Tag: Anton Harrison

Stock Up, Stock Down: Despite penalties, offensive line is trending in the right direction

Offensive line play and Jalen Redmond see upticks while Jeff Lebby and the defensive minds trend down.

Simply describing Oklahoma Sooners’ performance as “not good enough to win” is an uninspired way to look at the football team as a whole. In any game, a player, a coach, or a position group can perform well and not necessarily be the driving factor behind the team’s loss or win.

The loss hurts, but it doesn’t derail Oklahoma’s season with games against multiple top 25 teams remaining on their schedule. Win out, and they could rebuild their resume for a possible College Football Playoff trip, assuming they win the Big 12 as well.

There is still so much football to play, and the only way to keep your goals attainable is to play well. While the Sooners didn’t grade out well in our weekly report card, it’s still early in the season. There’s a lot of football left to play.

Each week we take a look at which way players or positon groups are trending after that performance in “Stock Up, Stock Down.”

Report Card: Oklahoma grades poorly in loss to Kansas State

A poor showing by Oklahoma’s defense doomed the Sooners against Kansas State in our report card from week four.

Any dreams of an undefeated season have officially come to an end as Oklahoma suffered its first loss of the season Saturday night against the Kansas State Wildcats. This has become a recurring theme over the last four years between these two.

Somehow Kansas State just finds a way to beat Oklahoma. Saturday’s loss against the Wildcats followed the same script as the previous losses. Deuce Vaughn was a thorn in Oklahoma’s side, accompanied by a breakout performance from an athletic quarterback. This time, instead of Skylar Thompson, it was Nebraska transfer, Adrian Martinez. He looked like the second-coming of former Heisman winner Cam Newton against Oklahoma. He diced them up through the air and ran for days against this Sooners’ defense.

Ultimately, Oklahoma lost the game 41-34. The story may have ended differently if they could’ve come up with two more plays on both sides of the ball. They couldn’t get out of their way. With that said, we have our final grades for the game and shared them below.

Report Card: Sooners earn high marks in convincing road win vs. old foe Nebraska

Oklahoma earns high marks all around for a complete and thorough road win against long-time rival Nebraska.

Oklahoma’s win against Nebraska was their first notable win of the season as it came against a Power Five opponent.

The Oklahoma Sooners dominated the Cornhuskers 49-14, and in many ways, it served as the perfect tune-up before conference play forces Oklahoma to shift into another gear.

As a team, the Sooners looked good from top to bottom. Players who needed to step up showed up. Others showed they could be big-time contributors for the Oklahoma Sooners this season.

Now that the dust has settled and the Sooners turn their focus to Kansas State, we’ll share our final grades for Oklahoma’s win against Nebraska.

Packers mock draft 1.0: A fresh mock to kick off the season

It’s Week 1, but Packers Wire draft expert Brennen Rupp is already thinking of the 2023 draft. Here’s a two-round mock draft, the first of the season.

The 2022 NFL season is upon us. While everybody is dreaming of the Green Bay Packers bringing the Lombardi Trophy home, I’m currently wondering who the Packers will take in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. 

The 2023 NFL Draft is currently 232 days away. With week one about to kick off, it’s time for the first mock draft of the season. The Packers’ draft slot is based on my season predictions. Here are the Packers results from my first mock of the season. It will be the first of many until April 27.

30th pick: JL Skinner, S, Boise State

Depending on what happens with Adrian Amos’ contract, the Packers could be in the market for a safety early in the 2023 draft. Luckily for the Gutekunst and the Packers, this year’s safety class is talented.

Enter JL Skinner. The Boise State safety packs a punch and flies downhill looking for the kill shot. He’s a tone-setter that plays with great range and physicality.

“JL’s greatest strengths are his length and range,” Ron Counts, the Boise State beat writer for the Idaho Statesman said. “He’s every bit of 6-foot-4 and he put on about 10 pounds in the past year to get up to 220. He was all over the field in coverage last season and really improved as a tackler as the season went on. He also evolved into a big hitter. If he shows more improvement as a tackler and gets his hands on a couple more interceptions this year, he could hear his name called early in the draft.”

In Boise State’s season opener against Oregon State, Skinner recorded 12 tackles and a tip-drill interception. He did give up a touchdown in coverage to Oregon State’s Luke Musgrave.

62nd pick: Anton Harrison, OT, Oklahoma

Will David Bakhtiari make it through the season? Even if he does, the Packers may need to start thinking about life after Bakhtiari, who will be 31 at the end of September.

Harrison started 12 games at left tackle for the Sooners last season and started at right tackle for the Sooners in their season opener on Saturday against UTEP. 

At 6-5, 315 pounds, Harrison has an ideal frame for the position. He has the foot quickness and lower body flexibility to mirror edge rushers in pass protection. According to PFF, Harrison ranked in the Top Five among Big 12 offensive tackles in both pass-blocking and run-blocking.

Bakhtiari and Jenkins could be the starting offensive tackles for the Packers for the foreseeable future, but a team can never have enough depth at tackle. Enter Harrison. 

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3 UTEP Miners that could cause problems for the Oklahoma Sooners

UTEP has some playmakers on both sides of the ball that could give Oklahoma fits if they aren’t careful.

Oklahoma finally straps up their pads on Saturday to take on a UTEP Miners team coming in off a 31-13 week zero loss to North Texas.

UTEP struggled to compete in the second half, allowing UNT to score 17 unanswered points and unable to do anything offensively in the second half.

That won’t work if they plan to remain competitive against Brent Venables’ Sooners. A team who comes in with the added juice of playing for a first-year coach. Add that to the fact that the Palace on the Prairie will be rocking, and things could snowball fast for UTEP.

