Oklahoma State has a ton of money to spend but otherwise, it does not compare favorably to Virginia Tech.

Oklahoma State has had some nice seasons under Gundy and a few in the past, and a few excellent players have suited up for the Cowboys - Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas, for example.

But in the Big 12, Okie State is clearly behind Texas and Oklahoma and only clearly above Kansas, Iowa State and Baylor. Depending on whether you value history, longevity, potential, current success, resources and so forth, you can make the argument that either West Virginia, TCU or Okie State is the third "best" program in the Big 12. Most would put those three a cut above Kansas State and Texas Tech because K State has been awful without Bill Snyder and Texas Tech has rarely had seasons that would put it in contention for a major bowl.

I don't think the difference between Tech and Okie State is huge. But Tech can sell a nicer campus, superior academics, a higher level of sustained, recent success and a greater probability of competing for conference championships. Boone Pickens' money obviously is good for the Cowboys, but if it was a huge factor they'd be winning more Big 12 titles.