Tag: Doug Deakin

Can Oklahoma Sooners win ‘Beamer Ball’ battle vs. South Carolina?

The Sooners can’t afford to let “Beamer Ball” be their undoing this week.

The Oklahoma Sooners are 4-2 entering week eight of the 2024 college football season, and they’re 1-2 in [autotag]SEC[/autotag] play. They’ll look to bounce back from last week’s tough loss against Texas at home against the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday.

To say OU has struggled mightily on offense this season would be an understatement. While the defense has held up their end of the bargain, the Sooners haven’t been able to put points on the board.

The Gamecocks have had similar problems this year, although not as drastic. They boast an excellent defense, but an offense that has struggled at times to move the ball.

However, the third phase of the game of football will be very important this week, as special teams may come to Oklahoma’s aid in this contest, or be their demise.

South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer knows more about special teams than just about any other coach in the country. His father, Frank Beamer, famously coached Virginia Tech to plenty of success with “Beamer Ball” and his son has followed in his footsteps. The Beamers are excellent on special teams, often earning their teams an edge in that department.

Shane Beamer actually coached at Oklahoma from 2018 to 2020 in a variety of roles (including special teams), before he got his current gig in Columbia. The Gamecocks nearly upset LSU early this season, and used a remarkable onside kick to come within a drive of defeating Alabama last week. South Carolina is a worthy opponent for the Sooners, especially on special teams, with the Oklahoma offense stuck in neutral (or park, or reverse).

Oklahoma head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] made special teams a point of emphasis this offseason, after the Sooners had far too many mistakes in that department in his first two years at the helm. Special teams analyst [autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag] was hired away from San Diego State to replace Jay Nunez, who took a job at Alabama.

Through six games, OU hasn’t been remarkable on special teams, but the big mistakes that bit them last year haven’t shown up as much. But it’ll take everybody to win that battle against Beamer and the Gamecocks.

Punter [autotag]Luke Elzinga[/autotag] leads the way for this unit, as he’s had an excellent season. Time and time again, Elzinga has been counted upon to win the field position battle, and time and time again, he’s delivered. He hasn’t had a punt blocked, and he’s honestly one of Oklahoma’s best players, regardless of position. As OU continues to struggle on offense, but play well defensively, field position will be crucial.

The trio of kicker [autotag]Tyler Keltner[/autotag], holder [autotag]Josh Plaster[/autotag] and long snapper [autotag]Ben Anderson[/autotag] will have to be solid on field goals and extra points this week, as South Carolina will capitalize on any mistakes. Keltner has missed a couple of kicks this season, including one against Texas, but is still an improvement over what the position has seen the last couple of years. The Sooners also have not had a kick blocked.

OU’s kickoff specialist, [autotag]Zach Schmit[/autotag] (who stepped in nicely as the starter at kicker for Keltner against Auburn), can’t give the Gamecocks any un-earned opportunities either, as the Sooners defense needs all the help they can get.

If the Sooners could block a punt or a kick, that would be fantastic, but South Carolina doesn’t make many special teams errors. Oklahoma also will have to be careful they don’t give up a big return.

In the return game, Oklahoma hasn’t gotten anything substantial, though they are dealing with some injuries to their kickoff returners. Without Jalil Farooq and Deion Burks in the lineup, that duty has fallen to players like Billy Bowman, [autotag]Sam Franklin[/autotag], Gavin Sawchuk and Devon Jordan. Franklin seems to be the preferred option, but he is currently questionable for this game, as is Burks.

[autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] is the primary punt returner, with Bowman as a backup option. Bowen was excellent returning punts in high school, and has shown potential, but hasn’t gotten loose for a big play yet at the college level.

Lastly, OU will have to avoid special teams penalties, which has not exactly been a strength through six games.

That means being disciplined and paying attention to the little details in order to keep from making those errors. Whether it’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalties or procedure penalties, they simply can’t happen on special teams in any game, this one included. They’ll also need to keep the antenna up for momentum-shifting plays like onside kicks or fakes that can swing things in favor of South Carolina.

With his offense trying to find solutions at this point in the season, Venables will be looking for his special teams to out-duel “Beamer Ball” and help his defense come away with the win.

What can we expect from Seth Littrell’s offense in 2024?

Seth Littrell’s background could lend a few clues as to what OU’s offense might look like in 2024.

