Quarterback is one of the most important positions on any football team. It’s been called the hardest job in all of sports. Quarterbacks are often praised when their team wins and blamed when their team loses, regardless of how they played.
Most of the time, a great quarterback is only as good as the pieces around him. His head coach, offensive play-caller, offensive line, running backs, tight ends, and wide receivers can make or break his performances.
The Oklahoma Sooners are just three weeks away from beginning the 2024 season. OU has a new starting quarterback this season, as true sophomore phenom [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] takes the wheel after [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag]’s offseason transfer.
There’s no doubt that Oklahoma is Arnold’s team both in the present and the future and head coach [autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] and the rest of the coaching staff have done their best to set the talented youngster up for success. After all, the duo of Venables and Arnold are the faces of the program more than anyone else. Their success or failure will be dependent upon each other and both are aware of that.
The other 133 FBS programs that are about to begin their seasons are also trying to set their QB(s) up for success heading into 2024. CBS Sports college football analyst Clint Brewster ranked the 12 programs that are doing the best job of it.
The Sooners landed at No. 10 on the list, sixth-best in the [autotag]SEC[/autotag]. Oklahoma enters their new conference with a new face under center who is getting a good deal of support from the rest of his offense, according to Brewster.
Oklahoma let Dillon Gabriel walk to turn the offense over to five-star sophomore Jackson Arnold. The Sooners easily have one of the top receiver rooms with newcomer [autotag]Deion Burks[/autotag] from Purdue and returning pass catchers [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag], [autotag]Andrel Anthony[/autotag], and [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag] to name a few. There’s also speed merchant [autotag]Brenan Thompson[/autotag], who could have a breakout season. At running back there’s [autotag]Gavin Sawchuk[/autotag] and [autotag]Jovantae Barnes[/autotag], but don’t forget about incoming blue-chipper [autotag]Taylor Tatum[/autotag]. On the offensive line, Oklahoma has some holes to fill (all five spots, actually) but picked up what could be one of the best centers in the country with [autotag]Branson Hickman[/autotag] in the portal. – Brewster, CBS Sports
OU’s loaded wide receiver room will be nursing some injuries as the season gets underway, but Burks will be a go-to wideout for Arnold. The two displayed incredible chemistry in the spring. The running backs will need to be better early than they were in the first half of the season last year, but Sawchuk looks ready to carry the load after playing well over the season’s last five games in 2023.
The offensive line has been the concern since the winter, but Venables seems confident in that unit’s ability to get the job done and keep Arnold upright. The Sooners may go as Arnold goes in 2024. Helping him make the big plays and avoid mistakes will go a long way towards a successful season.
New co-offensive coordinators [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag] replace [autotag]Jeff Lebby[/autotag], now the head coach at Mississippi State. Littrell is serving as the main play-caller. He’ll need to develop his young quarterback and support Arnold as best he can in his first season as a full-time starter in college.
Ohio State topped Brewster’s list with Gabriel’s Oregon Ducks coming in second. LSU was the best of the SEC’s 16 teams in this category.
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