Trailing by one point in the fourth quarter, Oklahoma State quarterback Drew Mestemaker decided to take matters into his own hands. Pressured on third down, Mestemaker pump-faked, put his foot down and dove into the end zone for an acrobatic touchdown through contact. 

It was a defining play for the Cowboys as they stunned No. 6 Oregon 69-31 for one of the biggest upsets of the 21st century. Oklahoma State became the first team to ever snap a 10-game losing streak by beating an AP top-10 opponent. 

For Mestemaker, it was the first start of his career against a Power Four opponent, and a magical one at that. The sophomore threw for 317 yards, ran for 109 yards and scored three touchdowns in the upset victory. But for Mestemaker, beating the odds has always come easily. 

Before taking over at North Texas last season, Mestemaker's last full-time starting job came as a freshman … in high school. He was on the B Team at Vandegrift High School in Austin, Texas. 

"We joke about it in-house," Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Sean Brophy told CBS Sports last year. "That must be the best freshman team of all time, right?" 

It's not far from the truth; Mestemaker led the B Team to a perfect 10-0 record. But since that moment, his path has turned rocky. He waited his turn behind a veteran starter. A blue-chip transfer moved in, again pushing him to the bench. Scholarship offers never came, but how could they with no real tape? 

After his exploits on the Freshman B Team, Mestemaker started a handful of games as a sophomore on junior varsity. The next year, he was the primary backup to Brayden Bohanon, who now plays baseball at Baylor. The program reached its first state title game, losing to DeSoto. After the season, all signs pointed to Mestemaker starting as a senior.

But right before his moment, Wisconsin quarterback Deuce Adams moved into the neighborhood from nearby New Braunfels. Mestemaker fought hard for the job and the battle went long, but Adams ultimately won out. 

"I didn't want to leave or stand on the sideline my senior year," Mestemaker said. "I was just trying anything to get on the field and play with my best friends that I grew up with." 

So, instead of pouting, Mestemaker volunteered for everything. He taught himself how to punt and earned all-district honors. There was an opening at safety, so the lanky, 6-foot-4 Mestemaker stepped up and played multiple defensive back roles. He ultimately earned all-district honors at both positions during a 10-0 regular season. 

"I think that shows how different Drew is," Vandegrift coach Drew Sanders told CBS Sports. "He could have easily transferred. He could have easily gone somewhere else. But because he valued his teammates and his program and his coaches and community, it was a really cool thing to see him find a way to contribute with the best attitude possible. He's one in a million." 

Despite showing promise at both other positions, Mestemaker knew he was a quarterback. As one source put it, he could have started at 99.4% of high schools in Texas. Mestemaker just ran into another of the state's best. 

Into the QB academy

Oklahoma State coach Eric Morris has a knack for finding diamonds in the rough. When he was coach at Incarnate Word, Morris discovered an overlooked quarterback playing in a run-based offense. In 2025, that once small-school quarterback, Cameron Ward, was picked No. 1 in the NFL Draft. 

But for Mestemaker, there was barely even tape to evaluate. Mestemaker worked with noted quarterback trainer Jeff Christensen, who shared some of the limited practice and workout footage he had. 

"We just kind of looked over the video that we had and saw a big, raw, developmental kid that had a pretty, pretty uncharacteristic high school career," Brophy said. "We wanted to take a shot on another young kid to come and develop." 

The timing worked out well for UNT, which did not take a high school class in 2023 when the staff arrived. After adding two Power Four upperclassmen, they had room to stock up. Plus, Mestemaker's close friend, Miles Coleman, signed with UNT to play receiver in the same class. 

"I'm honestly surprised he didn't get a chance sooner, really," Coleman told CBS Sports. "It's crazy just how smart he is; he's been able to adapt so fast." 

Mestemaker had offers at the junior college level and another walk-on spot available at Sam Houston. The opportunity to work with Morris was impossible to pass up, even if it wasn't on scholarship. 

