1986 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team

The 1986 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team represented Oklahoma State University in the Big Eight Conference during the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their third season under head coach Pat Jones, the Cowboys compiled a 6–5 record (4–3 against conference opponents), finished in fourth place in the conference, and were outscored by opponents by a combined total of 191 to 181.^[1][2]

1986 Oklahoma State Cowboys football
Conference	Big Eight Conference
Record	6–5 (4–3 Big 8)
Head coach	Pat Jones (3rd season)
Offensive coordinator	Larry Coker (4th season)
Defensive coordinator	Louis Campbell (2nd season)
Home stadium	Lewis Field
Seasons ← 1985 1987 →

1986 Big Eight Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Oklahoma $	7	–	0	–	0			11	–	1	–	0
Colorado	6	–	1	–	0			6	–	6	–	0
No. 5 Nebraska	5	–	2	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
Oklahoma State	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Iowa State	3	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Missouri	2	–	5	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
Kansas State	1	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
Kansas	0	–	7	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The team's statistical leaders included Thurman Thomas with 741 rushing yards, Mike Gundy with 1,525 passing yards, and Hart Lee Dykes with 814 receiving yards and 42 points scored.^[3][4]

The team played its home games at Lewis Field in Stillwater, Oklahoma.^[5]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	at Southwestern Louisiana*	Cajun Field Lafayette, LA	W 21–20	23,144	[6]
September 13	at Tulsa*	Skelly Stadium Tulsa, OK (rivalry)	L 23–27	41,235	[7]
September 20	Houston*	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	L 12–28	38,600	[8]
September 27	Illinois State*	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	W 23–7	38,600	[9]
October 11	at No. 3 Nebraska	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	L 10–30	76,041	[10]
October 18	at No. 5 Oklahoma	Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Norman, OK (Bedlam Series)	L 0–19	76,022	[11]
October 25	Kansas	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	W 24–6	46,400	[12]
November 1	Colorado	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	L 14–31	36,900	[13]
November 8	at Kansas State	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS	W 23–3	21,270	[14]
November 22	Iowa State	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	W 21–14	34,000	[15]
December 4	Missouri	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK	W 10–6	24,000	[16]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Game summaries

At Nebraska

Oklahoma State at Nebraska

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	0	10	0	0	10
• No. 3 Cornhuskers	14	7	9	0	30

• Date: October 11, 1986
• Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
• Game attendance: 76,041

In the second ever night game at Memorial Stadium, Nebraska won for the 25th straight time over the Cowboys.

At Oklahoma

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	0	0	0	0	0
• No. 5 Sooners	3	3	3	10	19

• Date: October 18
• Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
  Norman, OK
• Game attendance: 76,022

^[17]

Roster

1986 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 11 Hart Lee Dykes So QB 12 Mike Gundy Fr RB 21 Barry Sanders Fr RB 34 Thurman Thomas Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 44 Mark Moore Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Pat Jones Coordinators/assistant coaches Larry Coker – Offensive coordinator Houston Nutt – Quarterback/Wide receivers Bill Shimek – Running backs Steve Gardner – Tight ends Brad Seely – Offensive line Louis Campbell – Defensive coordinator/defensive backs George Walstad – Defensive line Jonny Barr – Outside linebackers Kevin Steele – Linebackers Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

After the season

The 1987 NFL draft was held on April 28–29, 1987. The following Cowboy was selected.^[18]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL club
4	104	Mark Moore	Defensive back	Seattle Seahawks