Former Oklahoma State QB Shane Illingworth Commits to Nevada
With the resurgence of Spencer Sanders in 2021, backup quarterback Shane Illingworth found it in his best interest to hit the NCAA Transfer Portal and has now found a new home with Nevada.
The former four-star Cowboys quarterback has prototypical size and arm strength, standing at 6-6, 234 pounds. He started three games for Oklahoma State during his time in Stillwater and completed 64% of his passes for 719 yards and 4 touchdowns as a starter.
One of his starts included the 2021 season opener against Missouri State after Spencer Sanders was out for COVID protocols. He threw for 315 yards and one score in that game but found himself back on the bench when Sanders was ready to go again in Week 2.
After playing just once more in 2021, in garbage time against Kansas, Illingworth decided to enter the portal on January 24th. It didn’t take long for Nevada to swipe him up, just a little over a week later.
With Illingworth gone, the Cowboys are suddenly thin at quarterback behind Sanders. 2022 four-star Garret Rangel could be the future in Stillwater and is an early enrollee for the spring semester. Gunnar Gundy, son of head coach Mike Gundy, saw some time against TCU this season but is untested as far as experience guys.
Beyond that OSU has redshirt sophomore walk-on, Peyton Thompson, and that’s it. As long as Sanders can stay healthy in 2022, the Cowboys will be fine at quarterback, but that is asking for a lot based on Sanders’ injury history.