The Oklahoma Sooners begin the 2024 college football season in a matter of days. The Temple Owls will pay them a visit on Friday, August 30 at 6:00 p.m. to kick off the year.

It’s a season of change for OU in Year 3 under head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag]. The Sooners leave the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] to join the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag], who started at quarterback for the last two seasons, transferred out of the program, leaving sophomore [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] in line to take over under center. [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] won’t be on the team for the first time since 2018.

Venables is also breaking in new coordinators.

[autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] takes over the defensive coordinator and linebacker coach role previously held by [autotag]Ted Roof[/autotag], who mutually parted ways with Oklahoma last winter.

Alley has been called a “clone of Venables” and allows the head coach to be a bit more of a CEO-type, not needing to focus on calling defensive plays nearly as much. Alley has gained Venables’ trust. Venables defensive acumen is the main reason he was hired as OU’s next head coach. Passing the defensive coordinator responsibilities over to Alley is a ringing endorsement of the young defensive mind. Experienced defensive assistant coaches and co-coordinators [autotag]Todd Bates[/autotag] and [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] will be able to help the younger Alley out as well.

[autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag] replaces [autotag]Jay Nunez[/autotag] as the special teams analyst. Deakin will be charged with improving the Sooners in all facets of the special teams portion of the game, as it was a weakness in 2023 for Oklahoma. New NCAA rules removed limits to the number of coaches allowed to be on the field during practice and games. That should help the Sooners have a much better special teams unit. Oklahoma can’t afford to have special teams lose a game for them in the treacherous jungle of the SEC.

Oklahoma saw offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] leave in late November to become the head coach at Mississippi State. Immediately, the search for his replacement started, and Venables landed on co-offensive coordinators already in the building for the role.

[autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag] had been the tight ends coach at OU for the past three seasons. Finley is very close with Lebby, as the pair also worked together at Baylor (2015) and Ole Miss (2020) before spending the last two seasons together in Norman.

Some were surprised when Finley didn’t follow Lebby to Starkville, but the internal promotion for the former OU tight end (2004-2007) kept him at Oklahoma. Finley is also close with former Sooners quarterback and offensive coordinator [autotag]Josh Heupel[/autotag], as the pair coached together at Missouri for two years (2016-2017).

Finley will continue to coach tight ends while serving as OU’s co-offensive coordinator. However, he won’t be calling the plays.

That duty will fall to [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag], who will serve as Oklahoma’s new quarterbacks coach in addition to the co-offensive coordinator role. He’ll be the one talking to Arnold in the helmet communication system that comes new to college football in 2024.

So what will Oklahoma’s offense look like in 2024, as Littrell replaces Lebby with Finley more heavily involved in the offensive game plan than in the past?

Littrell is an experienced playcaller and offensive coordinator, something Lebby wasn’t when he returned to Norman two years ago. Just like Lebby and Finley, Littrell played for Oklahoma during the [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag] days. He won a national championship in 2000 as a fullback at OU, serving as a captain on the national title team. It’s the same national title team with Venables as a co-defensive coordinator in Year 2 under Stoops. His father, Jimmy, also played fullback at OU and won two national championships in 1974 and 1975.

The Muskogee, Oklahoma native, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Kansas under former Oklahoma offensive coordinator Mark Mangino in 2002. After three years in Lawrence, he was hired to coach running backs at Texas Tech under Mike Leach, where he spent four seasons. In those seven years, Littrell learned under two of the best offensive minds in college football. He was tutored in the ways of the power running spread offense at KU under Mangino before learning the methods of the Air Raid under Leach in Lubbock.

Littrell coached in a variety of different roles on offense at Arizona during the final three years of Mike Stoops’ time as the head coach of the Wildcats from 2009 to 2011. In his first season in the desert, he learned under another Air Raid expert, Sonny Dykes, who is now the head coach at TCU.

In 2010, he was co-offensive coordinator with none other than current Oklahoma offensive line coach [autotag]Bill Bedenbaugh[/autotag], and the two have a strong relationship. When Bedenbaugh left to coach the o-line at West Virgnia, Littrell was the solo offensive coordinator for the first time in his career in 2011. However, Stoops was fired midway through the season and Littrell was left looking for a new home after the year.

