Dezmon Jackson Gives Oklahoma State Glimpse Into Backfield’s Future
Normally when a player is third on the depth chart, you rarely expect them to play. Especially when they are behind All-American running back Chuba Hubbard. But in the wild year of 2020, expect the unexpected to happen.
The unexpected just so happened to be Oklahoma State running back Dezmon Jackson. Dezmon was third on the depth chart this week behind not only Chuba Hubbard but LD Brown as well. But due to injuries, Dezmon was called upon to be the lead man in the backfield and he delivered.
The former JUCO running back committed to Oklahoma State for the 2019 class and after seeing little playing time last season, his big chance came today against Texas Tech. In fact, Dezmon did something that has not been done over a year which is rush for over 200 yards and three touchdowns. The last Oklahoma State player to do that? Current Oklahoma State running back Chuba Hubbard who did that against Tulsa last season. But this was not Tulsa, it was fellow conference foe Texas Tech.
Dezmon came out of the gate strong as he scored all of Oklahoma State’s three touchdowns in the first half and averaged a whopping 5.1 yards per carry. Yet despite his performance, the Cowboys were only up 21-17 as their defense struggled in the first half.
Things got a little wacky in the third quarter as two of Oklahoma State’s three touchdowns came from an onside kick return for a score by Jason Taylor II and a Tre Sterling pick six.
After a Spencer Sanders touchdown scramble and a safety of all things, the Cowboys had a 50-31 lead with 8:50 left to play. And in surprising fashion, the Oklahoma State defense continued to allow big plays as Texas Tech crawled their way back into the game to come within six points with just 1:51 left in the game.
On a fourth and short to seal the game, Oklahoma State once again turned to running back Dezmon Jackson who ran for 23-yards before giving himself up to run the clock out and give Oklahoma State a 50-44 victory.
Dezmon Jackson finished his monster day with an impressive 235 yards and three touchdowns while averaging 6.5 yards per carry. Perhaps what made his performance even more impressive was the fact that his offensive line was still not healthy with guys out and out of position.
Oklahoma State’s still on the outside looking in when it comes to the Big 12 title picture, but today, they found a bright spot. With Chuba Hubbard likely leaving for the NFL and LD Brown graduating, Dezmon Jackson will have more opportunities like he did today for next year. While Oklahoma State will miss those guys, it must be comforting to know that they can count on Dezmon Jackson to be the go-to guy for 2021.
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