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Several college football teams are aiming for bounce-back seasons in 2025 after failing to meet expectations in 2024. Some of these high expectations stemmed from their desire to make a strong first impression in their new conference.
The Oklahoma Sooners are one such team. Under head coach Brent Venables, who is entering his third year, Oklahoma had a disappointing record of 6-7 in its first year in the SEC.
With this track record, Venables is likely under pressure and in need of a strong rebound season, similar to the one he achieved in 2023 when Oklahoma went 10-3 after finishing 6-7 in 2022. On "The Paul Finebaum Show," SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum shared his thoughts on the Sooners' first year in the SEC.
Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables.© Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
"A lot of enthusiasm about Brent Venables and the Sooners after another dismal year out there," Finebaum said.
Finebaum's main concern lies with Oklahoma's challenging schedule and how the Sooners will navigate it. According to Athlon Sports, Oklahoma has the second-toughest schedule in college football this year. Some of the key matchups include home games against Michigan, Auburn, Ole Miss, Missouri and LSU. Additionally, Oklahoma will face Texas in a neutral-site game in Dallas, Texas, along with road games against South Carolina, Tennessee and Alabama.
One advantage for Oklahoma is that it returns 69% of its production from the previous year, which ranks it No. 10 in the nation. However, some may argue that this figure comes from a team that finished with a disappointing 6-7 record last season.
Due to that horrible performance, Oklahoma decided to make changes to its offensive staff this offseason. The team ranked No. 113 in total offense, No. 76 in rushing offense and No. 119 in passing offense. This underwhelming outcome led Venables to fire offensive coordinator Seth Littrell during the season and hire Ben Arbuckle from Washington State as the new coordinator.
Arbuckle wasn't the only addition for the Sooners, they also added a new quarterback. Former Washington State quarterback John Mateer transferred to Oklahoma to follow Arbuckle. Mateer, the No. 2 overall player in the transfer portal, will take over for Jackson Arnold, who transferred to Auburn after last season. Last year, Mateer threw for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns while only throwing seven interceptions. He also rushed for 826 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Oklahoma strengthened its running game by adding former California Golden Bears star running back Jaydn Ott. He struggled with injuries last season, finishing with just 385 yards and four touchdowns. However, he had an impressive season in 2023, accumulating 1,315 rushing yards and 14 total touchdowns.
Oklahoma will kick off the season against Illinois State on August 30.
Continue reading...
The Oklahoma Sooners are one such team. Under head coach Brent Venables, who is entering his third year, Oklahoma had a disappointing record of 6-7 in its first year in the SEC.
With this track record, Venables is likely under pressure and in need of a strong rebound season, similar to the one he achieved in 2023 when Oklahoma went 10-3 after finishing 6-7 in 2022. On "The Paul Finebaum Show," SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum shared his thoughts on the Sooners' first year in the SEC.
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Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables.© Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
"A lot of enthusiasm about Brent Venables and the Sooners after another dismal year out there," Finebaum said.
Finebaum's main concern lies with Oklahoma's challenging schedule and how the Sooners will navigate it. According to Athlon Sports, Oklahoma has the second-toughest schedule in college football this year. Some of the key matchups include home games against Michigan, Auburn, Ole Miss, Missouri and LSU. Additionally, Oklahoma will face Texas in a neutral-site game in Dallas, Texas, along with road games against South Carolina, Tennessee and Alabama.
One advantage for Oklahoma is that it returns 69% of its production from the previous year, which ranks it No. 10 in the nation. However, some may argue that this figure comes from a team that finished with a disappointing 6-7 record last season.
Due to that horrible performance, Oklahoma decided to make changes to its offensive staff this offseason. The team ranked No. 113 in total offense, No. 76 in rushing offense and No. 119 in passing offense. This underwhelming outcome led Venables to fire offensive coordinator Seth Littrell during the season and hire Ben Arbuckle from Washington State as the new coordinator.
Arbuckle wasn't the only addition for the Sooners, they also added a new quarterback. Former Washington State quarterback John Mateer transferred to Oklahoma to follow Arbuckle. Mateer, the No. 2 overall player in the transfer portal, will take over for Jackson Arnold, who transferred to Auburn after last season. Last year, Mateer threw for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns while only throwing seven interceptions. He also rushed for 826 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Oklahoma strengthened its running game by adding former California Golden Bears star running back Jaydn Ott. He struggled with injuries last season, finishing with just 385 yards and four touchdowns. However, he had an impressive season in 2023, accumulating 1,315 rushing yards and 14 total touchdowns.
Oklahoma will kick off the season against Illinois State on August 30.
Continue reading...
