Weekend Open Post | October 3rd – 5th
Posted on: October 3, 2025
Sunday Brunch | Good Time to Talk SEC QBs
– Charlie S – Posted on: September 28, 2025
I thoroughly enjoyed my bye week. I hope you all did as well!
With Sooners QB John Mateer being in the news with his hand surgery this past week, Super K and I got to talking about the QBs that the Sooners will (or have) faced in SEC play.
Coming into this year, the Sooners knew they would be facing a lot of new guys as all but two of their conference foes would be starting new QBs in the Sooners’ second season in the SEC.
Coming into the year, I absolutely had Nussmeier and Sellars at the top of the opposing QB list…now, through the early part of the season, I am not so sure that would be the case.
Lets take a look at my thoughts on the SEC QBs that OU will face and how I see the situation now as compared to how I saw things in the preseason:
Auburn – Jackson Arnold – Exactly what most of the community expected, some big plays, but largely not good. Had him near the bottom in preseason, that remains the case.
Texas – Arch Manning – Not at all what was expected by national guys, pretty much what was expected by OU ball knowers. Had him mid pack of the schedule, he has held that ground.
South Carolina – LaNorris Sellars – Down compared to the projection preseason, but dude can still take over a game at times. Had him near the top of the list preseason, whether it is due to his supporting cast or something else, he has dropped to the top of the middle group.
Ole Miss – Trinidad Chambliss – Looks like he has won the job, and to be honest, he is a dynamic player who helps offset the loss of Jaxson Dart. This one is a shocker and he has a chance to be one of the more impactful QBs OU will face. Making a case to climb into the top group.
Tennessee – Joey Aguilar – Honestly, he feels like an upgrade to Nico. He is more consistent, maybe not as dynamic, but a better fit for what they want to do. I like him as a player, feel like he is a better fit at Tennessee than Nico was, he moving up on the list.
Alabama – Ty Simpson – I was not a Simpson believer prior to the season…however, I’ll eat crow and say he is doing a much better job with the Bama offense than Jalen Milroe did. Dude may already be playing like the best QB OU will face, and chances are he is even better by the time OU heads to Tuscaloosa. He sits at the top for me.
Missouri – Beau Pribula – Much, much better QB than Drew Pyne who led the Tigers to a win over OU last year in the closing minutes. Kid is actually fun to watch and that pains me to say, as I cannot stand Missouri. He has moved toward the front.
LSU – Garrett Nussmeier – What happened to this guy? Did he catch something from Nic Anderson and Bauer Sharp? Either way, he is not currently playing at the level that was expected of him. Bro is playing like something is very wrong with him. He could flip a switch at some point, but he has fallen from my top spot to mid pack.
Bottom line, as of right now, here is how I would rank the QBs the Sooners face in conference play compared to how I viewed them in the preseason.
1. Ty Simpson – Alabama – Trending up
2. Beau Pribula – Missouri – Trending up
3. Trinidad Chambliss – Ole Miss – Trending up
4. LaNorris Sellars – South Carolina – Trending down
5. Garrett Nussmeier – LSU – Trending down
6. Joey Aguilar – Tennessee – Trending up
7. Arch Manning – Texas – Holding serve
8. Jackson Arnold – Auburn – Stayed in place
Interested in reading your thoughts!
Time to Run the Ball
– Super K – Posted on: September 29, 2025
With Mateer out this upcoming weekend (at least), Arbuckle and company have to put an emphasis on running the ball.
Each week, CJ has been keeping track of rush attempts, rush yards, yards after contact and other rush related statistics by running backs for all the SEC teams.
It probably won’t surprise you that the Sooners are dead last in a number of categories.
For the last week or so, we’ve been discussing how important it’s going to be for the Sooners to establish a running game. But after Mateer’s injury and after watching TAMU rush for 200 yards on Auburn, it’s become even more a topic of note.
With the kind of defenses OU will face this season, despite OU’s defensive prowess (which should keep them in any game), the offense could struggle mightily if they remain one dimensional.
We know the Sooners are capable developing a run game. The second half of last season, the Sooners developed a very dangerous run game despite not having much of a passing game to complement it.