Littrell landed at Indiana, where he was the offensive coordinator for Kevin Wilson, the current head coach at Tulsa who served as OU’s offensive coordinator from 2002-2010. During his time in Norman, Wilson had combined Air Raid concepts with his own spread run game tactics. Oklahoma’s 2008 offense, under Wilson, is still regarded as one of the best in college football history.

After Littrell spent two years under Wilson, he accepted the offensive coordinator job at North Carolina under Larry Fedora, who ran the spread offense. In two seasons coaching for the Tar Heels, Littrell impressed and began to get head coaching consideration.

In 2016, Littrell was hired as the head coach of the North Texas Mean Green. He gave UNT more success than they had seen in years, making two conference title games and twice winning nine games. He was fired following the 2022 regular season despite posting a 7-6 mark and losing the Conference USA title game. His offenses at UNT were a blend of the concepts he learned under Air Raid coaches such as Leach and Dykes and spread coaches like Mangino, Wilson, and Fedora.

Littrell’s offense helped quarterback Mason Fine throw for 12,000 yards over four seasons. He averaged 3,644 yards and 30 total touchdowns per year over his final three seasons with the Mean Green.

Last season, Littrell served as an offensive analyst for the Sooners under another spread disciple in Lebby, before being promoted, along with Finley, for the Alamo Bowl.

As a play caller, he can use his unique path back to Norman to dial up whatever is needed at the time. His time in Denton also gave him a footprint and connections in a massive recruiting area for the Sooners.

In the interest of continuity, the offense will still look at lot like it has the past two seasons. The Sooners ran a variety of the veer-and-shoot spread offense that focuses on wide splits for receivers and getting playmakers the ball in space.

It looks and functions differently than the [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag] Air Raid offense that Sooner fans saw for seven seasons, but ultimately wants to accomplish a lot of the same things, namely lighting up the scoreboard.

The idea of the spread veer-and-shoot is to make defenses have to cover everything from sideline to sideline, opening up windows for the power running game while making the quarterback’s decision-making as easy as possible.

The primary reason to run the veer-and-shoot offense is that the tempo, aggressiveness, and wide splits help to raise the floor for your offense, regardless of talent level. Lebby learned the offense from pioneers like Wilson, Art Briles, Heupel and Lane Kiffin. Littrell learned under Lebby last season and will now be able to put his own personal spin on it.

Reportedly, more of a focus on the power running game and deep passing attack will be implemented this year, feeding off of this offensive core’s strengths. However, Littrell’s offenses at UNT threw more than they ran, so Arnold will still have plenty on his shoulders. Littrell’s relationship with Bedenbaugh should ensure the offensive line will be a big factor in what the Sooners want to do on offense. Their relationship should create more cohesion in the offensive philosophy.

Running the ball effectively will be critical in the SEC.

Continuity is a big reason why Littrell and Finley were promoted, but the offense won’t be exactly the same.

Littrell will be a different playcaller than Lebby was, just like Arnold is a different quarterback than Gabriel was. The key will be getting the two on the same page. Between the duo of Littrell and Finley (and passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach [autotag]Emmett Jones[/autotag]), the development of their young quarterback will be at the forefront of their minds. Arnold holds the keys to unlocking the offense and helping the Sooners become an elite college football team.

Furthermore, several assistant coaches from the Riley era still remain on offense: Finley, Bedenbaugh, and running backs coach [autotag]DeMarco Murray[/autotag]. Littrell’s background in the Air Raid may shine through a few times this season, but the offense may look similar to what we’ve seen the last couple of seasons schematically.

At the end of the day, Littrell’s experience as a playcaller trumps his inexperience as a quarterbacks coach. At times last season, particularly in losses against Kansas and Oklahoma State, Lebby caught a fair share of the blame for his playcalling in critical moments.

Littrell has been through that already. He’s a versatile, well-traveled coach who won’t be in over his head, regardless of the situation.

Oklahoma has a good enough defense this year to keep them in games, especially early on, but the offense can’t lag too far behind. Littrell needs to find his sweet spot as a play caller in the spread veer-and-shoot before Tennessee (and veer-and-shoot expert Heupel) comes to town in late September.

Regardless of what Oklahoma’s offense looks like, it’ll be imperative that the Sooners are firing on all cylinder when the Volunteers come to town in week four.

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Oklahoma Sooners still looking for an answer at Kicker

Two players are battling to become the starting kicker for Oklahoma in 2024.

