August is finally here. Coming with it is the return of college football.
NFL training camp is open, fall camp begins this week in Norman and week zero is at the end of the month. It’s officially “football time in Oklahoma.”
Sooner, we’ll get the first Associated Press top 25 of the 2023 college football season.
247Sports projected AP top 25 featured four Big 12 teams, including the Oklahoma Sooners.
Thanks to an impressive transfer portal haul and 2023 signing class, Brent Venables and the Sooners should gain some respect despite last season’s (6-7) finish. Edge rusher and Indiana transfer Dasan McCullough could have an incredible season on defense if he stays healthy and plays like he did this spring. Oklahoma must improve on that side of the football. From the outside looking in, it appears the Sooners are being undersold a bit after last season’s fall from grace this summer, but AP voters may change that narrative. – Brad Crawford 247Sports
Oklahoma, fresh off a 6-7 campaign, is one of those teams coming in at No. 17. They’re the second-highest-ranked Big 12 team behind the Texas Longhorns, who landed at No. 9.
This is a good spot for Oklahoma. It’s not too high, and it’s just low enough that the team can use it as motivation.
With the expectations that come from playing at Oklahoma and coming off its worse season since 1998, the Sooners are likely to come into 2023 playing with a chip on their shoulder.
The last time Oklahoma wasn’t in the top 10 in the preseason was 2015 when they were ranked No. 19. That was the first year they made the College Football Playoff. That year, they lost to the Clemson Tigers, whose defense was led by Venables.
Oklahoma historically has done pretty well when expectations were low. The Sooners were ranked outside of the top 15 when they won their last national championship in 2000. They were also led by a transfer left-handed quarterback.
It would be a shock if the Sooners contended for a national title, but with the additions they’ve made this offseason and the growth in year two in Brent Venables system, they could certainly play their way into the national title conversation.
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