Tag: Oklahoma Sooners football 2024

Oklahoma Sooners are a wild card in 2024 according to On3’s Andy Staples

Andy Staples of On3 thinks the Sooners will be a “wild card” in Year 3 under Brent Venables. Could they make the expanded playoff?

The Oklahoma Sooners are at an interesting inflection point two and a half months from the beginning of the 2024 college football season.

The Sooners are entering year three of the [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] era in Norman. After he was hired to be OU’s next head coach in December of 2021, a disappointing 6-7 campaign in 2022 followed.

Oklahoma rebounded in 2023 with a 10-3 mark in year two, and there’s no question that this is a Brent Venables program now. He’s got his guys in place on the field and on the coaching staff.

But the Sooners head to the [autotag]Southeastern Conference[/autotag] in 2024, after a long run atop the [autotag]Big 12 Conference[/autotag] that featured fourteen conference titles. That’s ten more than anyone else.

The SEC will be a much tougher road than the Big 12 was, and On3’s Andy Staples has some concerns for the Sooners in 2024, calling them a mystery.

According to Staples, the floor for this Oklahoma team could be 6-6. However, he also thinks the ceiling could be a trip to the [autotag]College Football Playoff[/autotag].

“If they’re 6-6, if they’re 7-5,” Staples said, “What do you do about Brent Venables? How do you feel about Brent Venables if you’re [autotag]Joe Castiglione[/autotag], their athletic director?”

Staples and others present the offensive line as a concern for the team in 2024. Oklahoma is replacing the entire unit this season. [autotag]Tyler Guyton[/autotag] was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the first round of the [autotag]NFL Draft[/autotag] and [autotag]Cayden Green[/autotag] transferred to Missouri. The Sooners also lost [autotag]Walter Rouse[/autotag], [autotag]Andrew Raym[/autotag] and [autotag]McKade Mettauer[/autotag] up front.

Staples notes that the Sooners added pieces via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] to fill those holes. [autotag]Spencer Brown[/autotag] came over from Michigan State in the winter portal window. [autotag]Branson Hickman[/autotag] is a plug and play piece at center, transferring in during the spring window from SMU. [autotag]Michael Tarquin[/autotag], [autotag]Febechi Nwaiwu[/autotag] and [autotag]Geriean Hatchett[/autotag] also arrived via the portal and will have an impact along the offensive line this fall.

These players will form the core of the unit along with young pieces like [autotag]Joshua Bates[/autotag], [autotag]Jacob Sexton[/autotag],[autotag]Troy Everett[/autotag] and [autotag]Jake Taylor[/autotag], but it is a patchwork O-line that will have to protect quarterback [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] if the Sooners want to be successful in 2024.

Staples thinks the Sooners are the deepest they’ve been in a while on defense,  and he knows why the OU staff and fans are excited for Arnold. He praised the wide receiver group as well.

Many in the national media don’t seem to have the faith in Venables quite yet that most Sooner fans do. They site the SEC presenting a challenge that Oklahoma hasn’t seen before.

But Venables is one of the great defensive minds in college football. He’s leading the way for the program, in addition to all of the skill and depth on that side of the ball. Then, of course, there’s that talented but young quarterback stepping into the starting role.

The Sooners may very well be a wildcard in year one in their new conference. But if the offensive line can hold up long enough for Arnold to have time to throw, it could be a very fun year in Norman.

If not, it could be detrimental to Arnold’s development, and 2024 could be a long season in the SEC.

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Oklahoma LB Danny Stutsman should be a EA Sports College Football 25 cover athlete

OU’s senior linebacker should be immortalized on the cover of the new college football video game.

College Football is finally getting passed back the sticks this summer, as EA Sports will be releasing College Football 25. It’s the long-awaited sequel to the college football video game series that saw its last installment, NCAA 14, come out eleven years ago.

EA Sports announced the return of the series in February 2021, and more information about the game itself has trickled out since then, with a teaser trailer dropping this past winter.

While we don’t have a release date yet, we do know that players can opt in to the game and earn income through name, image, and likeness. We know commentators, like ESPN’s lead duo of Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit, will be featured. We know that all 134 FBS teams for the 2024 season will appear in the game. And we know that there will be multiple covers with different cover athletes for different editions of the game.

That’s where Oklahoma Sooners’ football linebacker [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag] should come in. There haven’t been any confirmed reports about who the cover athletes will be yet, but Stutsman is exactly the kind of player who should be considered.

Cover athletes are typically offensive players, guys with the ball in their hands. And that makes sense, as that’s what a football video game allows the person playing it to feel like they are doing.

But even at the linebacker spot, Stutsman represents what die-hard college football fans love about the sport, and what new fans to the game can embrace.

He represents college football.

In the era of the transfer portal, with players moving around at will, sometimes multiple times in one year, Stutsman has been a Sooner since his true freshman season in 2021. He stuck it out in the crimson and cream when [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag] and his defensive coordinator [autotag]Alex Grinch[/autotag], the pair that recruited him to Norman, hopped on a plane to Southern California. He stuck it out when [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] took charge of the program a week later. He stuck it out through a 6-7 season in 2022, and didn’t waver in his commitment to Venables and the Sooners. And he was the focal point of OU’s defense last year, as the team improved to 10-3.

