1 0
20 Pat Jones 1984–1994 125 62 60 3 .508 30 44 3 0.409 3 1 0
21 Bob Simmons 1995–2000 68 30 38 0 .441 16 31 0 0.340 0 1 0 Big 12 Coach of the Year (1997)[9]
22 Les Miles 2001–2004 49 28 21 .571 16 16 0.500 1 2
23 Mike Gundy 2005–present 245 166 77 .678 102 63 0.618 12 6 1

Big 12 Coach of the Year (2010, 2021, 2023)[10] Paul "Bear" Bryant Award (2011)[11] Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award (2011)[12]

Notes

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  1. ^ A running total of the number of coaches of the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Thus, any coach who has two or more separate terms as head coach is counted only once.
  2. ^ Oklahoma State did not join a conference until 1915.
  3. ^ Overtime rules in college football were introduced in 1996, making ties impossible in the period since.[6]
  4. ^ When computing the win–loss percentage, a tie counts as half a win and half a loss.[7]

Notes

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References

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General
  • "2021 Oklahoma State Football Media Guide" (PDF). Oklahoma State University Athletics. 2021. p. 206. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 11, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  • "Oklahoma State Coaching Records". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on February 16, 2010. Retrieved November 24, 2009.
Specific
  1. ^ Rhoden, William (August 6, 1989). "Fatal attraction: Oklahoma and football". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2010.
  2. ^ "OSU History". Oklahoma State University–Stillwater. June 14, 2006. Archived from the original on May 27, 2010. Retrieved December 10, 2009.
  3. ^ "Battle of backcourts in East Rutherford". NBC Sports. The Associated Press. March 27, 2004. Archived from the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved December 10, 2009.
  4. ^ "Mike Gundy – Profile". OKState.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2010. Retrieved January 19, 2009. Gundy is just the third Oklahoma State graduate to assume the head coaching duties in Stillwater. Jim Lookabaugh (1939–49) and Floyd Gass (1969–71) were the others.
  5. ^ "Gundy to fill Miles' shoes at Oklahoma State". USA Today. The Associated Press. January 3, 2005. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2009. Oklahoma State promoted offensive coordinator Mike Gundy to head coach Monday...
  6. ^ Whiteside, Kelly (August 25, 2006). "Overtime system still excites coaches". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 6, 2010. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  7. ^ Finder, Chuck (September 6, 1987). "Big plays help Paterno to 200th". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
  8. ^ "Floyd Gass – Obituaries/Death Notices". NewsOk.com. March 6, 2006. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
  9. ^ "Willingham shakes up staff at Washington". USA Today. The Associated Press. December 18, 2007. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved January 25, 2010.
  10. ^ "Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy named Big 12 Coach of the Year". www.fox23.com. November 29, 2023. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
  11. ^ "Gundy wins Bryant Award as top college coach". ESPN.com. January 20, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
  12. ^ "Okla. St.'s Gundy wins Eddie Robinson Award". ESPN.com. December 15, 2011. Retrieved August 24, 2024.
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