Tag: West Virginia Mountaineers Football

Oklahoma Sooners 2022 football schedule

Oklahoma Sooners 2022 football schedule.

The 2022 season for the Oklahoma Sooners marks a new beginning for one of the most storied programs in the history of college football.

Returning to help the Oklahoma Sooners embark on the next chapter is [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag], who will make his head coaching debut against the UTEP Miners in Norman on Sept. 3. There’s no doubt that the Sooners’ fanbase will be fired up to watch and support their new head coach.

Also returning is former student assistant, now offensive coordinator [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag]. Lebby’s bringing his high-octane offense to the Sooners and brings along a former quarterback with him in [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag].

Gabriel’s experience helps the Sooners avoid a drop-off at quarterback with both starters from the 2021 season transferring out. Gabriel and the Oklahoma offense get a boost from the return of [autotag]Theo Wease[/autotag] who was out for 2021 due to an injury and initially entered the transfer portal only to return. The receiving yardage leader from the 2020 and 2021 seasons, [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag], is back as well to give Oklahoma a nice duo on the outside.

The biggest question facing the Sooners is how they retool a defense that lost six starters from the 2021 season. But with support in the transfer portal from [autotag]Trey Morrison[/autotag], [autotag]Jonah Laulu[/autotag], and [autotag]Jeffery Johnson[/autotag] and some rising stars in Ethan Downs, [autotag]Key Lawrence[/autotag], [autotag]Reggie Grimes[/autotag], [autotag]Marcus Stripling[/autotag], [autotag]Jalen Redmond[/autotag], [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag], and [autotag]DaShaun White[/autotag], the Sooners have answers.

Despite all of the turnover, the Oklahoma Sooners are still a contender for the Big 12 and if things go right could find themselves in contention for a College Football Playoff berth.

Some game times and broadcast information are still to be determined. Times are listed in the central time zone.

Week
Date
Opponent
Time
1 9/3 vs. UT-El Paso Miners TBA
2 9/10 vs. Kent State Golden Flashes TBA
3 9/17 at Nebraska Cornhuskers TBA
4 9/24 vs. Kansas State Wildcats TBA
5 10/1 at TCU Horned Frogs TBA
6 10/8 vs. Texas Longhorns in Dallas  TBA
7 10/15 vs. Kansas Jayhawks TBA
8 10/22 at. BYE WEEK
9 10/27 at Iowa State Cyclones TBA
10 11/5 vs. Baylor Bears TBA
11 11/12 at West Virginia Mountaineers TBA
12 11/19 vs. Oklahoma State Cowboys TBA
13 11/26 at Texas Tech Red Raiders TBA

[listicle id=54172]

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2022 West Virginia Football Schedule: 3 Things To Know

West Virginia football schedule. The 2022 schedule with 3 things to know

West Virginia football schedule 2022: What are the big games on the West Virginia schedule and what are 3 things to know?

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2022 College Football Schedules: All 131 Teams

Big 12 coaches ranked by career win percentage

With turnover of three of the conference’s programs, here’s a look at how the current Big 12 coaches stack up in win percentage.

The Big 12 saw some head coach turnover from the 2021 season. Gone are Lincoln Riley, Matt Wells, and Gary Patterson and in are Brent Venables, Joey McGuire, and Sonny Dykes.

Dykes is the only one of the three with head coaching experience having spent time at Louisiana Tech, Cal, and SMU before taking over the TCU Horned Frogs. For much of the 2021 season, SMU looked to be the biggest threat to Cincinnati’s AAC title and playoff aspirations before a late-season collapse allowed Houston to challenge the Bearcats in the AAC title game.

McGuire made a name for himself in the Texas high school football ranks. He led Cedar Hill to three state championships in his tenure. After that he spent time on Baylor’s staff as an assistant before landing at Texas Tech. He might have limited college experience, but he’s a well respected name in Texas high school circles that should give the Red Raiders a boost on the recruiting trail.

Venables is arguably the most successful defensive coordinator of the last decade, helping Clemson win two national titles and predicting countless NFL prospects. No team had more sacks than the Tigers in the last decade in Venables pressure scheme. Bringing back Venables, the Sooners hope to recreate that success in Norman ahead of a future move to the SEC.

Oklahoma Sooners second in Athlon Sports’ spring power rankings

The Oklahoma Sooners come in second in Athlon Sports spring power rankings.

The Oklahoma Sooners face arguably the most transition of any team in the conference heading into the 2022 season. Sure, transition and turnover occurs with every team to some degree, the Sooners were met with changes at the most important positions in the program.

