Sports

Mike Gundy Backtracks After Calling Oklahoma State Poor As Dan Lanning Proves Money Isn’t Everything

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Mike Gundy and Dan Lanning speak before a football game between Oklahoma State and Oregon.

© Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images


Mike Gundy went viral for his comments on NIL ahead of Oklahoma State’s Week 2 matchup against Oregon. He noted the large disparity in spending between the two schools.

Dan Lanning responded with a jab at Gundy, essentially saying that the head coach had called the Cowboys poor. He then ran up the score in a non-conference showdown to further embarrass his counterpart.

The Ducks are one of college football’s top spenders. They are believed to have an unlimited bankroll funded by Nike founder and alum Phil Knight.

Last year, Oregon was said to have paid upwards of $23 million for the roster – the most of any program in the country. Oklahoma State is not on that level.

Mike Gundy called the Cowboys poor.

“I think Oregon spent close to $40 [million] last year alone,” he said before kickoff. “So, that was just one year. Now, I might be off a few million… Oregon is paying a lot, a lot of money for their team. From a nonconference standpoint, there’s coaches saying they should [play teams with similar budgets].”

Gundy noted that the Cowboys spent “around $7 million” over the last three years combined. His budget is not the same. Lanning fired back at the comments soon thereafter.

Gundy says Oregon has more resources than Oklahoma State. That doesn’t appear to be a debate. Still, the Ducks used it as motivation in a blowout win.

Lanning packaged the comments as a slight. He suggested that Gundy was insinuating that Oregon players only attend the school for a paycheck. He then made sure to let the head coach know that it wasn’t actually the case.

“I felt like our guys wanted the chance to go prove who they are,” he said after a 69-3 shellacking. His team takes pride in representing the university. They are rewarded with NIL pay.

He also noted that spending wasn’t the only thing that draws recruits to Eugene. He singled out leading tackler Bryce Boettcher, who came to Oregon as a walk-on.

Boettcher logged a team-high 94 tackles last season. He racked up nine more in a dominant defensive performance against the Cowboys.

“(Money) doesn’t change the way we have to play to be a winning football team,” Lanning continued. “We have good players. One of our best, Bryce Boettcher, played good today. He came here for a backpack and a t-shirt.”

The Ducks spend for talent. They can also develop it. Dan Lanning proved money isn’t everything while Mike Gundy attempted to clarify his initial comments after the defeat.

Gundy backtracked after a 66-point loss.

Oregon played the coach’s comments on the videoboard prior to the win. They then refused to let off the gas.

The Ducks totaled 631 yards of offense. They surrendered just nine first downs on defense while turning the Cowboys over twice.

Starting quarterback Dante Moore took Gundy’s words to heart.

“When you attack our head coach, it’s like you’re attacking my dad,” he stated in a postgame press conference. “You’re attacking a family member. We were gonna keep the foot on the neck and make sure we score these points and try to break the scoreboard.”

They nearly succeeded in breaking the scoreboard. The 66-point loss was the worst of the Mike Gundy era in Stillwater.

The coach backtracked a bit after the game, saying that his initial statement on NIL was actually a compliment.

Gundy has been outspoken on NIL in the past. He actually said he thought it would “go away” soon after its introduction. It resulted in his program falling behind in terms of recruiting.

Oklahoma State is still not up to speed with the likes of Oregon and other top spenders. With that being said, he might not have to worry about the issue much longer.

Gundy entered the year on the hot seat after going 0-9 in conference play a season ago. The 66-point loss has only turned up the heat on his job security with most believing he won’t survive 2025.