GameDay’s prediction segment on October 17, 2026, delivered a narrow split for Houston and Oklahoma State in a marquee Big 12 matchup tied to the osu football schedule conversation. The final pick count went 3-2 in favor of Houston, but the panel did not agree on the outcome for long.
Steve Young and Nick Saban were on the Houston side, while Desmond Howard, Kirk Herbstreit and Pat McAfee leaned toward Oklahoma State. It was the kind of divided preview that usually signals a game with real national interest, and GameDay was already in Provo for BYU against Notre Dame when the picks came up.
Why Houston got the nod
Young made his case by pointing to Connor Weigman and Houston’s balanced offense. “Connor Weigman. The guy has 15 touchdowns throwing, five rushing [actually six]. He’s true dual-threat, not a runner who can pass. He’s a passer who can run,” Young said. That description fit the larger argument for Houston: a team with enough offensive versatility to make this one a problem for Oklahoma State.
Saban also backed Houston, calling the Cougars “one of the most underrated teams in the country.” Pat McAfee followed that line of thinking and added support for Coach Fritz and Houston, while joking that he wanted to know whether Young’s thinking matched the rest of the panel.
Why Oklahoma State still had support
Herbstreit and Howard both went the other direction, with Howard citing Drew Mestemaker and what he has done offensively for the Cowboys. Herbstreit made the case more forcefully, saying this was “a sneaky really, really good game” and “an important game in the Big 12.” He pointed to Oklahoma State’s balanced attack with Weigman and the running game, then added that Mestemaker has been playing “as well as any quarterback in college football.”
Herbstreit also called it “a high-scoring shootout” and said it had an “old-school WAC kind of game” feel before picking Oklahoma State to win. That split summed up the matchup well: two teams with enough firepower to make this one feel like more than a standard regular-season game, and a GameDay panel that was clearly torn on which quarterback and supporting cast would decide it.
