Tag: Bryson Washington

‘We’ll be an improved group’: Sooners defensive backfield improved from a year ago

Head Coach Brent Venables believes his defensive backs will be better than they were a year ago.

Brent Venables and his staff committed to ensuring the results of the 2022 season would not be replicated in 2023.

He and the Sooners’ staff were hyperactive in the transfer portal, and they closed their 2023 recruiting class on a significant high note by securing the services of five-star safety Peyton Bowen.

As the Sooners look ahead to spring practice, the time for evaluation and understanding just what type of roster the Sooners will have is here. When speaking with the media last week, Venables made it clear one specific group is primed for a better year.

The defensive backfield.

“So I think we’ll be an improved group,” Venables said about the defensive backfield. “And we lost a bunch of guys. I think we know that … I’m not sure we didn’t lose a lot of production in the secondary, but we, we lost a bunch of bodies.”

Brent Venables believes between the players returning and those that joined the team as midyear enrollees, the Oklahoma Sooners have a better group of defensive backs than they did a year ago.

[autotag]Kendall Dennis[/autotag] (USF), [autotag]Bryson Washington[/autotag] (New Mexico) and [autotag]Joshua Eaton[/autotag] (Texas State) transferred out after the 2022 season. It’s notable none landed with a Power Five squad.

[autotag]CJ Coldon[/autotag] is the biggest loss the Sooners suffered in the secondary after a strong second half of the season. [autotag]Justin Broiles[/autotag] hopes to continue his playing career at the NFL level.

Dennis, Washington and Eaton didn’t play enough for their departures to matter much. Their transfers allow Oklahoma to examine what they have in the players brought in over the past two cycles.

Gentry Williams snagged an interception in his first collegiate game. He didn’t see the field much as a true freshman, but the Sooners love his size, athletic ability, and his competitiveness.

Robert Spears-Jennings is another 2022 signee that could make an impact this season. His play speed and physicality were on display last season despite limited snaps.

Kani Walker was brought in before the season from Louisville. Like Williams, Walker has the physical tools the Sooners are looking for in their outside corners.

[autotag]Reggie Pearson[/autotag], a transfer from Texas Tech, is a heavy hitter with plenty of collegiate experience. That physicality and experience will help bring an edge to the Sooners defensive backfield.

Most notably, [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] also joins the defensive back room. The most highly coveted secondary recruit for Oklahoma in quite a while, Bowen is expected to be a great one.

[autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag], [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag], [autotag]Damond Harmon[/autotag], [autotag]Jaden Davis[/autotag], [autotag]Justin Harrington[/autotag] and [autotag]Key Lawrence[/autotag] return after playing meaningful snaps for the Sooners last season. They’ll get another offseason in the Sooners’ defensive system, and should have a better understanding of the expectations in the defense.

The hope is because of the improved talent, there will be better production and depth on the secondary depth chart when it drops just before the season.

It remains to be seen how this will actually play out over the course of the season. However, it’s hard to argue with Venables’ assessment. The players who played the most last year are back and should understand the scheme better, which will lead to better performances on the field.

All that’s left is for those returning players to prove their head coach right.

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247Sports asks if the Oklahoma Sooners secondary can step up

247Sports reporter Chris Hummer’s one burning question for Oklahoma entering 2022: can the Sooners’ secondary step up?

Any doubt that follows the Oklahoma Sooners as they get set for the start of spring practice on March 22 is largely due to the losses on the defensive side of the football. Oklahoma lost five starters to the NFL and Pat Fields transferred to Stanford. Delarrin Turner-Yell and Fields’ departures leave a huge leadership void at the back end of the Sooners’ defense.

247Sports reporter Chris Hummer has one burning question for Oklahoma entering the 2022 season: can the Sooners’ secondary step up?

With so much new in Norman this spring, there are a number of pressing questions. Quarterback will be under the microscope. So will the o-line, wide receiver depth and the defensive scheme. But if there’s been a continued weakness for Oklahoma, it’s the secondary. Oklahoma never ranked better than 58th in passing yards allowed per game under Lincoln Riley, and the team dropped all the way to 109th last year after moderate improvements the previous two seasons.

Can it improve next year? Perhaps. But Brent Venables will have to work with rather similar personnel. There are two losses at safety with Delarrin Turner-Yell and Pat Fields moving on. Turner-Yell was probably the best player in the secondary and Fields might have been the worst. As for the returning cornerbacks, they’re all back. There’s also North Carolina transfer Trey Morrison, who projects to play safety, and Wyoming cornerback transfer C.J. Coldon.

Coldon and Morrison are experienced pieces who are near locks for the two-deep. But the ceiling of this room will be determined by younger pieces taking a step. Can Key Lawrence and Billy Bowman emerge as difference makers? Will D.J. Graham and Woodi Washington be better at cornerback after up-and-down debut seasons as starters? Can young players like Kani Walker, Jayden Rowe and Robert Spears-Jennings take a step? Those questions will define the Sooners’ spring. – Hummer, 247Sports.

