The Oklahoma State football team has surprised a lot of people this season, under first-year head coach Eric Morris. The Cowboys have quarterback Drew Mestemaker leading the way. A glaring stat though is showing why Mestemaker may not be selected as the top quarterback in the 2027 NFL Draft.
“Through Week 9 of 2026, Mestemaker has seven turnover-worthy plays on 54 dropbacks when he was pressured, according to PFF. That's a 13.0% rate, more than double the 5.8% median for the first-round quarterbacks in our historical comparison,” CBS Sports reported.
Mestemaker is playing in the Big 12 this season after previously playing at North Texas. He followed his head coach Morris from North Texas to Stillwater. Even at his previous stop, the quarterback struggled under pressure.
“Mestemaker's struggles have followed him from North Texas to Oklahoma State. His turnover-worthy-play rate was 8.3% under pressure in 2025 before climbing to 13% so far this season. Over that span, he's put the ball in harm's way 13 times in 126 such situations. That's a 10.3% rate, and it's something NFL evaluators will have to consider,” CBS added.
This season Mestemaker has passed for 2,649 yards. He has 25 touchdown passes and seven interceptions. He has helped Oklahoma State completely turn around from where they were a year ago, when they didn't win a single conference game.
CBS does note that Mestemaker has seen improvement.
Article Continues Below“Mestemaker never started a varsity game at quarterback in high school; he was primarily a punter and safety before walking on at North Texas. He's already improved at avoiding sacks, and the next step is making smarter decisions when defenses disrupt his timing,” the outlet wrote.
Oklahoma State holds a 5-3 record on the season. The team is 3-2 in the Big 12 standings. The team is in action on Saturday against Kansas State.