For Oklahoma State, the first drive against Tulsa quickly became less about the game plan and more about survival. Jacob Sexton, the fifth-year left tackle, left the field with a lower right leg injury and was carted off wearing an air cast, an abrupt blow for a line already waiting on Braydon Nelson to return from a knee injury.
The timing made the situation even more difficult. Sexton was on the field at left tackle as Oklahoma State tried to patch together its protection up front, but the injury forced an immediate reshuffle on the offensive line. That is never ideal in Week 1 or any other week, especially when the player leaving is someone the Cowboys had planned to lean on at one of the most important spots on the field.
What happened against Tulsa also fits into a concerning pattern for Sexton. Last year, he started the first game of the season at left tackle against Illinois State and then missed the remainder of the season to injury. At an earlier point in his career, he started the first eight games on the left side before suffering another injury. The latest setback only adds to that history, and it comes during his final collegiate season.
Sexton’s path to Oklahoma State already included a transfer after four years at Oklahoma, and the Cowboys were counting on his experience to stabilize the left side. Instead, his night ended before the offense had really settled in. The immediate question is not just how long he will be out, but how Oklahoma State will handle the tackle spot if this injury forces another extended adjustment.
For a team trying to build continuity along the offensive line, that is the uncomfortable part. One injury is bad enough. Repeating that same problem at the same position, with the same kind of urgency, is what turns a single in-game setback into a larger season concern.
