Oklahoma officially names Kyler Murray its starting quarterback
The quarterback competition at Oklahoma has an expected winner.
The Sooners announced Wednesday that Kyler Murray would be the team’s starting quarterback on Sept. 1 against Florida Atlantic. Murray served as Baker Mayfield’s backup in 2017 and was competing with Austin Kendall for the 2018 starting gig.
“Kyler did a really nice job in camp,” Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley said in a statement on Oklahoma’s site. “It was really a great competition between Austin and him, one that we carried on longer than maybe even we expected because of how well both guys played. There weren’t a lot of differentiating factors in the end because both did play so well and so efficiently, but just felt like from an overall perspective that Kyler was just a little bit ahead.
“We feel like we’ve got a great quarterback tandem there and we’re really proud of the way that Austin has improved through the redshirt year last year and during camp. We’re excited for Kyler and his opportunity and the team looks forward to getting ready for FAU.”
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2018 could be Murray’s only year as a starter
Murray is a junior and has two years of football eligibility left. But he could only be at Oklahoma for the 2018 season. He was a first-round pick of the Oakland Athletics in the 2018 MLB draft over the summer and signed a contract for nearly $5 million guaranteed. The San Francisco Chronicle previously reported that Murray would join the A’s for spring training in 2019.
The report also said that Murray’s contract included a football insurance policy.
Murray transferred to Oklahoma after beginning his college football career at Texas A&M. He sat out the 2016 season and has played both baseball and football with the Sooners. He was 18-21 passing for 359 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 142 yards in a limited role backing up the 2017 Heisman winner.
Oklahoma is No. 7 in our 2018 preseason top 25.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
Follow @NickBromberg on Twitter
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