Oklahoma State star running back Ollie Gordon II won't miss time following his arrest on DUI charges, coach Mike Gundy said.
"He's going to play," Gundy told ESPN. "I'm going to do what we think is best for Oklahoma State football. And I think it's best for Ollie to play. If there's any punishment, it's making him carry the ball 50 times in the first game."
Gordon, 20, is the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year. He was arrested on June 30 for suspicion of driving under the influence. Gundy added that Gordon was fortunate that no one was injured.
Gordon surprisingly attended Big 12 media day. He issued a formal apology the day before that.
"Your punishment is going to be facing the facts," Gundy said he told Gordon, via ESPN. "That's why we brought him here today.
"I said, 'You're not going into hiding. You're going to face the music, you're going to have to stand up and talk to people and answer questions. And, hopefully, more than football, you can learn from the situation you've been in. Because if not, then we have a real issue."
The Cowboys are expected to be among the top five or six teams in college football this season and a contender for the College Football Playoff. Gordon is a massive reason why as perhaps the nation's top tailback.
"He's on a shorter leash right now, unfortunately," Gundy said. "Because I understand young people, we all make mistakes. If we don't learn from those, then it's not really good. We've had several conversations. We'll have more over the next month. I think that he understands how serious that situation was. Hopefully he can learn from it and move forward."