The Oklahoma Sooners released their first official depth chart of the 2024 season on Sunday evening, letting fans know the players who will start Week 1 against Temple.

One underrated position battle for head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] heading into Year 3 is at the kicker position. OU needs to be better on special teams this season, beginning with their success rate on field goals. Venables knows this will be doubly important with the Sooners entering the [autotag]SEC[/autotag], where the margin between failure and success is even smaller than what Oklahoma is used to.

In addition, OU is breaking in a new special teams analyst. [autotag]Jay Nunez[/autotag] is out and [autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag] takes over after coming over from San Diego State. Venables and Deakin held a kicker competition this offseason, but with the release of the initial depth chart, it seems the spot still hasn’t been decided yet.

A pair of redshirt seniors, [autotag]Tyler Keltner[/autotag] and [autotag]Zach Schmit[/autotag], are battling for the right to be named Oklahoma’s starter. Keltner is the newcomer in the race after joining the Sooners via the portal this offseason. Schmit is the incumbent and is one of the longest-tenured players on the roster. He’s been the starter for each of the last two seasons.

At the other specialist positions, redshirt senior [autotag]Luke Elzinga[/autotag] will retain the starting punter job that he earned midway through last season. Redshirt sophomore [autotag]Ben Anderson[/autotag] will serve as the long-snapper, redshirt senior [autotag]Josh Plaster[/autotag] will be the holder and Schmit will retain his role as Oklahoma’s kickoff specialist.

Sophomore safety [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] gets the nod as OU’s punt returner, a move fans will be happy to see, as he was electric returning punts in high school. A pair of seniors, safety [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag] and wide receiver [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag], will be the kickoff returners to begin the season. Oklahoma needs to be better in the kick return game this year than they were in 2023, as a couple of costly mistakes hurt the Sooners in their two regular season losses.

OU will begin their foray into the SEC on Friday night in Norman, as they’ll look to start strong against Temple. Kickoff will be at 6 p.m.

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How Zac Alley can unlock the Oklahoma Sooners defense

The Sooners hired Alley from Jacksonville State.

Oklahoma Sooners third-year head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] is replacing coordinators for every single unit in 2024. It’s a unique place to be, but OU fans are optimistic about the new hires.

On offense, [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag] had been the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach for the past two seasons. When he took the head coaching job at Mississippi State in November, Venables chose to promote from within to replace Lebby, elevating offensive analyst [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] and tight ends coach [autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag] to co-offensive coordinators. Littrell will serve as the quarterbacks coach and primary play caller, while Finley will have more input than before and will continue to coach tight ends. Wide receivers coach/passing game coordinator [autotag]Emmett Jones[/autotag] will also factor into the game planning throughout the week. He’s been nothing but stellar since showing up in Norman.

Former special teams analyst [autotag]Jay Nunez[/autotag] left to take a job at Alabama this offseason, leading to the hiring of [autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag], formerly at San Diego State. Special teams play was a weak spot a season ago for the Sooners, and it must be better in the unforgiving SEC.

Former defensive coordinator/linebackers coach [autotag]Ted Roof[/autotag] and the Sooners mutually parted ways this winter, and Venables hired [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] to replace him. Defensive tackles coach [autotag]Todd Bates[/autotag] and cornerbacks coach [autotag]Jay Valai[/autotag] will serve as co-defensive coordinators under Alley, two veterans who can help the younger coordinator.

While all of these moves have to work out for the Sooners to have success, Alley’s role is an interesting one as he arrives in Norman.

He spent eight years (2011-2018) as a student assistant and graduate assistant at Clemson, spending the final seven years under Venables, who was the defensive coordinator for the Tigers. A month after he was signed to be the nickel backs coach at Charlotte, he instead ended up coaching linebackers at Boise State, where he spent two seasons. Former Louisiana-Monroe head coach Terry Bowden hired Alley as his defensive coordinator, at the recommendation of Venables in 2021. After just one year at ULM, Jacksonville State head coach Rich Rodriguez tabbed Alley for the same role. He spent two seasons at JSU, helping the Gamecocks make the move from FCS to FBS in 2023.

