Tag: Dez Malone

Oklahoma cornerback duo great against Tulane Green Wave

The Oklahoma Sooners received fantastic performances from unsung cornerback duo.

The Oklahoma Sooners defense has been the strength of the roster through three games in 2024. If there was a question heading into the season, it was at cornerback, with stars present in the front seven and at safety.

There was a good experience with Woodi Washington, and OU has a talented playmaker in Gentry Williams. However, the Sooners’ defensive staff has made a point to move Washington around this year, and Williams has been dealing with a shoulder issue for much of the last year.

On Saturday, with Williams out, Oklahoma leaned on a couple veterans to play the majority of the snaps on the outside, and they were really good.

[autotag]Kani Walker[/autotag] and [autotag]Dez Malone[/autotag] were targeted 11 times and allowed just two receptions for 14 yards, according to Pro Football Focus. Both Walker and Malone each had a pair of pass breakups. Walker’s PBU in the fourth quarter led to Billy Bowman’s first interception of the season and ultimately allowed the Sooners to pull away from the Green Wave.

Malone was Oklahma’s second-highest-graded player on defense behind R Mason Thomas and was the highest-graded player in coverage.

As the Sooners enter SEC play and face even better offenses than Tulane, they’ll need complete performances from their cornerback groups. And if Walker and Malone can continue to play at a high level, it will create more opportunities for the Sooners pass rush to get home. .

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Where does Oklahoma land in Athlon Sports’ defensive back unit rankings?

Oklahoma’s secondary has plenty of potential, featuring a good mix of veterans and youth.

The Oklahoma Sooners will be looking to take another step forward on defense in 2024, as OU enters Year 3 of the [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] era.

Venables was hired because of his defensive acumen and because of his championship merit at both Oklahoma and Clemson. In his first season, the Sooners gave up 30 points per game on their way to a subpar 6-7 record. Last year, Oklahoma bounced back to go 10-3, giving up just 23.5 points per game.

Now the time has come to make another leap on that side of the ball, and one unit that can help make that happen is the secondary. It’s a unit that was bad in 2022 but improved last season, along with the rest of the defense. It’s also a unit that gave up too many big plays, had the occasional coverage bust last year, and needs to continue improving.

Fortunately, Athlon Sports thinks Oklahoma will have one of the best secondaries in the nation this year, as they revealed their Top 20 defensive back units in the country on Saturday. The Sooners came in at No. 11 overall, third in the SEC. Only Georgia (No. 2) and Texas (No. 10) came in above OU. Ohio State topped Athlon’s list.

The reason for the optimism is the mix of experienced veterans and talented youngsters that have the opportunity to mesh well and create great things for the Sooners in 2024.

Cornerbacks coach [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] has plenty of different options to work with on both sides of the field. Sixth-year senior [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] will still likely play multiple positions on the defense (cornerback, safety and Cheetah), but is going to reportedly be playing a bunch of cornerback once again. The trio of [autotag]Gentry Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Kani Walker[/autotag] and [autotag]Dez Malone[/autotag] will also be counted upon heavily, and all four will see plenty of action. [autotag]Jacobe Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Makari Vickers[/autotag] could also get some run, as they’re both younger players with very high upside.

Similarly, safeties coach [autotag]Brandon Hall[/autotag] will get to mix-and-match different combinations in the back end of the defense. Safety might be even deeper than corner on this year’s team. The return of [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] is what unlocks this position group. The senior is one of the best players on the team in 2024. He’s become a leader for the Sooners and was a ball hawk last year, making big play after big play.

The combination of [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] and [autotag]Robert Spears-Jennings[/autotag] will share snaps at the other safety spot, and OU is excited about what that duo can do.

