Evaluating the current roster, Sooners Wire profiles the current players, with quarterback [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] up next.
The unquestioned leader of the Oklahoma Sooners, Dillon Gabriel, has his work cut out for him in 2023. He loses his starting right and left tackles, his top two receivers in [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag] and [autotag]Brayden Willis[/autotag], and Oklahoma’s leading rusher, [autotag]Eric Gray[/autotag]. Oklahoma lost a lot of talent to the NFL.
His first season as a Sooner was productive, and while he missed time due to a concussion, Gabriel’s familiarity and knowledge of [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag]’s offense gave Oklahoma the best chance to win games last year.
Watching these Marvin Mims highlights — and all I can notice is:
Dillon Gabriel DOT after DOT after DOT
Gabriel is so damn good pic.twitter.com/ISWUh2IlkZ
— Cam Mellor (@CamMellor) March 11, 2023
He’ll have the spring and summer to build a better rapport with returning targets [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag], [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag], [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag], [autotag]Jayden Gibson[/autotag], and the young tight ends, [autotag]Kaden Helms[/autotag] and [autotag]Jason Llewellyn[/autotag]. He’ll also have the task of incorporating newcomers like [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag], [autotag]Austin Stogner[/autotag], [autotag]Keyon Brown[/autotag], and four-star freshman [autotag]Jaquaize Pettaway[/autotag] into the mix over the spring and summer months.
Preseason Player Profile
Hometown: Mililani, Hawaii
Ht: 5-11
Wt: 203
Class in 2023: Redshirt Senior
247Sports Composite Ranking
Three-star | No. 27 QB | No. 9
Career Stats
| Passing | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | AY/A | TD | Int | Rate |
| *2019 | UCF | American | FR | QB | 13 | 236 | 398 | 59.3 | 3653 | 9.2 | 9.8 | 29 | 7 | 156.9 |
| *2020 | UCF | American | SO | QB | 10 | 248 | 413 | 60.0 | 3570 | 8.6 | 9.8 | 32 | 4 | 156.3 |
| *2021 | UCF | American | JR | QB | 3 | 70 | 102 | 68.6 | 814 | 8.0 | 8.4 | 9 | 3 | 158.9 |
| *2022 | Oklahoma | Big 12 | JR | QB | 12 | 230 | 367 | 62.7 | 3168 | 8.6 | 9.3 | 25 | 6 | 154.4 |
| Career | Overall | 784 | 1280 | 61.3 | 11205 | 8.8 | 9.5 | 95 | 20 | 156.2 | ||||
| UCF | 554 | 913 | 60.7 | 8037 | 8.8 | 9.6 | 70 | 14 | 156.9 | |||||
| Oklahoma | 230 | 367 | 62.7 | 3168 | 8.6 | 9.3 | 25 | 6 | 154.4 | |||||
Depth Chart Overview
Dillon Gabriel is the guy for OU next year. Gabriel will have two hungry running backs flanking him and will have a plethora of receivers looking to prove themselves. For Oklahoma to improve in close games, Gabriel and the offense will have to be better in the red zone and on third downs.
Highly regarded five-star freshman [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] will climb the depth chart, but it’s unlikely he’ll start for the Sooners at any point in 2023. If the Sooners are to push for a Big 12 title in their final season in the conference, Dillon Gabriel’s play will be a big reason for that success.