Now, Alley steps into a much larger role; defensive coordinator at Oklahoma. His style is extremely similar to Venables’ himself, having spent seven of his 13 seasons in coaching under his leadership. He’s been called a clone of Venables, as his mannerisms and attitude closely reflect those of OU’s head coach. The team posted a recent video on social media that features Alley, and it’s tough to differentiate his voice from Venables’

Make no mistake about it: the Sooners will be running Brent Venables’ schemes, concepts, and formations on defense for as long as he’s in Norman. Venables was hired in December of 2021, in part because of his defensive acumen, in addition to his previous ties to the program. It’s his defense, but having someone he fully trusts as the defensive coordinator and play caller unlocks what Oklahoma can be as a team.

Alley’s presence and Venables’ comfort level allows the head coach to focus on every aspect of the game instead of having to be so hands-on with the defensive playcalling. It’s an area that improved last year for the Sooners, but still has room to improve.

Venables will likely never be a true “CEO-type” head coach. He’s got too much enthusiasm, energy, and knowledge to sit back and watch the defense. It’s something that he shouldn’t change, as players, recruits, parents, fans, and fellow coaches love that about him. However, there is still room for improvement for Venables when it comes to managing the game within the game. Understandable for someone who has only been a head coach for 26 games in his career.

Oklahoma went 0-5 in one-score games in 2022, improving to 3-2 in that stat in 2023. There will likely be more one-score games as the Sooners make the move to the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. Though it’s clearly somewhere OU has gotten better, there were two costly losses in that department last year. Losses against Kansas and Oklahoma State came right down to the wire, and mistakes on offense, defense, and special teams cost the Sooners a trip to the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] Championship game and maybe more.

Though Venables should still have the final say on a crucial defensive moment, having someone who sees the game the same way and has a similar thought process about defense will be very beneficial throughout the season.

In fact, looking at the championship-winning coaches in recent years in college football, they’ve had a similar model to what Oklahoma has now, delegating play-calling duties in their area of expertise to focus on being a head coach.

Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban is one of the best defensive minds the sport has ever seen. Yet, he always had a defensive coordinator calling the plays, and he trusted his assistant coach. One of them, Georgia‘s Kirby Smart, has the same model, leading to two out of the last three national titles landing in Athens.

In fact, the last head coach to call plays in his area of expertise and win the title was Jimbo Fisher, who won it all at Florida State in 2013, a decade ago. Fisher eventually landed at Texas A&M, flaming out late last season. It wasn’t until 2023 that he ceded offensive play-calling duties for the first time, but it wasn’t enough to save his job.

What those coaches have achieved in recent years is what Brent Venables hopes to bring back to Oklahoma. His former boss [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag] followed this model as well, and became a legend in Norman, trusting in his defensive coordinator(s). Hiring Zac Alley to be his defensive coordinator and fully trusting him to call the plays so that Venables can oversee everything that’s going on during the game could unlock the Sooners’ defense and maybe the entire program as a whole.

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Pro Football Focus comes in lower than polls in preseason power rankings

Oklahoma was ranked lower by Pro Football Focus than the US LBM Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25.

The Oklahoma Sooners were ranked No. 16 in the country in the initial Top 25 polls by both the Associated Press and the US LBM Coaches Poll to begin the 2024 season. Both polls had OU ranked eighth in the [autotag]SEC[/autotag], as did the SEC media poll. However, one site has Oklahoma ranked even lower nationally than the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll.

Pro Football Focus revealed their preseason Top 25 rankings earlier this week. The Sooners checked in at No. 18, two spots lower than the two official polls. PFF did still have OU at eighth in the SEC, keeping consistent with most other lists. Here’s what PFF writers Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman had to say about [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag]’ team in 2024.

Oklahoma might take some time to fully acclimate as it debuts in the SEC and with all of the new moving parts on its roster, but the Sooners can still compete for a playoff spot if they jell quickly. – Pro Football Focus

The Sooners will look to the defense to lead the way this season, a change from years past.

A talented, productive, and veteran defense breaks in new coordinator [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag], but has all of the pieces to dominate opposing offenses in 2024. Inside linebacker [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag], safety [autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag], defensive end [autotag]Ethan Downs[/autotag], cornerback [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag] and new TCU transfer defensive tackle [autotag]Damonic Williams[/autotag] lead the way for a unit with high expectations.

Offensively, the Sooners are younger and have a few more concerns. They’re also breaking in new coordinators in [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag]. A much-discussed offensive line had to replace all five primary starters from last year’s team and is tasked with protecting new starting quarterback, sophomore [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag].

