Jaren Kanak, Linebacker
Oklahoma’s defense was in desperate need of better linebacker play last year. Junior Danny Stutsman led the Big 12 in tackles and in Pro Football Focus’ stops metric, which considers where the tackle was made in relation to the down and distance. He even had more stops than anyone in the Big 12. But he needed to be better, and he needed better from his other linebackers.
Enter physical specimen, Jaren Kanak. The sophomore played sparingly last year, and now, just a year later, he won the starting middle linebacker spot alongside Stutsman. How he handles the responsibilities that come with that will be interesting to follow throughout the season. He has all the physical tools but needs game action to continue developing. We’ll see how far he’s come this offseason.