Doug Meacham faces daunting task as Oklahoma State's interim head coach

But for all the talk about Oklahoma State’s past and the upcoming coaching search, the Cowboys still have a season to play. Meacham is getting thrown right into the fire — Oklahoma State (1-2, 0-0 Big 12) hosts Baylor (2-2, 0-1) on Saturday as the Cowboys start the process of trying to salvage their season.

“You have an option,” Meacham said Wednesday. “You can dig in and bear down and fight through it and work, or you can complain and just let it roll you over. We’re not taking that approach. We’re going to fight.”

Meacham, 60, has quite the resume. He was a finalist for the Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant coach in 2014, when he was TCU's offensive coordinator. During his second run as an assistant at TCU, he helped the Horned Frogs reach the national championship game following the 2022 season. He's been offensive coordinator at Kansas and Houston, among other stops.

All that might not be enough preparation for the task ahead.

Starting quarterback Hauss Hejny broke his left foot in the season-opening win over UT Martin, and the offense has struggled ever since with Zane Flores at the controls. The Cowboys rank 132nd of 134 teams in scoring offense with just 14 points per game.

On the other side of the ball, a defense that is among the nation’s worst against the pass will now face Baylor and one of the nation’s most electric passing attacks. Baylor quarterback Sawyer Robertson ranks second in the nation in yards passing (1,070) and third in passing touchdowns (10).

Then, there is the mental aspect. The Cowboys were humiliated in a 69-3 loss at Oregon. Last week’s loss to Tulsa was the final straw for Oklahoma State athletic director Chad Weiberg.

So far, Meacham said his team is handling the shake-up well and has moved past the recent games.

“Hats off to these kids — they came out with a good attitude, and they practiced hard today,” he said. “As coaches, you can sense bad body language and people who are going off and holding court somewhere by themselves and that type of thing. I don’t feel any of that.”

Meacham has mental hurdles, too — he’s replacing a longtime friend and a former teammate at Oklahoma State in the 1980s.

“I owe a lot to coach Gundy,” Meacham said. “He’s hired me twice, played with him — legendary coach. Unfortunately, in this business, that’s kind of the things that happen. When you do it long enough, it’s going to happen. Unfortunately for us, it had to be at this time. I learned a lot from him and appreciate everything he’s done for me in my life and in my career.”

Still, Meacham appreciates the opportunity to be head coach, and he’s thankful it came at his alma mater.

“I’m just thinking one game at a time and just appreciative that Weiberg thought enough of me to give me the opportunity,” he said. “And I’m just glad to be here with these guys, because they work so hard. I’m just so lucky.”

There have been a few signs that perhaps improvement is possible. Hejny is on the mend and that could help. Meacham was an offensive coach at TCU last season, where Hejny was last season before transferring.

“He’ll probably be back here in the next few weeks,” Meacham said. “He’ll be on his feet next week, I believe, walking and doing some things and trying to get back. He wants to play.”

Flores improved in the second half against Tulsa and put the team in position to potentially steal the game late. Meacham hopes the fight the Cowboys showed late in that game carries over, and he wants the fans to come along.

“Just hang in there and join the fight with us,” he said. “More than anything, you’ve got kids that are fighting hard, and just support them, no matter how upset you are, how things are going on. Think about these kids. That’s my message to the fans.”

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