But, as you know, you have to run the ball in the games and you have to stick with it to get better at running the ball in that game and beyond. There is only so much pad work and bag work you can do; at some point you’ve got to get in the ring to learn how to fight.
Right now, in the SEC, the Sooners are near the bottom, if not the bottom, at running back rush attempts. They are at the bottom for yards per attempt. They are at the bottom for yards after contact per attempt. And they are near the bottom on forced missed tackles by running backs.
More rush attempts should help the Sooners OL in developing a downhill mentality. It should help the WRs develop the aggression. And, it should get the backs comfortable so they can start making plays even when the set up isn’t perfect (in the SEC it’s not going to be).
This upcoming weekend, would be great to see them severely limit the QB run game other than perhaps some keepers to keep the defense honest and obviously scrambles when necessary. It’s time to start feeding the backs against favorable looks (and this weekend, perhaps against less favorable looks).
We know the Sooners have the talent to do this, I suspect they just need a lot more on the field work and focus on the run game to bring it out.
With Mateer and the defense, they don’t need to have a top running game. But something better than the current one is going to be absolutely necessary against this schedule. This weekend is a great time to really emphasize that.
I don’t think football history generally favors one dimensional teams. It’s not going to look pretty to start out but hopefully it’ll come together in short order and ensure the Sooners can keep winning.
Mike Hawkins | Version Two
– Charlie S – Posted on: September 29, 2025
Coming into the season, the Sooners knew that there was a risk of quarterback John Mateer getting dinged up with the physical nature of his game. Running the ball is a key aspect of Mateer’s game, and doing that in the PAC 12 or the Mountain West or whatever it is called is a much different animal than doing it in the SEC.
With that in mind, in the offseason, Ben Arbuckle sought to revamp the Sooners’ QB room. Along with bringing Mateer in, he brought in Cole Gonzales to add experience and depth to the room. The Sooners also were able to retain Mike Hawkins. Gonzales stayed for the spring, but he bounced shortly thereafter to Pitt where he had a better chance of competing for the starting job (he did not win that competition) so the Sooners went out and brought in Whitt Newbauer, who had a solid freshman year at Mercer.
While Mateer is the clear QB1 and there was no competition for that spot throughout the summer and fall, Mike Hawkins went out and solidified himself as QB2. The Sooners publicly stated they would like to redshirt Hawkins if possible (and that is still on the table), and if there was a helmet popping off situation or a minor injury to Mateer, chances are you would have seen Newbauer take a couple of snaps.
Now, with Mateer staring at missing the Kent State game at the very least (I also believe he misses the Texas game at the very least), OU will call upon Mike Hawkins to lead the offense.
This is not new to Hawkins, as he was called upon last year as a true freshman. Now, the way OU went about it last year and the circumstances that took place under are much different than last year, but oddly enough, the timing is pretty much the same with Texas and South Carolina being the Sooners’ next two SEC opponents.
From everything we saw last year and even in the small sample size we have seen from Hawkins this year (one game, Temple), it appears that the game might still be moving too fast for him.
However, with close to 3 weeks of practice time and basically a scrimmage (Kent State) in between, Hawkins should be better prepared to lead the team offensively.
Start with the fact that Mike has been able to work with and observe John Mateer from spring through the present time. Nobody knows more about Arbuckle’s offense than Mateer, and he basically serves as another coach out there and someone Mike can look to for advice.
Add in the fact that OU has provided him with a new offensive coordinator who is not trying to cobble together multiple different aspects of multiple different offensive schemes. Then, OU also brought in a QB coach to work with the quarterbacks, which is something that was sorely missed in Norman over the last three years.
Last year, it felt like the Sooners were the most injured team in the history of college football, as they basically had their entire wide receiver room on the shelf as well as their entire offensive line room off the field for long stretches of time. The offensive personnel are healthier and better across the board. The surrounding cast is clearly better when looking back at last year, so that should help Hawkins out.
Last season, when he faced Texas and South Carolina, Hawkins led the team to a total of three points. Texas simply took away the run game and forced OU to try to move the ball through the air. While the Sooners technically ran the ball more than they threw it against Texas, and Mike had 20 carries on the day, he only had 27 yards on the ground while going 19-30 through the air, but only averaging 4 yards per completion. Against South Carolina, we all remember what happened in the first five minutes, and it felt like OU ran him out there with a mandate of ‘throw the ball no matter what’ and that resulted in a 21-point hole for the Sooners before most of the crowd had even settled into their seats.