Oklahoma can’t take UTEP for granted, or they will find themselves in a second-half dog fight like OU did this time last year with Tulane. The talent level may not be up to Big 12 standards, but UTEP has some pieces that could make life difficult for the Sooners.

Up Next: An Explosive Wide Receiver

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Marvin Mims and Andrew Raym appear in Draft Wire’s two-round mock draft

Multiple Oklahoma Sooners appear in Draft Wire’s 2-round mock draft

The Oklahoma Sooners have been one of the premier pipelines to the NFL during its storied history. Our friends at Draft Wire expect that trend to continue in the early rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft with wide receiver Marvin Mims and offensive lineman Andrew Raym being selected.

Both Sooners are being mocked in the second round here, with Mims going 37th overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Raym 46th overall to the Tennessee Titans.

These mock drafts don’t mean much right now, but it is always interesting to see who the best “NFL ready” prospects are going into a season and how these mock drafts unfold as Fall turns into Winter.

Notably absent from this mock draft is Dillon Gabriel. Six different QBs made the cut for this mock draft but Gabriel is not among them for whatever reason.

Also not among these prospects is offensive tackle Anton Harrison. Harrison was recently named Oklahoma’s best 2023 NFL Draft prospect by ESPN’s Matt Miller.

Looking away from the Sooners, this mock has Alabama Edge Will Anderson going No. 1 overall to the Houston Texans. The Texans getting the first pick in the draft is absolutely possible, and while Anderson already has an argument for the best defensive player in the country another Heisman-worthy season would make him very difficult to pass on.

The relative lack of crimson and cream on this preseason mock draft shows just how important this season is for several players’ draft stock. Gabriel, Harrison, Woodi Washington and others all need that one last push to clinch a good spot on draft weekend.

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Trio of Sooners included in College Football News’ top 30 in the Big 12

Ahead of the 2022 season, 3 Oklahoma Sooners were included in College Football News’ top 30 players in the Big 12.

Under two weeks from the start of the 2022 college football season, the Big 12 seems as deep this year as it has been in a while. The Oklahoma Sooners and the Baylor Bears are the favorites in the conference, but teams like Oklahoma State, Texas, and even Kansas State aren’t very far behind.

Even teams like Kansas, Texas Tech, and West Virginia are expected to be better than they were in 2021.

There’s a lot of talent across the board this season. College Football News ranked their top 30 players in the Big 12 heading into 2022, and [autotag]Anton Harrison[/autotag], [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag], and [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag] were each included.

Harrison came in at No. 25, a slot behind TCU’s Max Duggan and behind fellow offensive tackles Connor Galvin of Baylor and Cooper Beebe of Kansas State.

Dillon Gabriel landed at No. 9 and was the highest-ranked quarterback on the list, coming in just ahead of West Virginia’s J.T. Daniels.

Marvin Mims was the highest-ranked Sooner, coming in at No. 6, just one spot behind Texas’ Xavier Worthy. Mims was the second-highest wide receiver in College Football News’ top 30 rankings.

Though the Sooners went through a ton of turnover this offseason, they’re still a very talented bunch. And even though much of the talent on this team is unrealized, 2022 will be the breakout season for a host of Sooners.

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Fantastic photos out of Oklahoma Sooners fall camp

Check out some of the latest photos to emerge from Oklahoma Sooners fall camp.

The Oklahoma Sooners are midway through 2022 fall camp with under three weeks till they host the UTEP Miners on September 3.

That home opener, and Brent Venables debut, will provide an incredible atmosphere in Norman. Everything that’s happened over the last nine months will be put to the test when they take on UTEP at home.

Ranked No. 9 in both the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches poll and the AP Top 25, the Sooners will have something to prove to national observers in order to return to the College Football Playoff.

As fall camp goes on, here are some more fantastic photos from Sooners practice.

OT Anton Harrison named Oklahoma’s best 2023 NFL draft prospect by ESPN

Looking ahead to the 2023 NFL draft, ESPN’s Matt Miller considers Anton Harrison the Oklahoma Sooners’ best NFL prospect heading into 2022.

This has the chance to be a great year for the Oklahoma Sooners. One player that will be critical for the Sooners to reach their goals is offensive tackle Anton Harrison.

Entering his third season in Norman, Harrison will be relied upon to man the left tackle spot for Jeff Lebby’s offense. There are ways Harrison can improve from his first two years, but simply based on what we’ve seen so far, he has the potential to be a first-round draft pick.

Long-time NFL draft analyst Matt Miller scoured the Power Five and selected a 2023 draft prospect from each school. According to Miller, Harrison is the best pro prospect for 2023 on the Sooners.

The Sooners are a young team and are lighter on NFL prospects than normal years, but Harrison has the talent to become OT1 in this class. At 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds, he has easy NFL size and also boasts pro-level agility. – Miller, ESPN

The Oklahoma Sooners boast two of the best offensive tackles in the NFL: Trent Williams and Lane Johnson. Harrison has the tools to be the next great offensive tackle at the next level.

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Fall camp position battles to watch for the Oklahoma Sooners

With fall camp underway, what are some key position battles to watch for the Oklahoma Sooners?

Fall camp is underway, and the Oklahoma Sooners are now about the task of figuring out how their depth chart will lay out when they head into the season opener against the UTEP Miners on September 3.

What it looks like week one doesn’t mean that’s how the depth chart will stay for week two, but it will give us a good indication as to how the coaches feel about certain positions going into the season.

Recently, I attempted to project what the offensive depth chart could look like for Oklahoma to start the season. However, several position battles will help the depth chart take shape.

Let’s take a look at some key position battles for the Oklahoma Sooners in fall camp.