The former five-star prospect has plenty of weapons on offense, led by running back [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag] and wide receivers like Purdue transfer [autotag]Deion Burks[/autotag] and returning players [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag], [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag] and [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag]. If the new offensive line can gel and the tight end position can give the Sooners better production than last year, OU could once again have a high-scoring offense.

Special teams analyst [autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag] is also new this year, and he takes over a unit that must be better in 2024. [autotag]Luke Elzinga[/autotag] is entrenched as the starting punter, but all of the other major positions within special teams seem to be up for grabs. Most notably, the kicker spot is still yet to be decided.

Brent Venables enters Year 3 as the head coach at Oklahoma and has been diligent in the process of turning over the roster. Only nine players remain on the 2024 fall camp roster that were on the roster at the end of the 2021 regular season. Slowly but surely, the Sooners have been rebuilt to defend the standard that has been set in place in Norman.

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Who has the leg up in Oklahoma’s kicker competition heading into fall camp?

Incoming kicker has a leg up in the competition entering fall camp.

The Oklahoma Sooners begin their 2024 season in a little over five weeks. Fall camp is right around the corner, when many position battles will be decided heading into the regular season.

Unlike in the pros, college football doesn’t have a preseason, so everything will be decided on the practice field before OU kicks off its season in Aug. 30.

One area Oklahoma is looking to improve upon is special teams after a tough 2023 in that department. While [autotag]Luke Elzinga[/autotag] solidified the punter’s job over the second half of the season, the kicker spot is another situation entirely.

[autotag]Zach Schmit[/autotag] has been OU’s starting kicker for each of the past two seasons. He’s been perfect on extra points, but he has struggled kicking field goals, especially long ones. In 2022, he went 12-for-18, converting just 66.7% of the time. Last season, Schmit went 15-for-21, hitting at a 71.4% clip. However, he missed two field goals against UCF that could have doomed the Sooners in a two-point win. He also had misses against Iowa State, Texas, Oklahoma State and BYU. Three of those four games were decided by one score. The [autotag]Bedlam[/autotag] loss, in particular, was a three-point margin.

Head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] and new special teams analyst [autotag]Doug Deakin[/autotag] know the Sooners will have to be sharper on special teams exiting the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] and entering the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. Every phase of the game and every aspect of the program has to be operating in peak form to win in the SEC; that’s just the way it is in this conference.

Oklahoma went into the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] to get help at kicker this offseason, adding Florida State transfer [autotag]Tyler Keltner[/autotag]. He kicked just one extra point last year for the Seminoles, but was a four-year starter at East Tennessee State, making 75% of his field goals.

The Sooners also added a kicker to their [autotag]recruiting[/autotag] class, [autotag]Liam Evans[/autotag]. The true freshman reportedly has the biggest leg of the group and could represent the future at the position.

The kicker battle has been happening under the surface this offseason. SoonerScoop’s George Stoia shared from the OU Football Coaches Luncheon that Keltner is the favorite to win the job according to Venables.

Venables also mentioned Schmit will compete with Keltner in camp to remain the starter.

Whether Keltner continues to have the leg up or the incumbent Schmit takes back the job, the position can’t be the reason Oklahoma falters in one of the many close games they’re about to play in entering the SEC.

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Kicking, special teams became a problem for OU in 2024; Sooners banking on competition to pay off

Special teams wasn’t special for the Oklahoma Sooners last year but here’s hoping competition and a coaching change can turn it around.

The Sooners struggles on special teams went beyond the kicking situation in 2023. The return game didn’t provide much and was at times a detriment to the team.

Head coach Brent Venables had to find a new special teams coordinator after Jay Nunez left for the same position at Alabama. But that might have been a blessing in disguise.

According to ESPN’s overall efficiency rankings for 2023, Oklahoma’s special teams—placekicking, punting, punt return, kickoff coverage, and kickoff return—ranked No. 127 last year.

That’s not good enough, especially for a team that, while much improved, needed to be perfect in other aspects of the game. Heading to the SEC, there’s less margin for error as Oklahoma’s talent won’t be enough to win games. They’ll need every bit of a competitive advantage. That could come by way of special teams.

So Venables went out and hired former San Diego State special teams coordinator Doug Deakin as a special teams analyst.

Why Deakin?