They’re one of just three schools to bring in new head coaches along with TCU and Texas Tech. Oklahoma is the only school experiencing turnover at the quarterback position as well as the head coaching spot.

The Sooners brought in arguably the best defensive coordinator in college football over the last decade and perhaps the best coach to never have been a head coach to lead their program into the future. They solved the problem at quarterback by bringing in one of the top names in the transfer portal, Dillon Gabriel.

Although Brent Venables’ defensive prowess speaks for itself, the number of players lost on that side of the ball creates questions that need to be answered this spring. But with the talent they have waiting in the wings, there might not be as much drop-off where they lost starters as one might think.

But it’s the transition and the turnover on defense that has national analysts concerned about Oklahoma’s ability to jump right back into contention. Athlon Sports released their spring ball power rankings and the Oklahoma Sooners come in second behind defending Big 12 champion the Baylor Bears.

In the piece, which is a great breakdown of what to watch for this spring with each team in the conference, Athlon Sports writer Steve Lassan pointed to the new offense and the number of starters lost on defense as what to watch for the Oklahoma Sooners.

This spring is all about transition. The Sooners have a new play-caller in Jeff Lebby, but quarterback Dillon Gabriel already has familiarity with the scheme from a stint with Lebby at UCF. In addition to the overall transition, Oklahoma has to solidify its offensive line and restock the weapons at receiver.

New coach Brent Venables was arguably the best defensive coordinator in the nation at Clemson, and his impact should be felt right away. The Sooners return only four starters on defense, but a strong class of transfers will help right away. – Lassan, Athlon Sports

Here’s how the Big 12 stacks up according to Athlon Sports and something we’re looking forward to watching this spring.

Dillon Gabriel No. 1 in Athlon Sports Big 12 QB rankings, but how does the rest of the conference stack up?

Dillon Gabriel No. 1, but how did Athlon Sports rank the quarterbacks in their way-too-early Big 12 rankings?

How it stands at the quarterback position can determine a lot about your favorite football team’s future. Nothing’s guaranteed on the field, but having the best quarterback in the conference gives you a leg up on the competition. Well, at least it should.

One of the more disappointing aspects of the 2021 season was the Oklahoma Sooners had a significant talent advantage at quarterback compared to their conference mates, but weren’t able to take advantage. There were a host of reasons, but the play of Spencer Rattler and Caleb Williams wasn’t what Oklahoma has come to expect at the position in recent years.

Perhaps, we’ve been spoiled by the Heisman-level play provided by former quarterbacks Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray and Jalen Hurts. At the same time, in several games in 2021, the quarterback play was subpar leading to losses at Baylor and Oklahoma State and creating way-too-much drama in a win over Kansas.

Dillon Gabriel takes the reigns at quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners with lowered expectations nationally. Inside the Big 12, however, Gabriel is considered the best in the conference according to Athlon Sports Steve Lassan. Recently, Lassan projected each of the starting quarterbacks for the Big 12 and ranked them 1-10 with Gabriel coming out on top.

Despite the coaching change and the switch to Jeff Lebby’s offense, the Sooners remain a favorite in the Big 12. Having the best quarterback helps. But as we saw in 2021, it’s going to take more than a quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners to win games in the new-look defensive Big 12.

The defenses Baylor and Oklahoma State will put on the field in 2022 is what make each a significant contender for the conference crown. Spencer Sanders and Gerry Bohanon may not be the quarterback Gabriel has proven to be, but their teams aren’t asking them to throw 40 times to win a football game. Efficiency and ball security are the names of the game in Stillwater and Waco, and when those two are efficient and protect the football, their teams are difficult to beat.

There are still several quarterback battles to play out in spring ball, but here’s how Athlon Sports ranked the Big 12 quarterbacks.

Big 12 football’s nonconference matchups for the 2022 season

Several Big 12 teams are renewing old rivalries in an intriguing nonconference slate while Baylor and Texas play future conference foes.

The 2022 nonconference schedule in the Big 12 is full of renewed rivalries and early looks into the future of college football. Like Oklahoma did in 2021 with Nebraska, several teams will have pre-realignment matchups with former conference rivals.

West Virginia will take on Pitt for the first time since 2011. Kansas State and Missouri will go head to head for the first time since the Tigers left for the SEC.

Kansas and Texas Tech will take on future Big 12 foe Houston.

Texas gets to host their future conference mate, Alabama, in Austin for the first time since 1922 according to Winsipedia. While the game won’t likely go the Longhorns way, Austin is going to be an incredible atmosphere hosting one of the top teams in the nation.

Ranking Big 12 football recruiting classes after 2022 national signing day

With national signing day behind us, how do the Big 12 teams rank according to 247Sports composite rankings?

