OU football: Which position groups do the Sooners need to upgrade in the transfer portal?

Jesse Crittenden, The Norman Transcript, Okla.

December 2, 2022 at 9:50 AM·5 min read

Dec. 2—Though Oklahoma's regular season is over and the bowl game is weeks away, there's still a lot they've got to think about.

Specifically, the NCAA Transfer Portal, which opens for a 45-day window on Dec. 5.

Starting Monday, players can enter the transfer portal in search of a new team. While the portal hasn't opened yet, many players across the country have already announced their plans to enter the portal.

Since the NCAA eliminated the rule that required transfer players to sit out one year at their new university in April 2021, activity in the portal has skyrocketed. The upcoming window is expected to set new records for entries into the portal.

OU coach Brent Venables and the Sooners were very active in the portal last December, and they likely will be this year following a disappointing regular season. Current players Theo Wease, Joshua Eaton and Jordan Mukes have already announced their plans to enter the portal following their 51-48 loss to Texas Tech in the regular-season finale last Saturday.

With several current players leaving and the need to upgrade the talent up and down roster, the coming weeks could be huge for the Sooners in the transfer portal. Here's a look at the position groups the coaching staff should be looking to upgrade:

1. Defensive line

The Sooners' defensive line showed a lot of promise early in the season. The group recorded 13 sacks and 32 tackles for loss during the non-conference schedule, with both marks ranking inside the top five nationally.

It was a different story against Big 12 opponents.

The Sooners recorded just 13 sacks over their final nine regular season games, which ranks fifth in the Big 12. However, six of them came against Oklahoma State.

The Sooners also finished the regular season ninth in the Big 12 in rushing defense, surrendering 189 yards per game and 29 total touchdowns. They averaged just 7.4 tackles for loss during conference play.

Defensive ends Reggie Grimes and Ethan Downs looked to be difference makers early in the year — Grimes recorded four sacks in the first three games, Downs with 2.5 — but they combined for just 2.5 the rest of the way.

They need talent and depth at the position. Jalen Redmond, who ranks third on the team in sacks (4) and second in tackles for loss (10), accepted an invitation to the Senior Bowl Wednesday. It's unclear if older players like Grimes, Jeffrey Johnson, Jordan Kelley and Jonah Laulu will return next season.

The Sooners did get a commitment last week from former Notre Dame defensive lineman Jacob Lacey, who recorded 6.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks in 37 games with the Fighting Irish. Freshman R Mason Thomas showed potential and could take a leap next season.

The Sooners will likely need more reinforcements, and several talented defensive lineman around the country have already entered the portal.

2. Linebacker

It was a position that lacked depth all season.

The raw stats look good for the Sooners' linebackers. Danny Stutsman led the Big 12 in tackles (119) and added 9.5 tackles for loss. David Ugwoegbu finished second on the team in tackles (102). DaShaun White, who primarily played the cheetah position, found his footing as the season went on.

But this was White's final year of eligibility. Ugwoegbu and Stutsman had good moments but struggled with consistency, and the lack of depth kept them on the field for long stretches.

Younger players such as Kip Lewis and Jaren Kanak will likely see more playing time next season. But the Sooners need significant depth and talent upgrades.

The Sooners should have opportunities to recruit within the portal.

3. Wide receiver

The position group took a hit with Wease hitting the portal.

The senior wasn't super involved in the offense — he finished with 19 catches — but he brought size that the Sooners lack outside of him.

The Sooners should still have good receivers next season, especially if Marvin Mims returns. Jalil Farooq should return after a solid sophomore campaign.

Drake Stoops, who has one year left of eligibility, had a career-best season but participated in the Sooners' senior night festivities prior to Bedlam. Brayden Willis, a tight end, was one of the Sooners' most reliable pass catchers but has no eligibility remaining after this season.

Younger players LV Bunkley-Shelton and Jayden Gibson could prove to be difference makers next season but they barely saw the field this year, catching just one pass each. Their incoming receiver group also took a hit after four-star Anthony Evans flipped from Oklahoma to Georgia last month.

The Sooners should have options. Several four-star receivers, including Oregon's Dont'e Thornton Jr. Texas' Aeryn Hampton and Florida's Daejon Reynolds, should be available.

Adding a receiver or two would go a long way towards boosting next year's passing attack.

4. Running back

Freshman running back Jovantae Barnes was a bright spot for the Sooners, carrying the ball 86 times for 411 yards and four touchdowns.

But the Sooners will need to find talent if Eric Gray leaves for the NFL.

The senior running back recorded one of the best seasons in college football, rushing 1,364 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was the most productive and successful part of the Sooners' offense.

Barnes should be a big contributor next season, but the depth behind him isn't good. Marcus Majors struggled again to stay healthy. Tawee Walker recorded just 18 carries.

The Sooners currently have two running back recruits — four-star Daylan Smothers and three-star Kalib Hicks — that have potential. But if Gray departs, the Sooners will be left without much experience in the backfield.

