1987 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team

1987 Oklahoma State Cowboys football
Sun Bowl Champions
Conference Big Eight Conference
Ranking
Coaches #12
AP #11
1987 record 10–2 (5–2 Big 8)
Head coach Pat Jones
Offensive coordinator Larry Coker
Home stadium Lewis Field (Capacity: 50,440)
1987 Big 8 football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
#3 Oklahoma 7 0 0     11 1 0
#6 Nebraska 6 1 0     10 2 0
#11 Oklahoma State 5 2 0     10 2 0
Colorado 4 3 0     7 4 0
Missouri 3 4 0     5 6 0
Iowa State 2 5 0     3 8 0
Kansas 0 6 1     1 9 1
Kansas State 0 6 1     0 10 1
Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team represented the Oklahoma State University in the 1987 NCAA Division I-A college football season. Thurman Thomas was in his senior year for the Cowboys.

Schedule

The Cowboys finished the regular season with a 9–2 record. At Oklahoma State, Thurman Thomas had 897 rushes for 4,595 yards, 43 touchdowns, and 21 100-yard rushing games. He was also a Heisman Trophy candidate in his senior year. He was a first team selection on the College Football All-America Team in 1987. In the 1987 Sun Bowl, Thomas ran for 157 yards and four touchdowns in the 35–33 victory over West Virginia, keeping Barry Sanders on the sidelines for the majority of the game. Thomas left OSU as the school's all-time leading rusher and his number 34 is one of only three jerseys retired at Oklahoma State. Sanders replaced Thomas as starter the next year in 1988.

Date Opponent# Rank# Site TV Result Attendance
September 5 Tulsa Lewis FieldStillwater, OK W 39-28   46,700
September 12 at Houston* Astrodome • Houston, TX W 35-0   16,285
September 19 at Wyoming* War Memorial StadiumLaramie, WY W 35-29   20,852
September 26 SW Louisiana* Lewis Field • Stillwater, OK W 36-0   44,100
October 10 Colorado #19 Lewis Field • Stillwater, OK W 42-17   42,800
October 17 #2 Nebraska #12 Lewis Field • Stillwater, OK CBS L 0-35   50,440
October 24 at Missouri #19 Faurot FieldColumbia, MO W 24-20   37,638
October 31 Kansas State #12 Lewis Field • Stillwater, OK W 56-7   40,150
November 7 at #1 Oklahoma #12 Oklahoma Memorial StadiumNorman, OK (Bedlam) L 10-29   75,004
November 14 at Kansas #17 Memorial StadiumLawrence, KS W 49-17   18,500
November 21 Iowa State #13 Lewis Field • Stillwater, OK W 48-27   33,400
December 25 vs. West Virginia* #11 Sun Bowl Stadium • El Paso, TX (Sun Bowl) CBS W 35-33   43,240
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll. All times are in Central Time.

[1]

1987 team players in the NFL

The following players were drafted into professional football following the season.

Player Position Round Pick Franchise
Thurman Thomas Running Back 2 40 Buffalo Bills

[2]

Awards and honors

References