The depth at the position is strong with [autotag]Reggie Powers III[/autotag], [autotag]Jaydan Hardy[/autotag], [autotag]Erik McCarty[/autotag], [autotag]Michael Boganowski[/autotag] and [autotag]Mykel Patterson-McDonald[/autotag] providing an interesting group of skillsets and plenty of youth. If the injury bug bites, Washington, [autotag]Samuel Omosigho[/autotag], and [autotag]Kendel Dolby[/autotag] could move from primary positions to help out on the back line.

Venables and new defensive coordinator [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] know that the defense has to continue their ascent to get where they want to go in the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. Fortunately, the time for talking is almost over, as the Sooners will begin their season in less than two weeks. The Temple Owls come to Norman on Friday, August 30th.

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Sooners have the best back seven in the SEC per Phil Steele

College football expert Phil Steele thinks OU’s back seven can match up with anybody in the SEC.

Defense was long a strength for the Oklahoma Sooners. The [autotag]Bennie Owen[/autotag], [autotag]Bud Wilkinson[/autotag], [autotag]Chuck Fairbanks[/autotag] and [autotag]Barry Switzer[/autotag] days produced hard-nosed, hard-hitting defensive units that, along with explosive offenses, helped the Sooners win six national championships. Wilkinson and Switzer each took home three titles in the 20th century.

After the dreadful 1990s, [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag]’ arrival meant OU was back to being a contender on the national stage. “Big Game Bob” added Oklahoma’s seventh national title in 2000 and kept the Sooners in the title picture quite often in his time as the head coach.

Defense was Stoops’ calling card. He was the defensive coordinator for coaching legends Bill Snyder and Steve Spurrier. Oklahoma enjoyed stifling defenses for most of Stoops’ tenure as the head coach.

But, in the mid-to-late 2010’s, OU’s defense slipped below the standard in Norman. Stoops’ final season and the [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag] era at Oklahoma saw the offense being required to carry too much of the load to keep the Sooners in the title hunt. [autotag]Baker Mayfield[/autotag], [autotag]Kyler Murray[/autotag] and [autotag]Jalen Hurts[/autotag] were able to do so, but as the decade changed, the Sooners had fallen out of the [autotag]College Football Playoff[/autotag].

After Riley’s departure to Southern California, [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] was hired to bring back the defensive standard. It has taken a couple of years, but Venables may finally have the pieces in the right place to do the things he wants to do on defense.

In 2022, Venables’ first season, the Sooners were horrid defensively, leading to a 6-7 season. They allowed 30 points per game, finishing 99th in the nation in scoring defense. Last season, however, Oklahoma went 10-3 and the defense took a major step forward, improving its scoring defense 50 spots to 23.5 points per game.

Now, going into Year 3 under Venables, one college football analyst thinks OU has two of the best position units in the [autotag]SEC[/autotag].

Phil Steele released his position rankings for every SEC team heading into the 2024 season. Oklahoma had two units ranked No. 1 in the conference.

OU’s linebackers are the SEC’s best, according to Steele. [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag] leads the way on the inside, but [autotag]Kip Lewis[/autotag], [autotag]Kobie McKinzie[/autotag] and [autotag]Jaren Kanak[/autotag] join him to make the Sooners at least two deep at both spots. [autotag]Lewis Carter[/autotag] will also see more snaps in 2024 as well.

At the cheetah position, [autotag]Kendel Dolby[/autotag] and [autotag]Dasan McCullough[/autotag] will see the majority of the snaps, but [autotag]Samuel Omosigho[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Boganowski[/autotag] are younger options who will be on the field quite a bit as well.

Steele also thinks OU’s secondary is the best in the conference. [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] headlines the safety position, with [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] and [autotag]Robert Spears-Jennings[/autotag] in line for more playing time after graduation, NFL and portal losses.

At cornerback, veteran [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] returns for his fifth season, but he will be playing a little bit of everything this year. [autotag]Gentry Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Kani Walker[/autotag] and [autotag]Dez Malone[/autotag] will all be experienced options on the outside, but there’s youth at corner as well. [autotag]Jacobe Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Makari Vickers[/autotag] both saw time last year due to injuries.

