STILLWATER — The first piece of Oklahoma State football gear Julian Wilson was handed after being hired onto Eric Morris’ coaching staff was a bright orange shirt.
The perfect item for Wilson’s Bedlam transition.
A high school star at Southmoore, Wilson played defensive back at OU before a brief NFL career. Now 34 years old, Wilson has been on the rise in the coaching ranks the last several years.
And he has landed back in his home state, following Morris from North Texas.
“The first shirt I put on was bright orange,” Wilson said with a smile. “That was the first thing they gave me when we came here. I already had my Jordans ready to rock with it.
“It’s good, man. You gotta understand, I’m an Oklahoma kid. I’m from this state. I was born here, raised here. That’s my alma mater. It’s nothing but love there. But now, I’m employed by Oklahoma State, so I’m gonna give the Pokes everything I got.”
Wilson has been on staff with OSU defensive coordinator Skyler Cassity over the past four years through stops at Abilene Christian, Sam Houston, North Texas and now OSU.
So even though he only spent last season with Morris at UNT, Wilson feels comfortable.
“We transitioned with a lot of these guys from UNT,” Wilson said of the four defensive backs who transferred to OSU. “This is my fourth stop with Coach Cassity, so I’m familiar with what he does. And Morris is a great dude.
“The opportunity to come home, back where I played football, back where I did everything, back where my family still stays, it’s just an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”
Despite size, Chris Barnes getting work at outside receiver
It’s hard to envision a player who looks more built to be a slot receiver than the 5-foot-7, 169-pound Chris Barnes.
That’s where he played during his breakout redshirt freshman season at Wake Forest last fall, and that’s where he appears designed to fit because of his size and elusiveness in space.
Yet Morris hinted at the idea a month ago, and Barnes confirmed Tuesday, that he’s getting some time at outside receiver in the Cowboys’ offense.
Morris’ motivation was to not be overly disruptive to the connection between quarterback Drew Mestemaker and slot receiver Wyatt Young that was built last season at North Texas.
And Barnes has adapted to the new challenge rather well so far.
“Obviously, he has the speed to go out and beat any corner in the country,” receivers coach Nick Edwards said. “But he has the ability to catch the ball. We saw today he had a 50/50 ball against a guy that’s 6-1 and has played college football. He has the ability to be a complete receiver, not just a gadget guy.
“I’ve seen this guy every day for the last two years. He’s an every-down receiver.”
Edwards initially recruited Barnes to Washington State two years ago, and when Edwards was hired at Wake Forest, Barnes followed him there.
That bond helped Barnes adapt to the idea of playing outside.
“Having a receivers coach who can sit down with you and watch film, and then actually go out on the field and demonstrate, showing you what he wants you to do, stuff like that matters to me,” Barnes said. “I like learning more about the game of football. I’ve been a slot my whole life.
“For them to put me on the outside for me to actually work my craft, I feel like being available in multiple areas of the field is how you want to be.”
Washington State ties connect Morris, Edwards
Among primary position coaches, Edwards is the only offensive assistant who wasn’t with Morris at North Texas.
But Edwards spent 2023 at Washington State, joining the staff shortly after Morris left his role as offensive coordinator there.
“When I left the Atlanta Falcons to go to Washington State, he was leaving for North Texas,” Edwards said. “I actually lived across the street from him before he moved.
“The staff at Washington State, a lot of them know Coach Morris, particularly Clay McGuire. They played together at Texas Tech. He put a recommendation in for me and Coach Morris really trusts him.
“The biggest thing that drew me here was style of play. Being around the No. 1 total offense, throwing the football around again. I’ve heard great things about Coach Morris as a man, as a husband, as a father. So this was a place I wanted to be.”
Scott Wright covers Oklahoma State athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Scott? He can be reached at swright@oklahoman.com or on X at @ScottWrightOK. Support Scott’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com or by using the link at the top of this page.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State football’s Julian Wilson had smooth Bedlam transition