Well, while they still are playing very good defense, Texas has lost a ton up the middle on their front, and the Sooners have improved personnel around the quarterback heading into that game. South Carolina also lost a ton on defense, and they are off to an uneven start as they allowed Vandy and Missouri to average 30 points against them. The point being, those defenses are not quite what they were last year.
The hope is that with Hawkins being in a consistent system under Arbuckle, with improved personnel surrounding him, with a full year under his belt of working with a new OC and a QB coach, and with three weeks of practice, the game will start to slow down for him.
Add in the fact that OU has what appears to be an elite defense this year, the pressure around the offense should be a bit lower and the goal will be to not screw things up and simply manage field position and put your team in position to put some points on the board. The defense should be able to keep OU in every and any game, and that should add some comfort to Hawkins and the offensive side of the ball.
At the end of the day, the Sooners have been here before, and they know what it looks like when things are working, and perhaps more importantly, they know what it looks like when things are not working. How they address each of those situations should they present themselves is really the thing to keep an eye on.
What I hope to see against Kent State is a guy (Hawkins) who comes out there and has command of the offense and is able to run the entire offense the way it is designed to be run. OU cannot afford to go into the Texas game (should Hawkins be called upon) as the same one-dimensional team they were last year when they pulled into the Cotton Bowl.
Let’s hope Mike Hawkins V2 settles in and lets things slow down around him!
Sourced Team Notes | September 30th
– Charlie S – Posted on: September 30, 2025
The Sooners are back in game prep this week at practice following a bit of a breather for the bye week last week.
Wanted to pass along a couple sourced notes I picked up recently.
***First, as you know, wide receiver Javonnie Gibson is on target to make his Sooner debut this weekend against Kent State. Gibson suffered a broken leg at the end of spring ball and has worked his tail off to get back on the field. Source says that since he started going through full practice, he had been playing a little tight and tentatively (as you would expect), but yesterday he appeared to cross the threshold a bit and more closely resembled the player that he was back in the spring. Source said “It’s gonna take a minute until he trusts it, but each time he gets hit or makes a hard plant, he is getting further away from it (the injury) in his head”.
***When it comes to the offensive line, I was told, “They are all practicing and will be available”. I asked for some clarity there, and source noted that they were talking about the three starters (Fasusi, Maikkula, and Nwaiwu) who have all been dealing with ankle injuries. I inquired about the Jake’s but was told once again that it is not likely that Sexton will be back until after Texas, and I simply cannot get a concrete reply on Jake Taylor at this time.
***As for cornerback Eli Bowen, it sounds like all is going well there. The freshman all-American from last year is also on schedule to make his season debut against Kent State. Source said he is moving well and doesn’t look like he is having any issues physically. For Eli, it will all be about knocking off some rust as he has not played much football at all since the end of last season.
Being Balanced
– Super K – Posted on: September 30, 2025
Yesterday, we talked about the Sooners need to put a heavier emphasis on the running back run game.
But I want to offer a word of caution.
This is the SEC. I know a lot of Sooner fans still aren’t reckoning with what that means. I could tell based, in part, on the predictions that OU was going to “blow the doors off of Auburn.”
You are rarely going to blow the doors off of anyone in this league.
This is not the Big 12 and some fans just haven’t brought themselves into this new conference yet.
Just like folks see how good OU is right now and make a lot of assumptions about how many games OU will win this season. It’s not that simple. In the Big 12, you could watch a few OU games and figure out within a decent margin of error what OU’s record would be against Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, etc.
Now? The Sooners face near equal talent every single week.
And this means some readjustment of certain expectations. One of those relates to being balanced on offense.
You might be used to the old OU offensive lines that could pass block and give Baker or Kyler hours to sit back and scan the field. And, that same team could run a counter and pick up ten yards a clip.
That is NOT going to happen in this league. As Saban’s team moved towards a wide open attack, his pass blocking got better but his run game suffered.
