The 2022 college football season is still a long ways off. Just 216 days away. Or, seven months and four days. Or, 30 weeks and six days. You get the picture.
Still, it’s never too early to start thinking about what the Big 12 conference will look like in 2022 and where the Sooners slot into that picture.
Athlon Sports writer Steven Lassan released his early Big 12 football predictions for 2022 several weeks ago and he has Oklahoma No. 2 in his first power rankings.
Here’s what Lassan wrote about OU.
It’s been a busy offseason in Norman, but new coach Brent Venables has the pieces in place to push for a Big 12 title. Assuming Caleb Williams doesn’t return, UCF transfer Dillon Gabriel should take over the quarterback spot and reunite with his former coach (and coordinator) in Jeff Lebby. The Sooners lost running back Kennedy Brooks and a couple of linemen to the NFL, but Gabriel’s arrival should keep this offense near the top of the conference. Venables was one of the nation’s top defensive signal-callers at Clemson and should make an impact right away on this side of the ball for the Sooners. – Lassan, Athlon Sports.
Lassan had Baylor as his preseason No. 1 in his first Big 12 power rankings. After Oklahoma at No. 2, Lassan listed Oklahoma State No. 3, Texas No. 4, Kansas State No. 5, TCU No. 6, Iowa State No. 7, Texas Tech No. 8, West Virginia No. 9 and Kansas No. 10.
Now that Jaxson Dart has made his decision to transfer to Ole Miss official, Oklahoma knows that its starting quarterback will be UCF transfer Dillon Gabriel.
With 70 passing touchdowns and 8,037 passing yards over the course of his 25 starts with UCF, Gabriel brings a wealth of starting experience to his signal-calling duties in Norman.
Offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby has historically featured his No. 1 wide receivers prominently within his offenses. For example, in 2019 with Gabriel directing his offense at UCF, wide receiver Gabriel Davis caught 72 receptions for 1,241 receiving yards and hauled in 12 touchdown grabs.
In 2020 at Ole Miss, wide receiver Elijah Moore reeled in 86 grabs for 1,193 receiving yards and caught eight touchdowns. Then, in 2021, Ole Miss wide receiver Dontario Drummond recorded 76 receptions for 1,028 receiving yards and snagged eight touchdown grabs.
There’s probably a happy medium to be found where receptions are dispersed a little more evenly. At Ole Miss, Moore and Drummond had 59 and 50 more receptions than the next-closest wide receiver, respectively. It wasn’t nearly as drastic in 2019 at UCF, where Davis’ 72 receptions were closely followed by Marlon Williams’ 51 grabs and Tre Nixon’s 49 catches.
It’s safe to say Lebby and Gabriel have their No. 1 target at OU in wide receiver Marvin Mims, though. Mims has been the Sooners’ leading receiver each of the past two seasons with 610 receiving yards in 2020 and 705 receiving yards in 2021.
Still, he only caught 37 and 32 receptions in those two seasons, so look for those numbers to radically climb upwards. The return of wide receiver Theo Wease and the potential emergence of wide receiver Jalil Farooq should have the Sooners’ receiving stable in good hands.
OU brought in Cal transfer McKade Mettauer who had 28 career starts at right guard to help offset the losses of Marquis Hayes and Tyrese Robinson up front along Oklahoma’s offensive line. It figures that he’ll be helping pave the way for either Eric Gray or Marcus Major at running back. The Sooners also signed a pair of four-star running backs in Jovantae Barnes and Gavin Sawchuk.
Oklahoma’s offensive skill talent surrounding Gabriel should be one of its strengths heading into 2022.
Defensively, Oklahoma is replacing six starters. OU added experience along its defensive line via the transfer portal in Tulane transfer Jeffery Johnson and Hawaii transfer Jonah Laulu. That pair combined for 77 tackles and 6.5 sacks in 2021.
The Sooners also bring back defensive tackle Jalen Redmond who is ready for a starring role. In just eight games in 2021, Redmond finished with eight tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. He’s registered 21.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks in his Oklahoma career.
OU got good news when linebacker DaShaun White announced his plans to return. White has made 36 career starts at Oklahoma and recorded 169 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and five sacks.
On the back end, Oklahoma returns probable starters D.J. Graham and Woodi Washington at cornerback and Key Lawrence figures to start at one of the two vacated safety positions. The Sooners also added a trio of defensive backs from the transfer portal in Wyoming transfer C.J. Coldon, North Carolina transfer Trey Morrison and Louisville transfer Kani Walker.
In short, there’s a lot to be decided between now and the start of the 2022 season in terms of who will start for Oklahoma, especially defensively. OU used the transfer portal to effectively position itself to withstand NFL Draft and outgoing transfer portal departures. The Sooners are as good a candidate as anybody else to capture the 2022 Big 12 Championship in head coach Brent Venables’ first season at the helm.
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