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They’ll be in somewhat unfamiliar territory when the Oklahoma Sooners open the 2022 college football season. With the turnover in the coaching staff and on the roster, analysts across college football are unsure of what to expect from the new-look Oklahoma Sooners. They’ll have a lot to prove.
It’s fair to wonder what the Sooners will be with a first-year head coach. At the same time, that first-year head coach has been a star in the making for what seems like a decade. He’s been one of the best coordinators in all of college football since leaving Oklahoma for the Clemson Tigers. Venables isn’t the trendy assistant coach getting his first opportunity. He’s been patiently biding his time for the right job after working under legends of the sport for the last 30 years.
But it isn’t simply the changes on the coaching staff that have people selling the Oklahoma Sooners in 2022. They lost a ton of talent off of an 11-win team from 2021. That’s why Stewart Mandel from The Athletic left the Sooners out of his way-too-early top 25 and why the Sooners are just inside NCAA.com’s early look at the 2022 season.
The Sooners played in close games seemingly every week but impressed in the bowl game. New coach Brent Venables will have to deal with major changes to the roster, though UCF transfer QB Dillon Gabriel is now a Sooner. But Oklahoma is Oklahoma — the Sooners expect to compete for titles every year. – Wayne Staats, NCAA.com
Did the Oklahoma Sooners lose a lot this offseason? Absolutely. At the same time, they found players in the transfer portal and in their bowl game win over Oregon that should step in and mitigate the losses.
Losses along the defensive line will be the most difficult to recover. In most NFL draft projections, Nik Bonitto and Perrion Winfrey are top 60 talents. Isaiah Thomas was one of the most important players on the roster as a pass rusher and run defender. Losing those three at the same time creates a massive hole on the defensive line.
Jalen Redmond stuck around for one more year and will be the leader of the unit. Reggie Grimes, Marcus Stripling, and Ethan Downs played well in the Alamo Bowl win over Oregon. Their performance provides optimism that the Sooners pass rush will be in good shape despite the turnover.
The additions of Jeffrey Johnson and Jonah Laulu from the transfer portal provide experience and production that can step into the defensive line rotation and help immediately.
At quarterback, the Sooners went back to the transfer portal after the last couple of seasons of using “homegrown” talent in Spencer Rattler and Caleb Williams. Dillon Gabriel comes to the Oklahoma Sooners with a ton of experience and production at UCF. With 26 starts, more than 8,000 yards passing, and 79 total touchdowns, the Sooners offense should maintain its level of production despite the change in offensive play-caller.
We’re a long way from the start of the 2022 college football season, and with winter practices underway and spring ball right around the corner, the Sooners have some questions to answer. However, with Venables leading the way, there is little doubt in Norman that the Oklahoma Sooners can contend for the Big 12 title in 2022.
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