It hasn’t even been a full month since the final college football game concluded in the 2020 season. The Oklahoma Sooners were flying high as they closed out the campaign with eight-straight victories to finish 9-2 in a COVID-shortened season. They won each game by an average of 24.5 points per game.
With another year under the belt of redshirt freshman quarterback Spencer Rattler, the return of Kennedy Brooks, and the rise of freshman receiver Marvin Mims, expectations are sky-high. As they should be, the Sooners have won the conference six-straight times.
A huge question mark on offense will be the offensive line. Defensively they return a large portion of their defense with the exception of three cornerbacks. Alex Grinch will have some shuffling to do.
Recently ESPN released their SP+ rankings where they had Oklahoma at No. 3 overall and No. 1 on offense. The updated top 25 from 247Sports is right in line with the metrics.
What 247Sports said about the Sooners
The Sooners looked quite explosive in bowl season, and return star Spencer Rattler at quarterback with Heisman Trophy hopes. Oklahoma no longer has any first-place votes in the 247Sports rankings, but remains highly placed. Since the season ended, Oklahoma welcomed in the Big 12’s top recruiting class and No. 11 nationally, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. Oklahoma also found success in the transfer portal, including a trio of four-star prospects from Tennessee.
Ranking: No. 2
The usual suspects were in the top five of the rankings. Alabama came in as No. 1, then Clemson followed Oklahoma at No. 3, Ohio State No. 4, and Georgia rounded out the top five in the updated top 25.
The highest-ranked team outside of Oklahoma in the Big 12 came from the team that gave them the most trouble, Iowa State. The Cyclones just signed their head coach Matt Campbell to an extension to keep him in Ames until 2028. Not to mention they return three very key players next season with Brock Purdy, Breece Hall, and Mike Rose. We could see Oklahoma-Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship game part two.
Big 12 Team Rankings:
- Iowa State Cyclones (No. 6)
- Texas Longhorns (No. 20)
- Oklahoma State Cowboys (No. 24)
[listicle id=24136]