National signing day has come and gone, and the Oklahoma Sooners finished with a bang. After watching their team recruiting ranking fall as low as 27th after Lincoln Riley left for USC, new Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables and his staff finished with a flurry of unexpected signings, including three commitment flips on national signing day.

Though the Sooners still have five-star targets Josh Conerly and Lebbeus Overton in their sites for 2022, the recruiting class is already one of the best in the country. With their 21 commitments, the Oklahoma Sooners rose to No. 8 in the nation according to 247Sports composite team rankings. Pretty incredible, considering they don’t have a single five-star commitment or signee at this point in the cycle.

Conerly or Overton could change that, but regardless, it’s a strong class that will set the Oklahoma Sooners to compete for conference titles and playoff spots down the road.

The Texas Longhorns finished at the top of the Big 12, but they also have seven more signees than the Oklahoma Sooners in this cycle. Despite their improved play in the 2021 season, the Kansas Jayhawks sit at the bottom of the Big 12 with just seven commitments in the class.

With that, let’s take a look at where each team stands in the final 247Sports 2022 team composite rankings.

How did USA TODAY Sports grade each of the Big 12 teams from the 2021 season

There were several surprising performances in the Big 12 in 2021, but how did USA TODAY Sports grade each of the conference members?

The 2021 college football season is fully in the rearview, and the Big 12 squads are looking to the transfer portal and finalizing their recruiting classes to retool their teams ahead of the 2022 season.

It was an up and down year in Big 12 play as several teams surprised, and others failed to live up to preseason expectations. USA TODAY Sports handed out letter grades for each of the 130 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

As we continue our look back at the 2021 season, let’s look at how they graded each Big 12 team.

Athlon Sports picks the Oklahoma Sooners to finish second in the Big 12 in early 2022 projections

Looking ahead to the 2022 season, the Oklahoma Sooners were picked to finish second in Athlon Sports early Big 12 predictions.

Change isn’t always a bad thing. It comes with questions and some uncertainty, but the new can often be better than what you had or where you were.

That’s what the Oklahoma Sooners are facing heading into the 2022 offseason: A year of change and transition. Out is Lincoln Riley and in is Brent Venables, Jeff Lebby and a new defensive staff. Venables wants to make the Sooners fast and physical on defense while they run the football and controll the pace on offense.

Despite all of the changes, the program has much to be optimistic about this offseason. Steve Lassan of Athlon Sports has the Oklahoma Sooners picked to finish second in the Big 12 in his early 2022 predictions.

Lassan admits the league is pretty wide open.

“The Big 12 should feature a wide-open race to win the conference in 2022. A strong argument could be made for Baylor, Oklahoma or Oklahoma State as the early No. 1 pick in the league, but regardless of which team is the favorite, the gap among those programs is small.”

Here’s what he had to say about the Oklahoma Sooners.

It’s been a busy offseason in Norman, but new coach Brent Venables has the pieces in place to push for a Big 12 title. Assuming Caleb Williams doesn’t return, UCF transfer Dillon Gabriel should take over the quarterback spot and reunite with his former coach (and coordinator) in Jeff Lebby. The Sooners lost running back Kennedy Brooks and a couple of linemen to the NFL, but Gabriel’s arrival should keep this offense near the top of the conference. Venables was one of the nation’s top defensive signal-callers at Clemson and should make an impact right away on this side of the ball for the Sooners. – Lassan, Athlon Sports

It’s incredibly early the Oklahoma Sooners will worry about proving it on the field. What’s evident is the top of the Big 12 will be competitive once again. Baylor and Oklahoma State should be strong contenders for the conference title again in 2022. Oklahoma looks to rebound and get back into the Big 12 title game. And you never know what you’re going to get with Texas. After a terrible year, the Longhorns could bounce back and find themselves in the Big 12 race as well.

Here’s how Lassan ranked the Big 12 members.

Final Big 12 Power Rankings from the 2021 College Football Season

After completing their bowl games, how do the Big 12 teams stack up in the final power rankings of the 2021 season?

It was a wild 2021 college football season. The two teams that most expected to play for the Big 12 title, Oklahoma and Iowa State, both missed out on the title game. Baylor, who had won just two games the year before completed an incredible turnaround.

There were fantastic performances and finishes throughout the season that reminded everyone of the quality of play in the Big 12 conference. If the conference season wasn’t enough evidence, its 5-2 record and a 3-0 record against the SEC, should stand at evidence that the conference is very strong.

Let’s take a look at how these teams stack up heading into the offseason in the final Big 12 power rankings of the 2021 college football season.