After Caleb Williams and Mario Williams followed former Oklahoma Sooners head coach Lincoln Riley to USC, Brent Venables and Jeff Lebby moved quickly to replace what was lost and get the offense ready for battle.
According to 247Sports, they did a pretty good job.
Oklahoma came in at No. 6 on Matt Howe’s top 10 QB-WR-RB trifecta list with Dillon Gabriel, Marvin Mims and Eric Gray.
Notably, Texas was fifth and USC was second on this list.
The Longhorns boast a Hesiman candidate at running back, Bijan Robinson, and a gamebreaker at wide receiver, Xavier Worthy. Whether it’s Hudson Card or Quinn Ewers, the Longhorns, as always, have a boon of talent on offense.
USC, of course, has a Heisman candidate of its own, Caleb Williams, 2021 Biletnikoff winner Jordan Addison, who transferred from Pitt, and dynamic Oregon transfer Travis Dye running the ball.
After losing not one but two former five-star QBs to the transfer portal, Gabriel is about the best “consolation prize” Oklahoma could’ve hoped for.
Just like Gabriel, Mims and Gray have much to prove heading into the 2022 season.
Oklahoma lost several key players with the departure of head coach Lincoln Riley, but still managed to reload enough to make the list. UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel joins the Sooners after three seasons with the Knights. In 26 career games, Gabriel has completed 60.7% of his passes for 8,037 yards with 70 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Wideout Marvin Mims is a former four-star recruit who has caught 69 passes for 1,315 yards and 14 touchdowns in his first two seasons in Norman. Running back Eric Gray is set to enter his second season with Oklahoma after spending his first two collegiate seasons at Tennessee. Last year, Gray totaled 641 yards and four touchdowns from scrimmage. – Howe, 247Sports
All three players in this trifecta are draft eligible in 2023. Mims is probably the current headliner in terms of NFL draft value. Gabriel and Gray both need to have a great season to assert themselves among NFL draft prospects.
In Jeff Lebby’s offense, Gray will be fed the football, so that’s covered. The last QB to run Lebby’s offense, Matt Corral, was drafted in the third round this year and received some Heisman buzz.
With Gabriel, Mims and Gray leading the way for the Oklahoma offense, the Sooners will once again have one of the best offenses in football. This dynamic trio will have a chance at career-best production operating under one of the best offenses coordinators in college football. 2022 is going to be huge for the OU offense.
[listicle id=69033]
[mm-video type=video id=01g9jsazt98657nbkhjw playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g9jsazt98657nbkhjw/01g9jsazt98657nbkhjw-dba923a7b758a8d876c08760fcdcba9a.jpg]
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.