Stutsman considered leaving for the NFL but changed course and decided to return to Oklahoma to chase championships in the SEC for the 2024 season. He made an epic announcement on social media.

But Stutsman isn’t just some old soul who rejects what is becoming the modern era of college football. If you couldn’t tell by a Jordan Belfort, Wolf of Wall Street reference of all things, Stutsman embraces the new opportunities for players of his caliber.

Stutsman cashed in with a t-shirt featuring his quote from the pregame of the 2023 Red River Rivalry win over Texas. The shirt read, “Oklahoma only fears God. Texas fears Oklahoma.” Even Venables donned the apparel featuring Stutsman in the Golden Hat and sunglasses with his signature on them, smoking a Saban victory cigar. EA Sports can go ahead and make that image the cover.

Personalities sell the sport and Stutsman has one of the biggest in college football. He’s well known, especially in Big 12 and SEC circles. He has a [autotag]Brian Bosworth[/autotag]-esque swagger and style on and off the field. “The Boz” would have made an excellent cover athlete as well.

Stutsman is one of the best linebackers in the nation heading into 2024, and plays for one of the most recognizable brands in the sport. Oklahoma is at or near the very top of the blue blood list over the 150-plus year history of the game.

The Sooners have never had a player grace the cover of a college football video game. The game’s hiatus caused there to never be a cover featuring Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray or Baker Mayfield.

Why not start with Danny Stutsman on the cover of a “defense wins championships” edition of College Football 25?

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Defensive lineman Jermayne Lole flips commitment from Oklahoma to Texas

Oklahoma saw one of their new defensive line transfer portal additions flip his commitment to the rival Texas Longhorns.

The Oklahoma Sooners have had one of their newest defensive linemen depart the team via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag]. [autotag]Jermayne Lole[/autotag] has flipped his commitment from Oklahoma to the Texas Longhorns.

Lole announced the move via social media. He heads south to Austin before ever playing a snap for the Sooners. Both programs are entering their first season in the SEC.

Lole committed to the Sooners out of the transfer portal on April 22, but the senior, who has one year of eligibility remaining, has changed his mind just two and a half weeks later.

 

Lole produced at a high level at Arizona State before injuries limited him the previous few seasons. As a true sophomore in 2019, Lole recorded 10 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. He played at Louisville in 2023, recording 19 total tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Lole was one of many high-profile additions to the Oklahoma defensive line in the 2024 recruiting and portal cycles for [autotag]Brent Venables [/autotag] and his staff. However, the addition of Damonic Williams last week creates a logjam at defensive tackle. A good problem to have, yes, but it can lead to situations like this.

He’ll suit up in the burnt orange for Steve Sarkisian, and the Sooners will see Lole on Oct. 12 in Dallas.

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ESPN concerned the Sooners offensive line may be their undoing

ESPN handed out spring overreactions for each team in their Way-Too-Early Top 25, and Oklahoma’s offensive line was highlighted in a positive light.

The Oklahoma Sooners continue building toward the 2024 football season, their first as a member of the SEC. It’ll be the third year at the helm for head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag].

The Sooners bring back a great deal of production, especially on defense. They have quarterback [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] stepping into the spotlight to lead an offense that has its fair share of weapons.

But the question for most of the offseason has been whether the offensive line can hold its own after losing all five of last year’s primary starters to the [autotag]2024 NFL draft[/autotag] and the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag].

It’s a challenge as they head into the SEC, and Dave Wilson of ESPN thinks it could be Oklahoma’s undoing. ESPN’s college football writers shared their spring overreactions in their top 25. While the Sooners have question marks, there’s reason for optimism. Dave Wilson praised the transfer additions on the offensive line and was complimentary of offensive line coach [autotag]Bill Bedenbaugh[/autotag].

Not ideal heading into its first SEC season. But the Sooners boast one of the top offensive line coaches in the country in Bill Bedenbaugh, who is piecing together transfers from Washington, Michigan State and USC, among others, to pair with young OU linemen. – Wilson, ESPN

Portal additions [autotag]Geirean Hatchett[/autotag], [autotag]Spencer Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Tarquin[/autotag] are Power Four transfers, while [autotag]Febechi Nwaiwu[/autotag] has impressed after coming over from North Texas.

One player the article didn’t highlight was [autotag]Branson Hickman[/autotag], another addition in the portal. Hickman looks to be a plug-and-play solution at center for Bedenbaugh and lets Sooner fans relax a little about the interior of the unit. Oklahoma is also developing young, home-grown players up front to help this season and lead the way in the years to come.

Wilson went on to write that if [autotag]Zac Alley[/autotag] and the OU defense can keep the team from becoming one-dimensional, [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] and the offensive staff will have time early in the season to scheme their way around any growing pains on offense.

Bedenbaugh remains the constant for the offensive line. His expertise can be further validated if he rebounds from the losses and turns 2024’s unit into a force.

It might just mean Oklahoma has a special kind of season in Year 1 in the SEC.

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