Weekend Open Post | April 18th – 20th
Posted on: April 18, 2025
Sunday Brunch | Portal Season Approaching
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 13, 2025
The spring transfer portal window for college football opens April 16, 2025, and closes April 25, 2025, offering OU a final chance to tweak its roster for the upcoming season.
OU, under head coach Brent Venables, typically uses the spring portal to address depth and immediate needs rather than overhaul the roster. With the addition of GM Jim Nagy this offseason, once again, OU plans to be active, targeting “key pieces” to bolster specific positions.
Historically, and something that was reiterated once again by Brent Venables yesterday, OU has focused on maintaining a roster balance of roughly 75-80% high school recruits and 20-25% transfers, emphasizing continuity while strategically adding talent.
For the 2025 spring portal, OU’s goals likely include:
***Reinforcing the offensive line, specifically center depth.
***Adding defensive playmakers, such as last year when OU landed Damonic Williams (TCU) in 2024, to boost the front.
***With the SEC’s physical demands, expect OU to seek versatile defenders, possibly at linebacker or in the secondary. Linebacker depth is not where OU would hope, and the corner room has a lot of questions due to injury.
***Filling unexpected gaps. Spring practice often reveals weaknesses due to injuries, underperformance, or players entering the portal themselves. Right now, as we have been talking about all offseason, the kicking game is a concern.
***Enhancing skill positions. OU will likely pursue a receiver and possibly a tight end as competitive depth has thinned out. In the TE room, you just have a bunch of guys right now. With the state of the tight end room over the last 3 years, and the injury to Javonnie Gibson, I would expect them to once again look at those positions.
***Venables’ staff prioritizes “team guys” who fit OU’s culture. The spring window’s shorter 10-day span means OU must act decisively, likely focusing on veterans who can contribute immediately over developmental prospects.
Here is how I would prioritize the needs of OU heading into the spring portal:
1* Kicker…yes that is my top concern. You can ‘get by’ at basically every other position with what you have, but kicker appears to be the one room where the production does not look acceptable on any level.
2* Corner…OU has a lot of talent in that corner room, but there are just as many question marks about the health of said talent, and it would be hard to see counting on Gentry and Dolby to remain healthy for the entire season as being the best plan.
3* Backup center…OU has already hosted a center in Jake Makkula, and they are trying to be proactive, but it is a tough sell to ask a guy to come in and be number 2.
4* Tight end…ah, to dare to dream. I would not be looking for just another body, I would only take a proven guy, so the chances of this happening don’t look all that high…perhaps Jim Nagy can pull a rabbit out of the hat.
5* Wide receiver…Not so much because of Javonnie’s injury, but mostly due to the fact that I believe there will be some attrition in that room in the next few days and if you get an opportunity to upgrade, you take it.
We will talk about the OU side of the equation in the coming days (positions where you may see some attrition), but as we have talked about since the winter training session, I think you can start by looking at a couple OL, a couple WR, another DB, perhaps a TE or two, and maybe a running back or two who may be considering entering the portal.
The Sooners have already had two players announce their intentions to portal as TE Davon Mitchell and DB Mykel Patterson McDonald have left the program.
Again, the portal opens Wednesday the 16th.
Quick Hitter | Former Sooner WR Hearing From OU
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 11, 2025
See what I did there with that headline?
Now that I have your attention, I just wanted to remind you all about former Sooners WR signee Keyon Brown (6’3 200), who technically entered the portal in the winter, but was not eligible to get to his new school of choice until summer.
Brown actually signed with OU in the ’22 class, but he had to go the JUCO route.
OU was in communication with him back in the winter, but they were not in a position to make a move on him as they needed to shore up their WR room ahead of spring ball.
I caught up with Keyon earlier this week, and he reiterated that the Sooners remain in contact. Brown is hoping to get a visit set up to Norman here in the near future.
I currently do not know where Brown is on OU’s priority list, but I thought it was noteworthy that the Sooners remain in contact with him.
Portal Prep | Sooners With Some Decisions Ahead
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 14, 2025
The Spring NCAA Transfer Portal Window opens on April 16th and closes on April 25th.
If a student athlete submits their paperwork by April 25th at midnight, they will enter the portal and have the ability to sign with another program.
The only rub for OU athletes is that they cannot sign with another SEC program and be eligible to play the 2025 season with their new team.
Lets take a quick look at the Sooners roster by room to see where some transfers may come from in regard to leaving the OU program: Obviously, I will not name names as we don’t want to see another Nigel Smith situation from the winter when another outlet said he would be entering the portal…only for him to come out and prove that report incorrect.
QB: I don’t expect any transfers here at this time. Of course, there could always be a surprise, but this room looks pretty set for the 2025 season with Mateer, Hawkins and Gonzales comfortable in their respective roles.