He arrived in Denton sixth on the depth chart, an afterthought as a true freshman. He quickly made himself a factor. Early in the season, Mestemaker passed multiple scholarship players to land No. 2 on the depth chart. He became the primary backup to Chandler Morris 

"I've never seen a quarterback's upward trajectory be so high," Brophy said. "I mean every single day was incremental improvement." 

Getting his chance

The plan was for Morris to play two years and then pass the reins to Mestemaker. The Mean Green put together a very competitive offer for the sixth-year senior after he threw for 3,774 yards and 31 touchdowns. A hefty offer from Virginia was ultimately too much to pass up, however. 

After a tearful goodbye, Chandler Morris left before the bowl game against Texas State. There was little question about what was coming next: Mestemaker's first start since sophomore year JV ball. 

"Everybody internally was extremely cautiously optimistic about what he was going to do," Brophy said. "Now, the hard part is you can't really vocalize and verbalize that outwards because someone's going to look at you crazy." 

Of course, North Texas had no clue how Mestemaker would respond to real, live reps. They simulated everything they could and tried to ensure he went as close to game speed as possible, but it's a different beast facing defenders. 

Mestemaker's first two plays looked like a first-time starter. He missed Wyatt Young on a pass and then was hit for a 4-yard loss. The next play, on third-and-14, he hit Landon Sides for a 14-yard gain for a first down. 

"It was just a surreal experience," Mestemaker said. "But once I got my first play and first hit out of the way, it was just like normal. It was just playing football, like I've done my whole life. It was honestly really shocking to see how once you're in it, it's just football at the end of the day." 

From there, Mestemaker woke up the gunslinger within. He found best friend Coleman for a 46-yard touchdown on the second drive. The play lit up Vandegrift group chats all over the state. Then, Mestemaker led another touchdown drive, capped off by a 16-yard strike to Sides. The shocker was a 70-yard touchdown run with 1:49 remaining that pulled the game within two points. 

There were messy moments, too, including two interceptions and a fumble. The final turnover came as North Texas drove to take the lead; instead, they fell 30-28 to the Bobcats. But for a true freshman starting his first game since JV, the line was stunning: 393 yards and three total touchdowns, the most passing yards by a UNT player in a bowl game. 

Coming full circle

In his first-ever season as a starting quarterback, Mestemaker was unstoppable. He threw for a nation-leading 4,379 yards and added 34 touchdowns while leading North Texas to a program record 11 wins. 

"It's crazy, honestly," Mestemaker said. "You know, it's always been a goal of mine to be at this level. To finally be living it out, it brings you back to when you're a kid watching college football and dreaming about being in that place. Sometimes you've got to take a step back and be like, you're living a dream."

The effort was strong enough that coach Eric Morris was offered the Oklahoma State job, the chance to replace legendary coach Mike Gundy. He wanted Mestemaker to follow, but he found himself in an unusual position: Highly sought after. 

Mestemaker was rated the No. 4 overall prospect in the transfer portal and a five-star recruit. He had offers beyond his comprehension from every major quarterback-hungry school in the country. He couldn't help but take visits and hear teams out. 

"To be wanted is just human nature, right?" Morris told CBS Sports. "After never being recruited, all of a sudden you have some of these blue-blood programs calling you, talking dollar amounts and bringing you up on visits. That's appealing." 

After taking one visit, Mestemaker called Morris for feedback while driving home. Oklahoma State was still his first choice, but the offers were enticing. The wily coach did something unusual. 

"Don't get caught up in all the hype," Morris said. "And don't break my heart." 

Then he hung up. 

"I was like, what am I supposed to do now? Tell him I'm not going there?" Mestemaker told CBS Sports with a laugh. "That was when I made my decision. I can't leave them." 

Mestemaker was lackluster in his first game, a loss to Tulsa. But against Oregon, he showed off his prodigious ability. Coaches have called him one of the fastest learners they've ever been around. 

Now, Mestemaker is just getting better. 

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