The [autotag]Oklahoma Sooners[/autotag] have consistently had one of the best offensive lines in college football since [autotag]Bill Bedenbaugh[/autotag] took over. They consistently put people in the NFL, most recently [autotag]Anton Harriso[/autotag]n and [autotag]Wanya Morris[/autotag].
To play for someone like Bedenbaugh can be grueling because of what he demands from his lines. But in the end, it is rewarding.
This year shouldn’t be any different.
Offensive Coordinator Jeff Lebby already named four of the five starters, [autotag]Tyler Guyton[/autotag], [autotag]McKade Mettauer[/autotag], [autotag]Andrew Raym[/autotag] and [autotag]Walter Rouse[/autotag]. All four of those guys have started at the Power Five level.
With Raym, Rouse, and Mettauer, the Sooners have three guys who have started three or more seasons of college football. With that much experience, there’s only one spot up for grabs.
[autotag]Savion Byrd[/autotag] looks to be the front runner to start at left guard, taking most of the first-team reps at this point in fall camp. Byrd told reporters, he has been working on being more consistent.
“Taking it one day at a time,” Byrd said. “Getting the game plans down, learning how to watch film properly, learning how to be consistent, like really consistent day in and day out. Being physical is not going to be the problem it’s making sure my hands are in the right place, feet, leverage, just really being consistent in my blocks and molding to be the offensive lineman I can be.”
In the [autotag]Baker Mayfield[/autotag] and [autotag]Kyler Murray[/autotag] years, Oklahoma’s offensive lines were known to be nasty. They were physical and just wanted to maul you every play. Since then, there haven’t been too many players on the line with that mentality. Byrd brings that to this team.
But much was made about Byrd’s weight this offseason. He admitted to getting down to 265-270 pounds at one point. But staying consistent and putting in the work has helped him get up to 305 pounds.
As for his diet, “Eat anything that I can put my hands on,” Byrd said. That has obviously worked for him. To be a big-time guard you need to have that mentality that Byrd has but you can’t be too light in the pockets either.
Now the question is if he can take his game to the next level and become the next Oklahoma offensive lineman to go to the NFL. That’s the plan, now we have to see it play out.
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