The Oklahoma Sooners lacked depth at the linebacker position in 2022. As the season wore on, it became clear that the Sooners weren’t comfortable with what they had at the position beyond their starters [autotag]Danny Stutsman[/autotag], [autotag]David Ugwoegbu[/autotag], and [autotag]DaShaun White[/autotag].
Back in January, we looked at this exact issue.
According to Pro Football Focus, only 11 off-ball linebackers played more than 900 snaps in the Football Bowl Subdivision, and three of them were Oklahoma Sooners. Toledo was the only other team that had multiple linebackers with more than 900 snaps on the season.
Danny Stutsman tied for the FBS lead in snaps at linebacker with North Texas’ K.D. Davis at 992. Only two players in all of college football played more snaps than Stutsman; UNT safety Sean Thomas-Faulkner and Georgia Southern safety Anthony Wilson. – John Williams, Sooners Wire
The losses of [autotag]Shane Whitter[/autotag] and [autotag]T.D. Roof[/autotag] left Brent Venables and Ted Roof with few options at linebacker and “Cheetah.” Stutsman, Ugwoegbu, and White played a ton of snaps.
It was expected that the Oklahoma Sooners would look to the transfer portal to shore up some of their depth at linebacker. They did add a couple of players that could factor in at “Cheetah,” but no traditional off-ball linebacker to either replace Ugwoegbu or provide depth behind Stutsman.
The Sooners’ defensive staff is looking to the return of Whitter, who Venables says will be ready for spring ball, and their last two recruiting classes to be key pieces at linebacker for 2023.
“I feel like we got exactly what we need,” Venables shared in the Sooners new additions media day on Thursday. “But, (if) you look at it like I do, like, ‘golly, we really can’t afford an injury here.’ You know, if that happens, it’s to me a different conversation. And just the margin for error is small there. But I love the group of guys. And we’ve made exponential improvement from where we were a year ago at this time.”
Though many of the faces are the same, sans Ugweogbu and White, those faces have a year of experience in the program. They’re a year older, more physically and mentally developed, and with the 2023 group of linebackers, a more talented group of players.
Danny Stutsman will return to start for Oklahoma at one of the linebacker spots, presumably the weakside (WILL), where he was a first-year starter in 2022. Stutsman played well, leading Oklahoma and the Big 12 in tackles. Going into his third season with the Sooners and second as a starter, there are high expectations for one of the leaders of the defense.
“Danny was outstanding,” Venables said on Thursday. “In our bowl game, and think it was quite obvious, he was the best player on our defense. And I say that because I’m not worried about Danny getting full of himself. But I’m also going to recognize a guy that I think we can build a defense around. And he’s got a lot to improve at to, physically, fundamentally, understanding. But he’s a guy that’s been putting in the work, and he’s fanatical about putting in work and improving. Got a great sense of desperation.”
Then there will be quite the competition for snaps at the middle linebacker (MIKE) and “Cheetah” spots.
Whitter and 2022 four-star linebacker prospects [autotag]Jaren Kanak[/autotag], [autotag]Kobie McKinzie[/autotag], and [autotag]Kip Lewis[/autotag] will be the names that factor into the positional battle. They’re joined this offseason by early enrollee [autotag]Phil Picciotti[/autotag]. [autotag]Samuel Omosigho[/autotag] and [autotag]Lewis Carter[/autotag] will join them as summer enrollees.
Venables admits they’re thin at linebacker but also really likes where they’re at. It’s a talented group of players to work with. We saw flashes from Kanak during the 2022 season, leading many to wonder why he didn’t play more, given the number of snaps the linebackers were playing.
Despite being thin at linebacker, Venables would prefer not to add another player at the position. If an injury occurs, they’ll look into it after spring ball, but he wants to invest in the guys in the room right now.
“Hopefully, we don’t have to address that because I really like where the group is right now,” Venables said about the progression of the group. “Mentally and physically, fundamentally, their understanding, the segment meetings that we’ve had with him, and then the time that they come in on their own with the cut-ups that we’ve created. We’ve shown them a lot of things that we got to get better at, where we fell short last year, positionally, fundamentally instinctually.”
While they’re young, It’s a talented group. They’ll need to take a big step this offseason to help the Oklahoma Sooners’ defense improve from where they were in 2022. But they’re a group that’s mostly been in the system for a year now. They have a better understanding of what the expectations and responsibilities are.
On the surface, depth may appear to be an issue for the Oklahoma Sooners at linebacker. However, despite its youth, they’re a more talented group than they were a year ago, and that should be an exciting proposition for Oklahoma’s defensive future.