More: 5 Sooners who could see an increased workload in 2024

Of course, Oklahoma needs to keep improving to get back to the way things are supposed to be for the Sooners.

Competing for and winning championships are the expectations. Quarterback, offensive line and defensive line all ranked outside of the SEC’s top five in Steele’s estimation. While the QB ranking is due to [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag]’s inexperience, the Sooners have to get better in the trenches to be where they want to be.

However, it’s been a long time since the defense has been as loaded in Norman as it is right now. Combine that with an offense that certainly isn’t lacking in talent, and the Brent Venables vision is starting to become clearer for the Sooners. Venables has the makings of a complementary, holistic program from top to bottom.

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Linebackers and secondary are the Sooners’ strength in 2024 per PFF

According to Pro Football Focus, Oklahoma’s back seven will be its biggest strength in 2024.

It’s preview season in the world of college football, and the Oklahoma Sooners had the spotlight this past week from Pro Football Focus in their College Football Preview (subscription required).

PFF gave the Sooners just a 4% chance to win the SEC this year, but had OU 13th in the nation in their power rankings.

Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman, who co-wrote the article, named Oklahoma’s back seven as its biggest strength heading into the new season.

Here’s what PFF had to say:

Oklahoma’s defense features a top-10 secondary and a linebacker unit that is headlined by [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag], a third-team AP All-American last year.

OU is loaded at the linebacker positions with Stutsman as the clear leader. [autotag]Kip Lewis[/autotag], [autotag]Kobie McKinzie[/autotag] and [autotag]Jaren Kanak[/autotag] should see significant snaps inside as well. [autotag]Lewis Carter[/autotag] will likely have a role in his second year with the Sooners as well.

At the cheetah spot, [autotag]Dasan McCullough[/autotag] and [autotag]Kendel Dolby[/autotag] are intriguing options with experience, but don’t be surprised if [autotag]Samuel Omosigho[/autotag] sees plenty of time.

The secondary has plenty of headliners, beginning with [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] at safety. Playing alongside him will likely be [autotag]Peyton Bowen [/autotag] and/or [autotag]Robert Spears-Jennings[/autotag] to give OU a formidable trio to rotate at both safety spots.

Cornerback is lead by [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] on one side, Oklahoma’s defensive leader in snaps a season ago. While he’ll see time at corner, the Sooners plan to move him around the secondary, even giving him snaps at cheetah in 2024. [autotag]Gentry Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Kani Walker[/autotag] will likely battle all season long on the other side of the field with [autotag]Dez Malone[/autotag] factoring in as well. [autotag]Jacobe Johnson[/autotag] is a local product from Mustang, and he and [autotag]Makari Vickers[/autotag] saw some fill-in action last season.

[autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] has the makings of a high-level defense in 2024 as he enters his third season at the helm of the Sooners.

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‘I’m trying to add more value’: Woodi Washington trying to add versatility to the secondary

Woodi Washington looking to add more value to the Sooners defense with his versatility in 2024.

Early in the offseason, the Oklahoma Sooners received good news after good news. Several players decided to return on the defensive side of the ball. One of those was Woodi Washington.

Washington has been a key fixture at the outside cornerback position for the Sooners for the last several seasons. But he decided to return to Norman in hopes of upgrading his value. And as the Sooners work through spring ball, he may not only be working to improve his draft stock, but adding value to the defense in a variety of roles.

He talked about that after practice last week. “I’m trying to add more value,” Washington said. “Just play as many positions as I can as far as the next level goes.”

Washington also said it was something he went to the coaching staff about before deciding to return for one more year. “I kind of went to them,” Washington said. “It was kind of around the time of the bowl game last year. When I first thought about coming back. Once they said that it was a go, I was all in for it.”

Right now, Oklahoma is tinkering with different spots to play him during spring practices. He’s reportedly been working at cheetah, safety, and cornerback this spring. Washington has spent time at safety due to injuries but has primarily been an outside cornerback in his time in Norman.