In this league, you will not be elite often, if ever, at both pass protection and run blocking. You’re facing too many NFL DL each and every week.
The best you can hope for is to be balanced – pretty good at pass blocking and pretty good at run blocking. And again, that is going to require balance in the calls so that both qualities can be developed throughout the season.
Following Up On the Balance Topic
– Charlie S – Posted on: September 30, 2025
Following up on Super K’s balance topic from this morning.
I constantly hear about what the OU offense would look like ‘back in the day’ behind the lines that Baker and Kyler had and all I kept coming back to was…think about all the talent Baker and Kyler had around them while also taking THEIR talent into account.
Baker, Kyler, and even Jalen Hurts to a degree, were all-time GREAT college QBs. Like…when you say ‘all-time’ and can back it up with Heisman trophies and prolfic stats in the HISTORY of college football, you are really talking about special players.
Those players also had a surrounding cast that was much better, whether you think of Sterling Shepard, CeeDee Lamb, Joe Mixon, Samaje Perine (another all-timer as he is the all-time leading rusher at OU) and Mark Andrews…they had skill position players to support their immense talent.
I went back and looked at the last 10 NFL drafts, which started after Baker’s first year as QB1 at OU and the results were pretty indicative of the offensive slide that has taken place in Norman, particularly over the last 5 years.
Take a look:
2016: 1 WR
2017: 1 WR, 2 RB
2018: 1 QB, 1 TE, 1 OL
2019: 1 QB, 1 WR, 1 RB, 4 OL
2020: 1 QB, 1 WR
2021: 1 RB. 1 OL
2022: 1 WR, 1 OL
2023: 1 RB, 1 WR, 2 OL, 1 TE
2024: 2 OL
2025: None
2016-2020 – 16 offensive players selected including 4 first round selections (2 number one overall QBs and 2 WRs)
2021-2025 – 11 offensive players selected including 2 first round selections (2 OL)
2016-2020 By position:
3 QB – (2 first rounders)
4 WR – (2 first rounders)
3 RB
1 TE
5 OL
2021-2025 By position:
0 QB
2 RB
2 WR
1 TE
6 OL (2 ist rounders)
When you talk about balance, you need good players at every level across the offense. You need all 11 players working in tandem.
When Baker/Kyler/Jalen/even Caleb were in Norman, they had weapons to use along with solid personnel on the offensive line.
Since the new staff has been in place, the only consistent position on the offensive side of the ball has been the OL, which has actually had improved draft stats as compared to the prior 5 years.
You can look directly at the most important position on offense, as college football is still a QB-centric affair. OU is known as QBU, and they haven’t had one drafted in the last 5 years.
Running back is another head-scratcher. While OU technically has had 2 drafted in the last 5 seasons, only one has been drafted under the new coaching staff (and he was a transfer…actually, both of the last 2 RBs drafted were transfers).
At wide receiver, well, you know my thoughts on that room. Marvin Mims is the only guy who played for the new staff who has been drafted, but the former staff really was way overrated when it came to WRs anyway. Michael Woods was drafted in 2022 so he was in town for Caleb and Spencer.
The tight end room had Brayden Willis get drafted most recently, but after that, there have been no new additions of note, and the development in that room has been lacking to say the least.
So in short…there has been zero balance on the offensive side of the ball in regard to personnel. You have had one room perform at or near the same level as the prior 5 seasons (NFL draft-wise), and the others have been well below where they were in the previous 5 seasons.
When you don’t have elite players, achieving the desired results becomes significantly more challenging. Between 2016 and 2020, 11 offensive players outside of the OL were drafted, including 3 quarterbacks, 2 of which were the number one picks and Heisman Trophy winners. From 2020 to 2025, 5 offensive players outside of the OL were drafted, and none of them were quarterbacks, and none of them were first round picks.
How many guys on this year’s offensive side of the ball will be drafted?
Know Your Opponent | Kent State
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 1, 2025
Head Coach – Mark Carney (interim). He became interim head coach in April 2025, after Kenni Burns was dismissed.
