FELIX MCKNIGHT TROPHY WINNER - LB ANDRE SEXTON OF OSU

Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Bill Young knew he had something special on his hands. Even before the 74th AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic got underway, the first-year coordinator recognized senior linebacker Andre Sexton as a leader on the team and a young man with an exceptional future ahead of him.

“I think he’s had a tremendous impact (on the program),” Young said about Sexton prior to today’s Classic. “He’s had a tremendous impact on me. He has such a knack for being able to speak in public…He does such a good job being a leader with our team.”

Sexton led the defense of the OSU Cowboys with 10 tackles and two interceptions and was awarded the Felix McKnight Trophy as the game’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player. Despite his efforts, including an interception in the third quarter that set up OSU’s only touchdown of the game, the Cowboys fell to the Ole Miss Rebels, 21-7.

As a senior captain and one of the primary spokesmen for the team, Sexton was accustomed to leading. Today’s game was his fourth consecutive start in a bowl game and his 51st career start, a team record. His 10 tackles today brought his career total to 319, which ties him at ninth on the school’s all-time list.

Despite his personal accomplishments, Sexton couldn’t disguise his disappointment at the game’s conclusion.

“It’s a great award,” Sexton said of the Defensive MVP honor. “But it doesn’t really mean that much when we don’t come away with the win.”

Though earlier in the week Sexton talked about today’s game helping to define the legacy of OSU’s seniors, after the game he expressed that they should not be judged solely by the outcome of one game.

“We put in so much work, sweat, blood and tears, trying to turn this program around,” Sexton said. “We gave it our all out there. That’s all you can ask.”

Sexton is the first player to win the McKnight Trophy from the losing team since Dat Nguyen won the award in 1998 in Texas A&M’s 29-23 loss to UCLA.