Establish the line of scrimmage
The Sooners lost the likes of Creed Humphrey and Adrian Ealy to the NFL. Enter transfers Robert Congel out of Arizona and Wanya Morris from Tennessee. Offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh is one of the best in the country at his job. His newest hurdle is finding continuity in the offensive line for this 2021 group.
Per the released depth chart, Robert Congel or the young sophomore Andrew Raym could see the start at center. Chris Murray, who transferred from UCLA last year has locked down the right guard spot replacing Tyrese Robinson who has since kicked out to right tackle as the starter there. Wanya Morris is listed directly behind him. While redshirt senior Erik Swenson and sophomore Anton Harrison will audition for left tackle. Marquis Hayes passed up a chance at heading to the draft and will slot right back at his left guard spot.
All the returning starters and the guys right behind them need to dominate. In a game where OU has a decisive talent advantage and jobs are not really secure yet, coming out fast and burying defensive linemen is paramount. No need to let a team hang around. For many of these guys, they’re still auditioning for a job.