It’s a fair question to ask. As Hummer points out, Oklahoma plummeted all the way to 109th nationally in passing yards allowed as the Sooners surrendered 261.8 passing yards per game and 26 passing touchdowns on the season. By comparison, the two top passing defenses in the Big 12 last season were Iowa State and Oklahoma State. The Cyclones ranked 11th nationally surrendering just 188.2 passing yards per game, while the Cowboys ranked 36th nationally allowing 210.2 yards per game.

One bit of good news for Oklahoma is that new head coach Brent Venables arrives with the pedigree of producing strong defenses annually. That should provide some form of an immediate boost. Clemson’s defense ranked 34th nationally after surrendering just 209.2 passing yards per game in 2021.

OU has plenty of options on the back end of its defense. Cornerback is boosted by the returns of both starters in D.J. Graham and Woodi Washington. C.J. Coldon comes over from Wyoming where he recorded 68 tackles and 10 pass breakups in 2021.

Key Lawrence showed serious flashes last season at both cornerback and safety. It’s likely he’ll slot in at safety alongside Justin Broiles. Morrison is another interesting option in OU’s defensive backfield. He made starts at both safety and nickel back for North Carolina last year.

Oklahoma also brings back cornerbacks Jaden Davis and Joshua Eaton as well in addition to the signings of Gentry Williams and Jayden Rowe. At safety, the Sooners also return Jordan Mukes and Bryson Washington and signed Robert Spears-Jennings. Defensive back Jamarrien Burt signed with Oklahoma, too.

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As the season approaches, where do the Sooners stand at safety?

Strong play in the secondary could be the tipping point in OU’s title hunt. Here’s how the Sooners stand at safety.

Defensive backs with position flexibility are a hot commodity with the roof of what is possible on offense repeatedly blown off in today’s college football. Modern offenses eagerly await opportunities to go up-tempo, dictating when and how defenses can make substitutions.

Coaches covet defenders who feel comfortable backpedaling from either side of the field. But the truth is most defenders have a preference. Rarer still is the DB with the body of a linebacker and the fluidity of a receiver.

Most of the “do it all” defensive backs are specialized when they land on an NFL roster. That’s why the difference between a safety and a corner is still relevant in today’s game.

With that said, let’s zoom in on the Sooners’ secondary and focus specifically on the safeties.

Oklahoma will be without starting CB Jaden Davis for Bedlam against Oklahoma State

Oklahoma starting CB Jaden Davis appears to be inactive for the Sooners’ matchup with Oklahoma State tonight.

Earlier today, Sooners Wire reported that Oklahoma TE Austin Stogner would be inactive tonight for Bedlam due to a lingering injury from the Kansas game two weeks ago.

Now, with the game just around 30 minutes away, players are taking the field for warmups – thus allowing us to see which players are not going to be active tonight.

It seems the Sooners’ secondary may be one unit hit particularly hard this week, as starting CB Jaden Davis along with backup safeties Bryson Washington and Justin Broiles look to be inactive. Broiles is at the stadium, but is on crutches.

Oklahoma has not confirmed or commented on the reasons for the absences or for Broiles’ injury.

When you are facing one of the best receivers in the country in Oklahoma State’s Tylan Wallace, you would really like to have all your guys in the secondary – not having Davis especially is a big blow.

The game is set for 6:30 p.m. CT in Norman and will be broadcast on ABC.

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Oklahoma 2020 player card: No. 15 Bryson Washington

Sooners Wire will be creating player cards for readers to be introduced to the 2020 roster. Here is the No. 15 Bryson Washington.

There is a ton of momentum to having a 2020 college football season these days. No definite signs, yet, but the season would start less than 100 days from now.

Sooners Wire will be creating player cards for readers to be introduced to the 2020 roster.

Here is the No. 15 for Oklahoma.

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Name: Bryson Washington

Number: No. 15

Year: Freshman

Position: Safety

Hometown: Houston, Texas 

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 193 pounds

Alex Grinch’s first major win on the recruiting trail came in the form of 6-foot-2, 193 pound Bryson Washington.

Washington was a four-star recruit coming out of high school according to Rivals. He was the 190th overall recruit, listed as the No. 12 overall safety and the No. 28 best player in the state of Texas out of the 2020 recruiting class.

The Houston, Texas, native chose Oklahoma over Texas straight-up.

Washington early enrolled at Oklahoma and many expected him to compete for a starting position at nickel or at safety right out of the gate. The coronavirus pandemic shutting things down may effect him more than most on the team.

Incumbent safeties Patrick Fields and Delarrin Turner-Yell and nickel back Brendan Radley-Hiles can hold things down, but the future of the secondary starts and ends with Washington.

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