The Sooners will be counting on their young players to play a pivotal role against Tulane.
The Oklahoma Sooners are 2-0 on the young season, and after defeating Temple and Houston, they’ve turned their attention to Tulane. OU will once again be at home for week three, as the Green Wave come to Norman, looking to pull the upset.
After a mostly positive week one win against Temple, the Sooners had a below-standard performance on offense against Houston in week two. The defense and special teams performed up to par, and OU was able to walk away with a four-point victory.
Another offensive performance like the one we saw last Saturday won’t cut it against the Green Wave. They nearly upset Kansas State last week. Tulane is the best team the Sooners have played so far this year, and with injuries and questions all over the place offensively, some unexpected names may need to step up.
Oklahoma’s freshmen class has gotten a bit more of a run than we normally see, especially on offense. Again, this is primarily due to the injuries that OU has suffered all over the offensive line and at wide receiver. With that in mind, here are three true freshmen to keep an eye out for Saturday afternoon against Tulane.
1. Zion Ragins, WR
Wide receiver [autotag]Zion Ragins[/autotag] got plenty of valuable playing time last week against the Cougars and was targeted multiple times, mostly in the second half. He only recorded one catch and showed his youth versus the stronger, older Houston cornerbacks, as he was out-muscled along the sidelines a few times.
The name of Ragins’ game is speed, as the 5-foot-8, 150-pound wideout takes what he lacks in size and makes up for it with blazing quickness. Fade routes down the sidelines against bigger players aren’t his strong suit, yet that’s what he ran a lot of against Houston. As the Sooners search for someone to step up alongside [autotag]Deion Burks[/autotag] at wide receiver, Ragins looks like he’ll get plenty of chances once again.
2. Eddy Pierre-Louis, OL
[autotag]Eddy Pierre-Louis[/autotag] wasn’t used last week against Houston, but as the offensive line continues to shuffle, he may find himself playing more in the weeks to come.
Oklahoma’s offensive line has dealt with injuries and forced to move guys around each of the last two weeks. As the Sooners wait for injury updates on players like Branson Hickman and Jake Taylor, two starters when healthy, it may be a freshmen that steps up to provide some assistance.
Currently, OU is down to fourth-string center Joshua Bates and has been rotating through tackles on both sides of the ball. Guard has been one of the strengths up front, with Febechi Nwaiwu and Jacob Sexton serving as the most consistent players on the line to this point.
But if the Sooners feel they need Sexton to step out and play left tackle, his ideal position, so that they can move Michael Tarquin over to the right side to cover the loss of Taylor, then Pierre-Louis could get valuable snaps at left guard as OU inches closer to [autotag]SEC[/autotag] play.
3. David Stone, DT
The defensive line has been one of Oklahoma’s strengths so far this season, and it starts on the interior. OU’s top four players at those spots have been really good. Jayden Jackson, Damonic Williams, Da’Jon Terry, and Gracen Halton have all had big moments through the first two weeks.
But Oklahoma’s fifth player in that role is valuable as well. Defensive tackle [autotag]David Stone[/autotag] has been getting his feet wet at the college level, after not being as ready-made to start as Jackson, his former high school teammate. However, Stone has as much upside as anyone on the roster and was a massive recruiting win as a five-star signee for head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag].
If OU’s offense continues to struggle, it means the defense will be on the field more and more as the season wears on, beginning on Saturday against Tulane. Those extra plays are especially hard on the 300-pounders that the Sooners now have on the defensive line. Stone will be an integral part of making sure that the players above him on the depth chart don’t get run down or injured if the defense is going to have to play more snaps than expected due to poor offensive play.
Stone being the fifth-best defensive tackle on the roster speaks to the job Venables is doing to build up the roster in his third season. In the past couple of years, a player of Stone’s natural ability may have had to play right away, despite not being ready yet. Now, through recruiting and the portal, Venables has a talented future superstar waiting in the wings and learning everything there is to know about playing his role in OU’s defense.
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 Aaron on X @AaronGelvin.
