Unique Clause In Mike Gundy's Buyout Will Lead To Dispute

Mike Gundy Fired Buyout Contract Clause Tre Lamb — © NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Tre Lamb could be a top candidate to replace Mike Gundy as the college football coach at Oklahoma State. Especially after Tulsa left Stillwater with a seven-point win on Friday.

He spoke it into existence prior to the season.

Thus, it seems inevitable that Gundy will be fired in due time. However, a unique clause in his buyout could create tension between the winningest college football coach in school history and the administration.

Mike Gundy’s seat cannot get any hotter.

Gundy was hired to replace Les Miles more than two decades ago. He has had only two losing seasons during his 20-year tenure at his alma mater— in his first year and in his 20th year.

The Cowboys are currently trending in that direction for a second year in a row.

Oklahoma State scored only 27 points against a bad UT Martin team in the season-opener. It lost to Oregon by 66 while Gundy was taking photos with opposing fans in Week 2. His son did not help to improve the optics with a scathing rant on social media about his father’s status as a legend in Stillwater.

Fans launched a GoFundMe to buy out the head coach’s contract “for less than the price of a typical game ticket” prior to the loss to Tulsa. They booed him off of the field while trailing at halftime on Friday.

More boos pic.twitter.com/ONkM1CbCUw
— jake_woods (@Woods_JacobR) September 20, 2025

The Golden Hurricane hung on to win 19-12.

Tulsa finishes off the Pokes 19-12.

I'm gonna say this VERY clearly, that was PITIFUL!

Ironic a Coach that said the people that bitch are the ones that can't pay the bills, then bitched before the Oregon game about how we can't compete because we don't have money.

Then we… pic.twitter.com/RTxpYR5bi3
— OState Daily (@Ostate_Daily) September 20, 2025

Tulsa head coach Tre Lamb called his shot back in July.

"We’ve got money in the bank. We’ve got NIL. We’ve got rev share. There’s no reason we can’t compete with the Oklahoma States and Kansas States of the world." — Tulsa HC Tre Lamb pic.twitter.com/ITvy67CJLp

— Jeremie Poplin (@jeremiepoplin) July 25, 2025

He spit fire during his immediate postgame interview.

Tre Lamb throwing 98 on the black in the postgame pic.twitter.com/GXumwnaqxV
— Cayden McFarland (@caydenmc) September 20, 2025

Mike Gundy could not speak to his job status after the demoralizing loss.

“Those aren’t decision that I make,” he said. “My decision is to do exactly what I mentioned earlier is get these guys, keep moving forward and go on down the road, and that’s what we do.”

He is turning the page to Baylor. On to the next.

Is Oklahoma State going to fire its college football coach?

I do not know whether the university is going to decide to move on from Gundy or if they are going to give him another chance but it certainly feels like he is on his way out. The fans are fed up. A second-straight losing season could put the nail in the proverbial coffin. We’ll see.

The Cowboys don’t really have a starting quarterback this season, especially after an injury to Hauss Hejny. Former FCS signal-caller Noah Waters joined the roster earlier this week. Maybe he is the answer.

And it’s not like Oklahoma State has the most lucrative NIL fund in the Big 12. There are other things to blame if the administration really wants to keep Mike Gundy.

If not, a unique agreement between the head coach and the university could get contentious.

Gundy agreed to a new contract during the offseason. He was basically extorted into giving $1 million of his salary back to the program for NIL purposes in exchange for a $15 million buyout.

Gundy is alsosupposed to help to find his replacement if the school pays him the $15 million not to coach the Cowboys. I’m not sure whether this specific clause was a contractual agreement or a handshake but that now seems unlikely either way, which will lead to a quarrel between the two sides.

Tre Lamb could be a great fit.

Some of the top names to replace Mike Gundy at Oklahoma State include Ben Arbuckle, Alex Golesh, Jon Sumrall, Ryan Silverfield and Charles Huff. But the answer might be right in front of them.

All Tre Lamb does is win.

The 26-year-old led a struggling Gardner-Webb program to the FCS Playoffs in back-to-back years. He won seven games at East Tennessee State last season. Tulsa pulled the upset in Stillwater on Friday during his first year at the helm.

The Cowboys could do a lot worse than Lamb, who showed the utmost respect to Gundy during their postgame handshake. Notice who took off his hat and who didn’t.