The coronavirus pandemic struck sports just as spring football was starting up for Oklahoma. Saturday would have been the Sooners spring game and the big spring game recruiting weekend would be currently taking place.
Lincoln Riley was supposed to sort out his quarterback and left tackle position. Alex Grinch had a chance to mold his newcomers like Perrion Winfrey and Bryson Washington. It was going to be glimpse of what the future of Oklahoma football looks like, way more so than most years.
The Sooners have the talent and are poised to defend their five-straight Big 12 Championships, but without a spring, that idea becomes a lot more complicated.
Here are the five questions that were going to have a chance to be answered for Oklahoma if spring football would have happened.
WHAT WILL OKLAHOMA’S OFFENSE LOOK LIKE?
The answer to who wins the quarterback battle between Spencer Rattler and Tanner Mordecai can go unsaid. What the offense looks like with Rattler at quarterback is another thing.
Lincoln Riley would not have shown much during the spring game, but the spring game has been a showcase before and no better way to show how much different the 2020 offense was going to be in a spring game with Rattler.
WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN AT LEFT TACKLE?
The biggest question mark on Oklahoma’s offense this entire offseason will be the situation at left tackle. This spring was set to be a big one for redshirt freshman Stacey Wilkins and what sounds like the future at left tackle for Bill Bedenbaugh.
I still feel as if Wilkins is the guy over incumbent Erik Swenson, but this spring was going to be huge for the young guys development.
WHO IS OKLAHOMA’S INTERIOR DEFENSIVE LINE?
Not only who, but what is the defensive front going to look like. Alex Grinch has one true nose tackle in Perrion Winfrey and a bunch of 2i to 4i technique defensive lineman (ranging from lining up inside the guard to inside the tackle).
Winfrey, without a full spring practice under his belt, remains the hallmark of the defensive line. Joining him are guys like Jordan Kelley, LaRon Stokes, Jalen Redmond and Kori Roberson. Does junior college counterpart Joshua Ellison make a push?
There was plenty to sort out for Grinch and two defensive line coaches Calvin Thibodeaux and Jamar Cain, and now that is going to have to wait.
WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE NICKEL BACK SPOT?
The biggest question surrounding the defense was the ever-evolving situation at nickel back. This is a place where Bryson Washington could have taken a stranglehold of not just the position, but the entire defense. How guys like Grant Delpit and Isaiah Simmons have impacted the game has changed how the nickel spot is played in our current age of college football.
Brendan “Bookie” Radley-Hiles remains the safest bet and playing in the same capacity he played a year ago, but I wouldn’t have been so sure if there were spring practices to be had.
IS WIDE RECEIVER DEPTH THAT MUCH OF A PROBLEM?
Oklahoma has a core group of wide receivers that is as talented as anyone in the country. Jadon Haselwood, Theo Wease, Trejan Bridges, Charleston Rambo and Theo Howard could respectively lead Oklahoma in receiving in a game and it shouldn’t surprise a soul. But after that, it’s slim pickings, and something we could have seen first-hand at the spring game.
All three of the incoming receivers, specifically Marvin Mims, and FLEX receiver Jalin Conyers are going to need to come along quick this fall.
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