It's not every day that your season opening football game is an opportunity for payback. But the Oklahoma State Cowboys get their shot on Sept. 5 at Tulsa .
The Golden Hurricane only won four games last year, but one was a 19-12 victory over the Cowboys in Stillwater, the program's first victory over OU in Stillwater since 1951.
It set off a chain of events that led to the firing of head coach Mike Gundy, the elevation of Doug Meachem to interim coach and the ultimate hiring of Eric Morris as the program's new head coach. The Tulsa game will be Morris' debut on the sideline .
Oklahoma State has had a lot of success against Tulsa over the years. If Tulsa can pull off the upset again, here are five players that are going to play a key role and players that Oklahoma State fans should be aware of.
Tulsa Golden Hurricane quarterback Baylor Hayes. | James Guillory-Imagn Images
Hayes threw for more than 200 yards against OSU in the win last year. He transferred into Tulsa from East Tennessee, where he was coached by current Tulsa coach Tre Lamb in 2024. Hayes should be a better quarterback in his second year at Tulsa.
Last year he threw for 2,158 yards with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. He also rushed for nearly 200 net yards, and his 2,346 yards of total offense set a Tulsa freshman record. He's in an offense that could allow him to re-write the program's record books.
Lamb drew praise for the running backs he recruited through the transfer portal, many of which have power conference experience. Alston is no exception. He played four years in Auburn and emerged as a rotation back in his final two seasons with the Tigers. He enters fall workouts in line to compete for the lead running back role, which in this offense yielded 1,000 yards for Dominic Richardson last season.
Alston was the No. 3 running back in the country when he came out of high school and rushed for nearly 5,000 yards as a prep star. He rushed for 809 yards in his Auburn career. He hopes to surpass that in his final season at Tulsa.
Army Black Knights running back Samari Howard (27) runs by Tulsa Golden Hurricane safety Zach Williams. | Danny Wild-Imagn Images
Tulsa's leading returning tackler from last season is a junior from Tyler, Texas, who stayed the course after Lamb was hired before the 2025 season. He was a full-time starter last year and finished third on the team with 73 tackles, including 39 solo and 34 assisted. He logged 11 tackles in two games.
He built on a solid true freshman campaign in 2024 in which he played 10 games and finished with 33 tackles, including 13 solo stops. There was plenty of turnover on defense, but Williams will be one of the few constants in 2026.
The Golden Hurricane lost most of its pass rush from last season. Collins is the leading returning pass rusher, and he only had one sack in 2025. But there's reason to believe that he could improve on that this season.
Like Williams, he was recruited by Tulsa before Lamb arrived. And like Williams, he stayed. He was a backup who finished with 10 tackles, but he registered that sack in Tulsa's final game of the season. There's plenty of competition at linebacker, but Collins has two years under his belt. He could take a big jump.
Tempest may have only caught 22 passes last year, but he has a built-in advantage over the rest of the field because he has a year of built-up chemistry with Hayes. Even with the influx of talent at the position, Tempest should have a role in his senior season.
He compiled 272 receiving yards and a score last season. He had the third-most receptions of anyone on the team. At 5-10, he's going to play in that slot position that can be of great help to quarterbacks looking for a quick completion. He's a Tulsa native who chose to stay home.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/oklahomastate as 5 Tulsa Players Oklahoma State Fans Need to Know for Next Season .