Offensive Coordinator – Clay Patterson – 1st season
Defensive Coordinator – Cherokee Valeria – 1st season
Kent State opened the 2025 season with a narrow 21–17 win over Merrimack, giving the Golden Flashes a positive start under new leadership. The momentum quickly faded, however, as they were overwhelmed on the road by Texas Tech in a 62–14 defeat. Returning home, Kent State battled Buffalo in a tight contest but came up short, falling 31–28. Their toughest test came against Florida State, where the Flashes were outmatched in a 66–10 loss, leaving them at 1–3 through four games.
On Offense…
Kent State runs a spread-based, pro-style offense that mixes RPOs and tempo with traditional power concepts. The run game uses zone and gap schemes, while the passing attack relies on short/intermediate throws and occasional deep shots off play-action. They primarily operate out of 11 personnel, using motion to create mismatches. In 2025, the scheme has shown flashes but remains inconsistent due to OL struggles and a developing passing game.
Kent State is ranked 128th (out of 134) in total offense. 119th in scoring offense as they average 18.2 points per game. 89th in passing offense (204 YPG). 130th in rushing offense (86.5 YPG)
12 QB Dru DeShields
27 RB Jordan Nubin
1 WR Da’Shawn Martin
3 WR Jay Jay Etheridge
13 WR (slot) Ardell Banks
76 RT Garrett Masterson
57 LG Dustyn Morell
71 C Matt Pajuste
75 LG Boston Crowell
68 LT Junior Diallo
11 TE Christian Berry
Offensive bright spots:
Dru DeShields (QB) – He leads the team in passing yards (642) and has shown leadership and poise in challenging matchups.
Cade Wolford (WR) – He’s the deep threat of this offense, averaging almost 26.4 yards per reception with four touchdowns, which is among the highest yards-per-catch among FBS players with at least five catches.
Gavin Garcia (RB) – Although Kent State’s run game has struggled his season, Garcia has been the most productive runner, especially in short-yardage and tough situations.
On Defense…
Kent State’s defense in 2025 under new DC Cherokee Valeria is a 4–3 base scheme that mixes multiple fronts and pressures. They emphasize stopping the run first, with big interior linemen occupying gaps so linebackers like Mason Woods and CJ Young can make plays. On passing downs, the Flashes shift into nickel looks, bringing extra pressure off the edge and relying on man coverage from corners Jaire Rawlison and Angelo Stockstill. The scheme is aggressive but still developing, and while it creates disruption at times, it has struggled with consistency against more physical offenses.
Kent State is ranked dead last (134th) in total defense (by a good margin) as they allow 542 YPG. 133rd in scoring defense (44 points per game allowed). 127th passing yards allowed (285 YPG). 132nd in rushing defense (256 YPG)
95 DE Jelani Davis
4 DE Jamond Mathis
5 DT Thomas Aden
6 DT Mason Maddox
0 LB Mason Woods
3 LB CJ Young
21 LB Joel Cordoba
22 CB Jaire Rawlison
7 CB Angelo Stockstill
13 FS Tevin Tucker
12 SS Joel Boamah
Defensive bright spots:
Mason Woods (LB) – Leading the team with 28 total tackles, Woods has been a consistent presence in the middle of the defense, contributing significantly in run support and coverage situations.
CJ Young (LB) – As a redshirt sophomore, Young has shown promise with 24 total tackles, including 15 solo tackles, and has been effective in pass coverage.
Jaire Rawlison (CB) – A redshirt freshman, Rawlison has made an immediate impact with 31 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and two pass breakups, showcasing his ability to disrupt the passing game.
Bottom line…
Kent State is a bad, bad football team. They really do not do anything well. Oklahoma should be able to do what they want, how they want, when they want against this team.
I really only did a full KYO on them because I wanted to see just how bad they were. I was not disappointed.
One On Ones | OU vs Kent State – 2025
– Charlie S – Posted on: October 1, 2025
Each week ahead of the Sooner’s game, I pick out a couple of important one one-on-one matchups that I will be paying close attention to during the game.
This week, the Sooners take on Kent State.
There simply are not any important one-on-one matchups to keep an eye on.
So…I will talk about what I would like to see from the Sooners as they take on a severely overmatched opponent.