RB: I keep waiting for someone to make a move here, whether it be OU or an individual in the room. But, much like DeMarco Murray’s rotations during the season, this remains cloudy. I do expect at least one RB to enter, but I have expected since the season ended.
WR: I think there are a couple of easily identifiable possibilities here to enter the portal. OU will likely be looking for an established WR in the portal to offset the injuries in that room and there are just some guys who likely have no real path to significant playing time in Norman in the foreseeable future.
TE: I mean…where is anyone in this room going? OU already had Davon Mitchell leave, so that may be it but Huggins isn’t leaving, Kent and Kanak likely won’t be leaving, and anyone other than that, if they think they can find greener pastures, I doubt OU would have any problem shaking hands and saying good luck. In fact, OU may encourage some departures.
OL: The competition is deep in this room and there is an interesting mix of young and old guys, and I definitely have heard rumblings of a couple guys who may be looking for a better prospect at playing time, no matter when they arrived at OU. I do expect some attrition here, perhaps a couple guys.
IDL: Have not heard of any expected departures here. Seems like this room is pretty set and the guys all know they will see ample playing time so long as they produce.
EDGE/OLB: Another room with a lot of talent and a lot of real competition. I have not heard of any expected attrition, but I will say, this is one room where it would not shock me to see a guy lower down on the depth chart jump in the portal. Again, not expecting it, but would not be a shock to me.
LB: OU lost a guy they didn’t want to lose in the winter window with Lewis Carter and at this point, I do not expect any additional attrition here. I think both OU and the players are happy with where things are at and if anything, OU may look to add another player.
CB: The Sooners are in the market for another corner and I would not be shocked to see someone from this room decide they need a change of scenery. I do not believe it is a foregone conclusion that anyone will definietly jump, but I do think this is a room to watch.
S: OU already lost Mykel Patterson McDonald to the portal (twice now) and I really don’t see a guy who would be likely to make the move right now, but stranger things have happened. I think with the cheetah position and the two safety spots, along with how often OU uses a dime package, the guys are pretty happy with where things are at.
Now, this is just a basic outline, but in this day and age (see Nico Iamaleava), you never say never, but for the most part, I do not see any big pieces for the 2025 plans hittiing the portal this spring.
Jake Kreul | Quick-Hitter | Sourced
– Super K – Posted on: April 15, 2025
This past weekend, the Sooners hosted 2026 4-star DE Jake Kreul (IMG Academy).
Spoke to a source close to Kreul on where the Sooners stand in this one and was told, simply, “They’re in a good spot but still so many visits left.”
OU Working in the Portal
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 16, 2025
Following yesterday’s big day for the Sooners in the transfer portal (before it even opened), let’s take a look at what the coming days may bring.
***As I have mentioned previously, you can expect some attrition from the OU side, you can read about that HERE.
***As for emerging OU targets after the Sooners signed their priority OL (Maikkula) and the top RB in the portal (Ott) I’ll throw some names out there.
***Already noted TE Jack Endries from Cal as someone OU has been communicating with. Where that goes is still unknown at this time.
***Another couple of TEs to keep an eye on are Wisconsin’s Tanner Koziol, who OU tried to work on in the winter portal but never gained much traction, and Missouri State’s Lance Mason. I would lean more toward Mason being the more serious candidate for OU than Koziol, but we are still monitoring both.
***Have not heard OU and a kicker being connected to this point, but Texas State’s Mason Shipley is on the market, and he could be a nice option should OU get involved. I would expect the Sooners to be communicating with a few others behind the scenes as well.
***At WR, still kind of an open book. As I noted previously, the Sooners have been in communication with former signee Keyon Brown, but so far, he has not indicated that a visit is set or anything of the like. One name who is getting buzz with OU is Illinois State’s Xavier Loyd. Again, the WR spot may take some time to play out at this point, due in large part to the overinflated price tags that WRs carry right now.
***Currently, we also believe OU is looking for a corner and perhaps a linebacker, but we do not have any names of note right now.
Remember What the Experts Said About Nagy?
– Super K – Posted on: April 16, 2025
A reminder of a recent post we made. As I noted in the original post, the sources we spoke to were D1 personnel guys. They’re sense of the biggest advantage of landing Nagy seems to have been spot on (link to original post):
I spoke to three major D1 personnel guys on their thoughts about BV hiring Jim Nagy.
***First, everyone loves the guy. That might not sound like it means much but I wouldn’t discount that in terms of how that can impact on campus recruiting.
***Second, all of them agreed that there will likely be an adjustment period for Nagy to get used to evaluating high school talent. He’s obviously accustomed to evaluating players at a higher level. I personally think this is the biggest risk to the Nagy hire – how long it takes him to acclimate and how well he does so.
