Over the next 12 days, I’m going to break down each of Oklahoma’s opponents this season and give a score prediction. At the end of it, we’ll have a record prediction to work with as well.
To kick off Year 2 under Brent Venables, the Sooners open the season versus Arkansas State, which is fresh off a 3-9 season last year.
Now, you never want to overlook opponents because we’ve seen in the past where an Appalachian State Mountaineers beat a top-five Michigan Wolverines team. But this is the perfect tune-up game for the Sooners. Arkansas State ranks 101st in the nation in returning production (ESPN+).
It returns 49% of its offensive production, which ranks 111th. It also returns 62% of its defensive production, which ranks 71st.
The Red Wolves were horrific on offense last season, ranking 118th in total offense. They lost starting quarterback James Blackman who threw 14 touchdowns and only three interceptions last season. Also gone are their starting running back and their top two wide receivers from last year.
They’ve replaced their quarterback with J.T. Shrout, who transferred from the Colorado Buffaloes. He completed 44.3% of his passes and threw seven touchdowns and eight interceptions last season.
On defense, they ranked 90th in the nation, which ranked 32 spots ahead of the Sooners last year. They are also returning a majority of their production. So, if there is a bright spot for the Red Wolves, it would be on the defensive side of the ball.
All in all, this should not be a struggle for Oklahoma, and if it is, alarms will be sounding.
Score Prediction: 52-7 Oklahoma
Predicted Record: 1-0
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