I’m sure a lot of where he ends up playing will have to do with if they have guys step up on the outside to take his place. The Sooners added [autotag]Dez Malone[/autotag] to a group that featured young and promising players like [autotag]Gentry Williams[/autotag], [autotag]Kani Walker[/autotag], [autotag]Makari Vickers[/autotag], [autotag]Jacobe Johnson[/autotag], and [autotag]Jasiah Wagoner[/autotag]. The depth chart looks good, but that group of players still has a lot to prove.

But for now, it’s always good to have that versatility in the secondary. Now, it’s up to the coaching staff to figure out what to do next.

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Oklahoma Sooners defensive backs in for a battle in spring ball

If the Oklahoma Sooners secondary can find more consistency, the defense will take another big step in 2024.

Last year, by and large, was a solid year for Oklahoma’s defensive backs. If there’s a knock against them, it was their inconsistency.

[autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] was a bright spot for the Sooner. He recorded 63 tackles, six interceptions, three pick-sixes, four pass breakups, and three tackles for loss last year and should have been an All-American.

Elsewhere, guys made plays but struggled to string together the caliber of performances that Bowman had.

There were moments when [autotag]Gentry Williams[/autotag] was excellent but never sustained his level of play due to a shoulder injury he dealt with for most of the year. His inability to stay on the field had a negative impact on the defense.

[autotag]Kendel Dolby[/autotag] had moments, in particular at cheetah. So did [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag]. Former five-star freshman [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] also flashed at moments but lacked consistency.

So what have we learned? Talent won’t be an issue in 2024. Consistency is the name of the game. And as the Sooners get deeper into spring practice and summer preparations for the season, we’ll be on the lookout for more consistency.

According to reports, coaches have Washington working at cornerback, nickel corner, safety, and cheetah. San Diego State transfer [autotag]Dez Malone[/autotag] is working to acclimate himself, giving Oklahoma length and another veteran option out at corner. He tallied 90 tackles, three for loss, one sack, four interceptions, and 12 pass breakups from 2022-2023.

In-house, the Sooners need leaps from multiple guys. [autotag]Reggie Pearson[/autotag] is gone, and [autotag]Key Lawrence[/autotag] transferred to Ole Miss. Pair that with the need for depth at all secondary spots, and things will get interesting. Billy Bowman and Peyton Bowen are likely your starting safeties but don’t be surprised if Robert Spears-Jennings gets significant playing time at safety as well.

Spears-Jennings is looking to take a big step forward in year three. He feels like a guy we could see much of when Oklahoma goes into three safety looks. After that, Oklahoma will depend on youth. Four-star freshmen Reggie Powers and Jaydan Hardy will likely have to contribute somehow.

Woodi figures to be a starter somewhere on this defense, and barring health issues, Williams is a starting corner, too.

At cornerback, [autotag]Makari Vickers[/autotag], [autotag]Jasiah Wagoner[/autotag], and [autotag]Jacobe Johnson[/autotag] offer a lot of talent and saw time on the field last year. If they come along, Oklahoma’s depth would be outstanding.

Who is the cheetah? [autotag]Justin Harrington[/autotag] is recovering from the injury he suffered early season against SMU and isn’t participating in spring practices. [autotag]Dasan McCullough[/autotag] is working full-time as a linebacker right now.

[autotag]Kendel Dolby[/autotag] is an option, and sophomore now sees reps at the versatile spot too. Maybe four-star prospect [autotag]Michael Boganowski[/autotag] will join the mix as he finds a positional home.

Ultimately, there are a ton of question marks about Oklahoma’s secondary heading into the spring. There’s good potential, but a lack of experience on the depth chart. It’s a group that has to get more consistent for the Sooners to contend in the SEC.

Cornerbacks coach [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] and safety coach [autotag]Brandon Hall[/autotag] have their work cut out for them as the Sooners prepare for 2024.

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