Oklahoma State football vs South Dakota State: Score prediction for Cowboys' Week 1 game

STILLWATER — It’s not often that Oklahoma State welcomes a No. 1 team to Boone Pickens Stadium, and unless something drastically changes between now and November, it’ll only happen once this season.

The 18th-ranked Cowboys play host to South Dakota State , the top-ranked team in the Football Championship Subdivision, set for a 1 p.m. kickoff Saturday at BPS.

While the Jackrabbits are coming up from a lower division , they also arrive with a 29-game winning streak and back-to-back FCS national championships. Their last loss was a 7-3 defeat to Iowa to begin the 2022 season.

Though OSU coach Mike Gundy is 15-0 against FCS teams in his tenure, his teams have had a few close calls in games that should’ve been blowouts.

This isn’t one of those games.

“We're going there for a reason,” SDSU coach Jimmy Rogers said this week. “We're going to compete. If we're going to claim we're one of the best in the country, here's an opportunity to go showcase that.”

Meanwhile, the Cowboys are looking to start their season on the right foot as they try to improve on last year’s 10-win mark that included an appearance in the Big 12 Championship Game.

Here’s a look at our predictions for the game:

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Oklahoma State football score prediction vs South Dakota State

Justin Martinez, trending reporter

OSU 28, South Dakota State 20

WIN BY A HARE

Ollie Gordon II dominates on the ground and finds the end zone three times. Mark Gronowski and South Dakota State’s offense trim the deficit to one possession, but Nick Martin and OSU’s defense get a key stop down the stretch to avoid the upset.

Joe Mussatto, columnist

OSU 30, South Dakota State 26

HARE’Y SITUATION

OSU’s defense denies South Dakota State on the final drive of the game. A close call, but the Cowboys can stand tall after beating the best in the FCS.

Jeff Patterson, sports editor

OSU 37, South Dakota State 31

GRIT & GRIND

Jackrabbits quarterback Mark Gronowski, the reigning Walter Payton Award winner, holds his own against the Cowboy defense, but the two-time reigning FCS champions can't contain Heisman Trophy hopeful Ollie Gordon II in the best under-the-radar Week 1 game.

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Jacob Unruh, deputy sports editor

OSU 33, South Dakota State 24

STEAMED CARROTS

Cowboys star Ollie Gordon II and the offense keep heat on Jackrabbits to pull away in the second half. OSU's defense also has a big day, showing more progress against FCS' best.

Scott Wright, OSU beat writer

OSU 31, South Dakota State 23

WABBIT SEASON

The Jackrabbits can’t keep up with Oklahoma State superstar Ollie Gordon II, who breaks the 200-yard mark in the season opener and kicks off his Heisman Trophy campaign with authority. But the SDSU offense should do enough to keep this game interesting into the fourth quarter.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State football vs South Dakota State: Score prediction for Cowboys' Week 1 game