Stewart Mandell Thinks Mike Gundy Is A Clown

We’ll never shy away from taking a shot at Oklahoma State here at the Machine but I don’t know that we’ve ever massed an onslaught like SI.com’s Stewart Mandell. In his College Football Mailbag Mandell’s response to a question from an Oklahoma State fan as to why the Cowboys aren’t getting any love as an up-and-comer in 2008 was that Mike Gundy is a clown, the Cowboys are horrible on defense and Mike Gundy is a clown.

Why is it that the media is practically ignoring Oklahoma State? This team was so balanced last year they had exactly 3,161 yards rushing and passing. QB Zac Robinson had 2,824 yards throwing the ball and 847 yards running the ball. Do you feel OSU has a chance to be a dark horse and win the Big 12?
-- James White, Stillwater, Okla.

First of all, it says something about the preponderance of dual-threat quarterbacks in the game today that Robinson has managed to remain largely under the radar despite a season like that. Five years ago we would have been going nuts over a player with those kind of numbers (he also completed 60 percent of his passes and posted a 23-to-9 touchdown-to-interception ratio). Instead, he takes a distant backseat to guys like Tim Tebow, Pat White and Dan LeFevour.

Speaking for myself, there are two reasons I'm not giving much consideration to the Cowboys. For one, their defense last year was every bit as awful as their offense was spectacular, ranking 112th nationally against the pass and 101st overall. But mostly, there's the inescapable reality is that their head coach, Mike Gundy, is a complete clown.

I know what you're going to say. I'm only ripping Gundy because of his infamous "I'm a Man!" tirade last year. ... Well, yeah. Whether or not you agreed with the content, I can't imagine anyone who watched that charade -- which I presume is all of you -- came away from it thinking: "That's a guy I'd want leading my team." (Unless, of course, your team at the time was coached by Bill Callahan or Karl Dorrell.) Gundy is certifiably nuts. He's like the Ed Orgeron of the Big 12. And he's got a 18-19 record to his name. What possible evidence is there to suggest that one of his teams should ever be taken seriously?

It appears that Gundy is still paying the price among the national media for his tantrum in response to the Daily Oklahoman’s Jenni Carlson’s view of quarterback Bobby Reid as a chicken licking mamma’s boy who wasn’t mentally tough enough for Big 12 football.

Will we ever look back as this being the beginning of the end for Gundy?

The problem for Gundy, other than berating a woman in a crowded room and in front of a television camera, is that it appears that Jenny Carlson was right in what she wrote. Reid has since transferred out, blaming his troubles at O-State on Gundy and calling him a liar.

None of this helps Gundy save face and another .500 or worse regular season is sure to have the media firing back. Well, more than they already are.  

Going out on a limb gets really messy when the limb breaks.

The hope that the “I’m a Man” speech would go away in `08 has faded and the reality has to be setting in that this is going to hang over Mike Gundy’s head for a long, long time.