Mike Gundy apologizes after calling negative Oklahoma State fans ‘weak’

Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy issued an apology on social media Tuesday night for comments he made earlier this week speaking to reporters in which he suggested many of the fans expressing negativity about the Cowboys, who are in the midst of a six-game losing streak, ‘are the same ones that can’t pay their own bills.’

‘I apologize to those who my comments during Monday’s media call offended,’ Gundy wrote in a post on X. ‘My intent was not to offend any of our fans who have supported us and this program through the years.’

Oklahoma State (3-6) is one loss away from clinching its first losing season since 2005 – Gundy’s first season as coach at his alma mater – after being ranked No. 18 in the US LBM Coaches Poll this preseason. He bristled at criticism surrounding this year’s team during a lengthy response two days after the Cowboys suffered a 42-21 loss at home to Arizona State.

‘[I]n most cases, the people that are negative and voicing their opinion are the same ones that can’t pay their own bills,’ Gundy said, in part. ‘They’re not taking care of themselves. They’re not taking care of their own family. They’re not taking care of their own job. But they have an obligation to speak out and complain about others because it makes them feel better. But then, in the end, when they go to bed at night, they’re the same failure that they were before they said anything negative about anybody else.’

Gundy is the winningest coach in Oklahoma State football history, with 18-straight bowl appearances and 169 career wins. But the Cowboys are 0-6 in Big 12 play heading into Saturday’s game against TCU and in danger of enduring Gundy’s worst season as coach. He finished with a 4-7 record in 2005.

This is the longest losing streak of Gundy’s career. This is not the first time he has had to walk back something he said in public.

Gundy has in the past apologized for calling COVID-19 the ‘Chinese virus’ and for wearing a t-shirt for One America News Network that offended former Oklahoma State star running back Chuba Hubbard. In July, Gundy also had to clarify remarks he made about the DUI arrest of current Cowboys running back Ollie Gordon II, in which he initially said, “Well I thought, ‘I’ve probably did that 1,000 times in my life.’ Which is fine. I got lucky, people get lucky.’

On Monday, Gundy directed frustration at some of his own fans.

‘Kind of the synopsis of all of this is that this place has had tremendous success for 18½ years or 19 – I can’t do the math real good,’ Gundy said to reporters. ‘Unfortunately, in life, most people are weak and as soon as things start to not go as good as what they thought, they fall apart and they panic.

‘And then they want to point the finger and blame other people. You see it happen in everyday life. People do it all the time. That’s why I refuse to watch the TV and watch the news because I get tired of people complaining and (whining) about this and that versus just doing something about it and trying to figure out a way to make it better.’

By the next day, those comments had created enough controversy at Oklahoma State that Gundy had to say sorry or else risk the situation getting worse.