***The big area where I’m told Nagy is an immediate boon is as one source said, “this guy has already probably evaluated like 60% of the current college crop. He’s going to help right away with the portal evals and if you’re trying to win right away then that’s what matters.”
***That final point is the most important. We don’t yet know how much work OU will do in the portal but you can bet Nagy isn’t just evaluating 2026 recruits. He’s out there evaluating the current roster for this upcoming season to figure out what they’ll need in the portal going into the summer.
I think that quote from the original post is really playing out. It’s clear Nagy already had his evaluation done on Ott.
Wednesday Evening Portal Talk
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 16, 2025
Today was opening day for the NCAA Transfer Portal Window.
***The Sooners already picked up two huge pieces in IOL Jake Maikkula and RB Jaydn Ott yesterday.
***OU had two PWO/NIL defensive backs announce their intentions to enter the portal in Pete Schuh and Jocelyn Malaska. In conjunction with that move you, have to wonder where Jocelyn’s younger brother, Evenson Malaska, fits into the OU recruiting picture in the ’26 class. He was not a guy we had high on the Sooners list, and I would think this move corroborates that.
***I know there was a lot of buzz on Illinois State wide receiver Xavier Loyd and OU, some even insinuating that something could be announced today, but as I said first thing this morning: “One name who is getting buzz with OU is Illinois State’s Xavier Loyd. Again, the WR spot may take some time to play out at this point, due in large part to the overinflated price tags that WRs carry right now.” Right now, I do not hear of any imminent movement at WR and it may take a while to turn over the right rock as OU will not be looking to over spend at the WR position.
***Maryland transfer defensive tackle Lavon Johnson is interested in OU as evidenced by his graphic, but source I spoke to on the OU side indicated that while OU will/did make contact, no visit is set at this point and again, OU will not get into a bidding war for a player of his stature at this time. So this one will take a little bit to play out and we will see how involved OU gets.
***Lastly, we are still monitoring multiple OU players in regard to their intentions going forward. Right now, I still expect a couple more guys to enter the portal, but with everything being so fluid, it is never good to put someone on blast because things can, and do, change in an instant.
Interesting Take on Mateer and Arbuckle | Sourced
– Super K – Posted on: April 17, 2025
A couple things I want to share with you that I recently heard about Mateer and Arbuckle.
***I spoke with a staff member who faced Washington State last year. The source spoke really highly of Mateer and Arbuckle.
***First, source said that they went into the game assuming come hell or high water, Arbuckle would pass the ball. So they were dropping eight. He said he was surprised to see a young Air Raid guy like Arbuckle, simply go to the room. I know it seems easy enough but when you come from that system, it’s hard not be allergic to running the ball.
***He said Arbuckle gashed them on the ground.
***Source also noted that Mateer is way more explosive than you’d expect. He said he’s twitchy and strong. Source said, “at a certain point we almost would’ve preferred for him to pass the ball.”
***A question a lot of folks have is how Mateer will do against the jump in competition. I can’t answer that but I did hear something that gave me some additional optimism.
***As you know Cam Ward did a an excellent job in the ACC last year. He led Miami to their best season in a while.
***I was told by a source that before Ward left Washington State, he heard from someone close to Arbuckle that Arbuckle liked Mateer so much that he actually wanted Ward to transfer. Not because he didn’t think Ward was good (obviously) but he believed that the kid (Mateer) he had coming behind Ward was even better.
***That doesn’t mean it’s for sure that Mateer will light the SEC on fire but it certainly good to heard that the guy who had seen and coached both QBs, liked Mateer that much!
Quick Hitter | Target Update – Visit Planned
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 17, 2025
As you know, we have mentioned that the Sooners are in the market for a kicker, and we have talked about Texas State’s Mason Shipley as a potential target.
Sounds like Shipley will visit the Sooners in the very near future (today), so OU will get their shot at the very least.
Portal Roundup | April 17th
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 17, 2025
Wrapping up the days portal activity…
***OU had no new entries from their roster enter the portal today, which is interesting in and of itself.
***Missouri State tight end Lance Mason has scheduled an upcoming visit with OU. If you recall, yesterday I noted the following:
“I would lean more toward Mason being the more serious candidate for OU than Koziol, but we are still monitoring both.”
Well, Koziol is off the board, he committed to Houston earlier today and OU looks like they will get their shot with Mason. He is also planning on visiting Cal and Wisconsin, so the Sooners have competition for him.
***Lastly, OU hosted Texas State kicker Mason Shipley. Sounds like OU has made a nice impression there, but the Texas Longhorns are involved as well. We are trying to find out how hard Texas will push for him, but right now, OU is optimisitc about their chances there.
***Right now, without further attrition, which we are continuing to check on, those guys mentioned above appear to be the focal point for the Sooners at this juncture. I still have not heard anything about OU earnestly pursuing any corners or being aggressive at WR.