Jesse Crittenden is the sports editor of The Transcript and covers OU athletics. Reach him at jesse@normantranscript.com or at 405-366-3580

USA TODAY
'We are serious': Houthis offer to educate US students suspended in campus programs.
The Houthis join Hamas and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ai Khamenei in publicly supporting the campus protest movement in the U.S.
Associated Press
Senate races are roiled by campus protests over the war in Gaza as campaign rhetoric sharpens
The student protest movement disrupting university campuses, classes and graduation ceremonies over the war in Gaza is also roiling Senate contests across the nation as Democrats tread cautiously over an internal divide and Republicans play up their rivals' disagreements. The political impact of the protests on the White House campaign has drawn considerable attention, with opposition to President Joe Biden's handling of the Israel-Hamas war reverberating from Columbia to UCLA. The fast-evolving landscape of the demonstrations is shaping pivotal Senate races, too.
AFP
Cyclone bears down on flood-hit Kenya, Tanzania
Beaches were deserted and many shops closed on Saturday as heavy rains and winds from a tropical cyclone buffeted coastal areas of Tanzania and Kenya. But there were no reports of casualties or damage as of Saturday afternoon as the cyclone rolled in from the Indian Ocean and made landfall in Tanzania.
Associated Press
It's Cinco de Mayo time, and festivities are planned across the US. But in Mexico, not so much
The United States is gearing up for Cinco de Mayo. Music, all-day happy hours and deals on tacos are planned at venues across the country on Sunday — May 5 — in a celebration with widely misunderstood origins that is barely recognized south of the border. In the U.S., the date is largely seen as a celebration of Mexican American culture stretching back to the 1800s in California.
Associated Press
A British-Palestinian doctor was denied entry to France for a Senate meeting about the war in Gaza
A well-known British-Palestinian surgeon who volunteered in Gaza hospitals said he was denied entry to France on Saturday to speak at a French Senate meeting about the Israel-Hamas war. Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta was placed in a holding zone in the Charles de Gaulle airport and will be expelled, according to French Sen. Raymonde Poncet Monge, who had invited him to speak at the Senate. Abu Sitta posted on social networks that he was denied entry in France because of a one-year ban by Germany on his entry to Europe.
Yahoo Finance
Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholders meeting: Warren Buffett takes stage without Charlie Munger for first time
Warren Buffett will take hours of questions from shareholders on Saturday without his right-hand man, Charlie Munger, for the first time in decades.
NBC News
Indigenous doulas lead the fight for reproductive care access gap in Gaum.
After the closure of the island’s only standalone birth center in December 2022, medical professionals have been sounding the alarm for what they consider a “maternal care crisis” on Guam.
NBC News
Speaker Mike Johnson could look to another GOP speaker who took on rebels in his own party
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is facing a threat a few of his Republican predecessors can relate to: members of his own party vowing to oust him from power.
Politico
An AI-controlled fighter jet took the Air Force leader for a historic ride. What that means for war
Artificial intelligence marks one of the biggest advances in military aviation since the introduction of stealth in the early 1990s. "We have to have it," Secretary Frank Kendall says.
CNN
Sadiq Khan wins third term as London mayor, Labour sources say, capping strong showing for opposition in English elections
Sadiq Khan won a third term as London’s mayor on Saturday, capping a round of local elections across England that confirmed the political supremacy of the Labour party and caused misery for Rishi Sunak’s government.
AFP
Death toll in southern Brazil flood rises to 56
The death toll from floods and mudslides triggered by torrential storms in southern Brazil has climbed to 56 people, with 74 injured and another 67 missing, the country's civil defense agency said Saturday.And heavy rains of "very high severity" are expected to continue into Sunday, Civil Defense authorities said.
CNN
Your body needs these three forms of movement every week
Movement is movement, right? Not exactly. Here’s what your body is looking for in addition to your morning walk or yoga session, according to experts.
The Conversation
Beer and spirits have more detrimental effects on the waistline and on cardiovascular disease risk than red or white wine
Research has been inconclusive on the degree to which drinking alcohol leads to the growth of harmful fat. But a new study suggests that beer and spirits are far bigger culprits than wine.
Reuters
Germany denounces rising political violence after MEP seriously hurt
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Saturday vowed to fight a surge in violence against politicians after a German member of the European Parliament had to be taken to hospital after being attacked while campaigning for re-election. Matthias Ecke, 41, a member of Faeser's Social Democrats (SPD), was hit and kicked by a group of four people while putting up posters in Dresden, capital of the eastern state of Saxony, police said. An SPD source said his injuries would require an operation.
Reuters
Israeli forces kill five Palestinians in overnight raid near West Bank's Tulkarm
TULKARM, West Bank (Reuters) -Israeli forces killed five Palestinians in an overnight raid in a village near the city of Tulkarm in the occupied West Bank, according to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, which cited Palestinian security sources. The security sources and a Reuters reporter at the scene said that Israeli forces had taken some of the bodies following the raid in the village of Deir al-Ghusun. The Israeli military said it was conducting "counterterrorism activities in the area".
Time
For Biden, This Moment Is Bigger Than Gaza
Amid bruising college protests, Biden's Israel policy isn't changing, officials say, in part because of a concern about the prospects of a wider war in the Middle East
The Conversation
Use of ‘white privilege’ makes online discussions more polarized and less constructive
In this era of racial reckoning, words such as ‘white privilege’ have played a significant role in defining social problems plaguing America. But those words also have a downside.
Yahoo Finance
‘Construction is not perfect:’ Expert tips on what to do when you're building a house
A lot can go wrong when you're building a house. Experts say it's essential to stay involved throughout the process.
CNN
The moment Trump defied gravity is coming back to haunt him
Being elected president shortly after surviving the publication of the leaked “Access Hollywood” tape in 2016 is the moment in which Donald Trump defied political gravity.
The Conversation
How Mexico’s lucrative avocado industry found itself smack in the middle of gangland
The brief 2022 US ban on avocado imports from Mexico underscored the risks of being so heavily reliant on a product that comes from one region in one country.

Latest Stories