​Eighty-seven newcomers.Players from different schools.Different levels of college football.Different recruiting backgrounds.Different paths to Stillwater.On paper, Oklahoma State’s roster looks like a collection of strangers.Eric Morris has another name for them.Misfits.At Oklahoma State’s media day, Morris revealed that the Cowboys have embraced “misfits” as their mantra entering the 2026 season.And honestly?It might be the perfect identity for this team.Because Oklahoma State doesn’t need 100 players with identical stories.It needs 100 different stories to somehow become one.Almost Everyone Has Something to ProveThat’s what makes the nickname work.Look at Mestemaker.He wasn’t some can’t-miss quarterback prospect with every powerhouse in the country fighting for him out of high school.Neither was Hawkins.Neither was Young.Then they produced.Suddenly, the attention arrived.Major programs started calling.Their circumstances changed.But the journey that got them there didn’t.Morris has also brought together players from the opposite situation—guys who were highly recruited but needed another opportunity somewhere else. Different paths.Same destination.And almost everyone arrives with something to prove.Being a Misfit Can Become a StrengthUsually, “misfit” isn’t considered a compliment.Oklahoma State should make it one.There’s something powerful about building a roster filled with players who have experienced being overlooked, doubted, replaced or forced to start over.Those experiences can create an edge.Mestemaker remembers not being heavily recruited.Hawkins remembers.Other transfers remember why they entered the portal in the first place.You don’t have to manufacture motivation when your roster is filled with players who already have it.The Biggest Challenge Is Turning 87 Newcomers Into One TeamOf course, there’s another side to this.Oklahoma State’s roster turnover is enormous.Eighty-seven newcomers don’t automatically become a connected football team because everyone puts on the same uniform. Chemistry takes time.Trust takes time.Players have to learn personalities.Leaders have to emerge.Teammates who were competing against each other—or playing at completely different levels—a year ago now have to depend on one another.That’s why creating a shared identity matters.“Misfits” gives everyone something in common.Morris Understands This Team Needs Its Own IdentityThis is also another example of Morris understanding the human side of rebuilding a program.He isn’t inheriting a veteran roster with years of shared experiences.He’s essentially creating a football team from scratch.That requires more than installing plays.You need buy-in.You need personality.You need something players can rally around.And instead of pretending all these different backgrounds don’t exist, Morris is leaning directly into them.You’re different?Good.You were overlooked?Good.Your path wasn’t perfect?Even better.Welcome to the club.It Fits Oklahoma State, Too