Oklahoma’s season comes down to just two games in an attempt to become bowl eligible. The first of those two games occurs on Saturday when in-state rival Oklahoma State comes to town.
In the wake of the Sooners loss to Oklahoma State a year ago, the program went through a shocking 24 hours. Lincoln Riley left for USC, the 2022 class began to fall apart, and several Sooners entered the transfer portal. It was a shocking series of events, but all of it paved the way for Oklahoma to bring in Brent Venables.
At 5-5 in his first season at the helm, Oklahoma must win this game, and the Venables’ defense will have its hands full.
Oklahoma will be lining up across from one of the Big 12’s better quarterbacks, Spencer Sanders. Even while competing through injuries this season, Sanders has thrown for 2,261 yards, 16 touchdowns, and only five interceptions while completing 58.5 percent of his passes. He’s also run for 628 yards and two scores, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. He’s the engine for this Oklahoma State offense, and without him, the Cowboys aren’t nearly as productive.
His weapons will also test Oklahoma as well, which brings us to this question: How will the Sooners’ defense perform? We’ll find out Saturday evening, but here are five guys that could be instrumental in helping the Sooners’ defense slow down the Cowboys.