Through two games, the improvement from the Oklahoma Sooners’ defense is noticeable. The team is flying around and is more physical than we’ve seen in years past.
The Sooners rank No. 35 in total defense this season which is a massive improvement from the No. 122nd ranked defense a year ago. The biggest improvements have been in scoring defense, run defense, and third down defense.
The Sooners are the No. 6 ranked scoring defense, No. 28 run defense, and No. 8 third-down defense. A year ago, they ranked No. 98, No. 105 and No. 87, respectively.
It’s still early to tell how good of a defense this team will be in 2023. Those numbers are sure to change as the season goes on and the competition gets tougher, but Defensive Coordinator Ted Roof said he feels the difference has been the competitive depth.
“You look at depth, competitive depth,” Roof said. “We’re just starting out, and by no means are we a finished product, and we have arrived. We’re just a work in progress that’s going to grind every day. That’s the attitude of our staff and players, and it’s all about incremental improvement. We’ve got to get better because we left some plays out on the field the other night. Some situations where we had opportunities to get off the field, and we didn’t.”
That’s the mindset the coaches and players should have. Two games don’t fix nearly a decade of poor defensive performances. The Sooners have shown signs of improvement, but that must continue for the whole season.
Their next opportunity to show that is this Saturday in their first away game versus the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at 2:30 p.m. CT on ESPN 2.
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