Former Oklahoma State coach Jim Stanley brought toughness to Cowboys

Jim Stanley was Oklahoma State's football coach during my first three years at OSU.
My main memory of Stanley's teams is just how physical they were on offense and defense.
The Cowboys punished their opponents.
Of course, I attended every home game as a fan, sitting in the stands and cheering for the Cowboys. The cheers came often in 1976 as the Pokes rolled to a 9-3 overall record and went 5-2 in the Big Eight. Unfortunately for OSU fans, the Bedlam game was in Norman instead of Lewis Field in Stillwater. We listened to the game on the radio. We were almost as stunned as OU when Poke running back Terry Miller ran wild and brought a 31-24 victory back to Stillwater.
Those Cowboys defeated BYU 49-21 in the Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Fla., and finished with a No. 14 ranking in the AP Top 20 poll.
The wins didn't come as often or as easy in the next two seasons, but OSU always played hard and hit harder.
Stanley produced a lot of great players on offense, defense and special teams during his tenure at OSU.
Miller was the standout skill player on offense. Derrel Gofourth made OSU's offensive line go as its center. Daria Butler and Phillip Dokes anchored the defensive line at tackle and end. Kicker Abby Daigle and punter Cliff Parsley started OSU's long line of outstanding punters and kickers.
I never met or interviewed Stanley. I didn't try my hand at sports reporting for the Daily O'Collegian  until Jimmy Johnson arrived as OSU's coach, but I'll never forget Stanley's teams as I watched them from the student section at Lewis Stadium.