In each of the last three seasons, the Aztecs finished in the top 10 in ESPN’s special teams efficiency rating. In 2022, the Aztecs ranked No. 2, and last year, they were No. 9. While he’s an analyst and won’t be on the field during game days, Deakin will coordinate this unit with the rest of the on-field staff to create a better and more positively impactful special teams unit for the Sooners. And he comes to Oklahoma with some work to do on the kicking and return game front.

Oklahoma’s field goal kicking wasn’t as good as it needed to be for the Sooners in 2023. Sure, it wasn’t horrible, but by the end of the season, trotting out Zach Schmit genuinely felt like a coin flip, even from distances inside the 40-yard line.

The Sooners’ kicker made less than 75% of his kicks for the second straight season. Schmitt missed six kicks in 2022 and six in 2023. Schmit was just 6 of 11 on attempts from beyond 30 yards. He had a miss in Oklahoma’s three-point loss to Oklahoma State that turned out to be a killer.

So, where do the fixes lie? Well, competition and better schemes are the plan.

OU secured a commitment from Florida State transfer kicker Tyler Keltner this winter.

Keltner is a redshirt senior who spent the first four seasons of his college career at East Tennessee State. He made 56 of 74 field-goal attempts and earned two All-SoCon second-team selections. He then spent this past season at Florida State, where he appeared in one game and converted on his only attempt.

He and Liam Evans, a 2024 commit, will add fresh legs and competition to that room. Evans was ranked the number seven kicker in the nation, according to Kohl’s Kicking Camp.

The punt return game can be better too. After [autotag]Gavin Freeman[/autotag]’s return for a touchdown against Arkansas State, the return game never seemed to click. Freeman muffed multiple punts in crucial moments that flipped the momentum in games. He also had just 122 punt return yards on the season, including that 82 yard return against Arkansas State.

The competition for punt return duties will be much more open than last year. Freeman will have a shot, but [autotag]Deion Burks[/autotag] and [autotag]Jaquaize Pettaway[/autotag] could push for opportunities. On kick return, Jalil Farooq will likely continue to lead the way for the Sooners, but Oklahoma will push him with competition as well.

According to the ESPN efficiency marker, Deakin’s special teams units at his previous school ranked in the top 10 nationally for three straight years.

If there’s a positive outlook on the return game, it’s the emergence of punter Luke Elzinga. Though it took time for the Sooners to settle on who their punter would be last year, once they went with Elzinga, they never turned back. His efficiency, power, and ability to drop the ball inside the 20 allowed Brent Venables to play the field position game more.

As the Sooners move to the SEC, they’ll see their competition improve week in and week out. They can’t afford to be average in any phase of the game and special teams is an area that has to be a winning phase for them in 2024.

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Oklahoma Sooners set to make special teams coordinator hire

The Oklahoma Sooners appear set to hire a special teams coordinator per report.

It looks like the Oklahoma Sooners have found their next special teams coordinator.

After Jay Nunez left OU for Alabama, the Sooners had a position on staff to fill. Brent Venables and the Sooners have reportedly zeroed in on San Diego State special teams coach Doug Deakin.

According to Collin Kennedy and Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, Oklahoma and Deakin are closing in on a deal.

The Oklahoma Sooners are closing in on another potential key hire for the football program. According to sources, Sooners Illustrated on the 247Sports Network has learned that OU has zeroed in on Doug Deakin, formerly of San Diego State, as its next special teams analyst hire.  — Collin Kennedy, 247Sports and Sooners Illustrated

Deakin has spent the last 17 years with San Diego State in a variety of roles after starting his playing career with the Aztecs as as walk on. For the last six seasons, he’s coached one of the best special teams units in the country. According to the San Diego State football website, the Aztecs finished in the top 10 in ESPN’s special teams efficiency rating each of the last three seasons.

In 2023, under Deakin’s coaching, Jack Browning was a second-team All-Mountain West performer and a semifinalist for both the Ray Guy and Lou Groza awards. Returners Mekhi Shaw and Kenan Christon earned all-conference honorable mention honors.

In 2022, Jordan Byrd was the only player in the Football Bowl Subdivision to return a kick and a punt for a touchdown. Byrd earned All-MWC first-team honors as both a kick and punt returner.

In 2021, Matt Araiza won the Ray Guy Award, given to the nation’s best punter.

Doug Deakin has a strong track record of success during his time as a special teams coach. Special teams was an issue for OU in 2023. In every facet of special teams play, the Sooners underwhelmed at different times during the season.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.