1988 Oklahoma State Cowboys football
Holiday Bowl champion
Holiday Bowl, W 62–14 vs. Wyoming
Conference	Big Eight Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 11
AP	No. 11
Record	10–2 (5–2 Big 8)
Head coach	Pat Jones (5th season)
Offensive coordinator	Larry Coker (6th season)
Home stadium	Lewis Field
Seasons ← 1987 1989 →

The 1988 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team represented the Oklahoma State University in the 1988 NCAA Division I-A college football season. Future OSU head coach Mike Gundy was the starting QB for the Cowboys, while senior WR Hart Lee Dykes and junior RB Barry Sanders were both named first team All-American. Sanders won the Heisman Trophy as the nation's most outstanding player for the season. Sanders was also the Offensive MVP of the 1988 Holiday Bowl, and Junior LB Sim Drain III was the Defensive MVP.

Schedule

The Cowboys finished the regular season with a 9–2 record.^[1] In 1988, in what has been called the greatest season in college football history,^[2] running back Barry Sanders led the nation by averaging 7.6 yards per carry and over 200 yards per game, including rushing for over 300 yards in four games. He set college football season records with 2,628 yards rushing, 3,249 total yards, 234 points, 39 touchdowns, of which 37 were rushing (also a record), five consecutive 200 yard games, scored at least two touchdowns in 11 consecutive games, and nine times he scored at least three touchdowns. Sanders also ran for 222 yards and scored five touchdowns in his three quarters of action in the Holiday Bowl, a game that was not included with his season statistics.^[3]

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 10	Miami (OH)*		Lewis Field Stillwater, OK		W 52–20	43,200
September 24	Texas A&M*	No. 18	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK		W 52–15	50,440
October 1	Tulsa*	No. 13	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK \ (rivalry)		W 56–35	45,100
October 8	at Colorado	No. 13	Folsom Field Boulder, CO		W 41–21	41,854
October 15	at No. 7 Nebraska	No. 10	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	CSN	L 42–63	76,432
October 22	Missouri	No. 15	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK		W 49–21	46,900
October 29	at Kansas State	No. 12	KSU Stadium Manhattan, KS		W 45–27	16,000
November 5	No. 8 Oklahoma	No. 12	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK (Bedlam)	ESPN	L 28–31	50,440
November 12	Kansas	No. 14	Lewis Field Stillwater, OK		W 63–24	40,100
November 19	at Iowa State	No. 13	Cyclone Stadium Ames, IA		W 49–28	38,163
December 4	vs. Texas Tech*	No. 12	Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan (Coca-Cola Classic)	CBS	W 45–42	56,000
December 30	vs. No. 15 Wyoming*	No. 12	Jack Murphy Stadium San Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl)	ESPN	W 62–14	60,641
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Personnel