The future is bright for the Oklahoma Sooners. Brent Venables and his staff have been recruiting at a very high level since his arrival in Norman. Each of his first three recruiting classes has ranked in the top 10 of 247Sports team recruiting rankings. Even the 2022 class after it deteriorated following the departure of [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag].
The Sooners have added blue-chip prospects on both sides of the ball, including four five-star prospects. Though those recruiting classes have yet to fully take hold of the program, they’re very much the core of the future for the Oklahoma Sooners.
But there are still some questions about what that future looks like. Over at ESPN, Adam Rittenberg ranked the top 25 programs (ESPN+) over the next three seasons and the Oklahoma Sooners came in at No. 18.
Decorated offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh must find the right mix for 2024 with a largely new group, although juniors [autotag]Jacob Sexton[/autotag] and [autotag]Troy Everett[/autotag] are both back. (Febechi) Nwaiwu and (Branson) Hickman both can play through 2025, and the development of non-seniors such as redshirt freshman [autotag]Joshua Bates[/autotag] will be significant. The wide receiver and tight end outlooks are very strong. – Rittenberg, ESPN
Much of the concern surrounding the Sooners in 2025 and 2026 focuses on the offensive line. The skill talent is in really good shape and so is the quarterback position. Defensively, Venables and his staff continue to hit home runs on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal.
But while many around the country aren’t all that optimistic about Oklahoma’s offensive line, there’s reason to be. Namely, because Bill Bedenbaugh has a proven track record. He’s rebuilt offensive lines on a regular basis. He’s shown he’s a great evaluator of both high school and transfer portal talent and we know he can develop. He’s got a bunch of dudes on NFL rosters heading into 2024 NFL training camps.
In 2024, the offensive line will feature several transfer portal additions, but there are still blue-chip prospects in [autotag]Jacob Sexton[/autotag], [autotag]Jake Taylor[/autotag], and [autotag]Heath Ozaeta[/autotag] vying for jobs up front. Bedenbaugh also added four-star offensive linemen [autotag]Eugene Brooks[/autotag] and [autotag]Eddy Pierre-Louis[/autotag] in the [autotag]2024 recruiting class[/autotag].
For 2024 and beyond, questions about the offensive line may continue to be a theme, but we’ve seen the offensive line come together. There’s little reason to believe it won’t come together and be a strength for the Sooners.
The success that Oklahoma’s having on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal is reason enough to be excited about the future of the program. Now, they simply, or maybe not so simply, need to go and prove it on the field.
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