***First, let’s start with the Sooners on the defensive side of the ball. To get straight to the point, Kent State’s offensive scheme plays directly into OU’s defensive strength. Kent State wants to run the ball. They just are not very good at it. OU doesn’t let opponents run the ball very effectively. I do not see that changing. For me, I would like to see the Markus Strongs, the Danny Okoye’s, the Nigel Smiths, the James Nesta’s and friends get all the run after the first quarter. I really do not care if Kent State scores more against OU than they did against TTU and FSU, I would simply rather let the ones and twos for OU break a sweat in the first quarter and then sit out and stay out of the way of the freak injury.
***Only other thing I would like to see defensively is that elusive first turnover. Feels like when the seal breaks, OU could produce some turnovers in bunches.
***Offensively, it is a different story for me. This is a chance for a ‘feel good’ and ‘get right’ game for the Sooners’ beleaguered run game…BUT…I do not want to see the QB run the ball at all.
***Mike Hawkins will be starting at QB for the Sooners for this game and, in my opinion, the Texas game at the very least. He needs a lot of work. OU cannot get him the work they need without playing the starters for a good chunk of the game. OU needs to run offense for the entire first half and I would actually like to see them come out and run a couple series with the first unit to start the second half as well. While there is always concern about the random injury, it is simply imperative that OU does everything they can to get Hawkins better prepared to face Texas.
***YES…Hawkins will face better defense during the week in practices. We have heard all the rave reviews about Hawkins in practice over the last two springs and fall camps; however, the hype has yet to match reality, as it has never translated to the game field. Yes, there have been flashes, but there has never been consistent high-level quarterback play in a game from Hawkins. He needs all the reps he can get, and I hope Arbuckle fits him with some concrete boots to keep him from tucking and running after one read, and instead let the running backs run.
***The offensive line has been hit by the injury bug once again this year and they desperately need to get a bunch of snaps together playing against someone other than their own defense. Put your best five out there and let them develop. I know it would be nice to simply sit everyone who is even slightly dinged up against Kent State, but if these guys can go against the OU defense in practice all week, they certainly can go out there against Kent State and work on developing cohesion during a game. Injuries happen just as frequently (if not more) in OU’s practice as they do in games and this group needs work. There will be a point in the game when we can see the 3’s and 4’s, but the OU OL needs to get their work in.
***The reason I am pretty adamant about the OL getting work is not to protect Mike Hawkins, he would be fine behind the depth pieces in the OU offensive line…but the running game is the glaring issue. The running back room has to get it figured out. All summer, we heard about Jadyn Ott. Ott was not named the starter to open the season as he missed some time, but he quickly jumped up the depth chart and got the start against Michigan. He got all of four carries in that game and hasn’t really been heard from since, aside from some garbage time against Temple. Ott has played in three games…this would be game four…it is looking pretty much like it is now or never for Ott to get on track and become part of the Sooners offense going forward. If we don’t see him much, I think you can put a cork in that bottle for the most part. You have Blaylock, Barnes, Tatum, and Robinson who need to get in gear as well, so yeah, let these guys figure some things out this weekend.
***When it comes to the wide receiver room, I couldn’t care less if we see Deion Burks, Isaiah Sategna, and Keontez Lewis outside of the first couple of series. Javonnie Gibson will be making his Sooner debut, and you have guys down the depth chart who really could use some valuable in-game reps. Let those guys play after getting the ones some run early.
***Bottom line…the OU defense can afford to rest some guys and keep them out of harm’s way. The offense, on the other hand, has a lot to accomplish in a game setting. You have a QB who is trying to find his way, you have an OL that has not played many snaps together, you have a wide receiver room that could stand to develop some game and rotation depth, and you have a running back room that has no real identity and way too many questions entering game five of the season. Get to work.
Trench Warfare Auburn
– JY – Posted on: October 1, 2025
I had posted a little bit earlier about my opinion on if the Sooners execute more cleanly, they run Auburn out of the stadium. It is my humble opinion that this isn’t a talent issue offensively, it’s an execution issue as it pertains to the run game. I’m here today to provide the evidence.
On this play it’s QB counter with the jet sweep action to the bottom. Auburn did a nice job “trading responsibilities” and confusing the pullers in Oklahoma’s counter game. In this instance, the D end crashed very hard. What should happen is that Nwaiwu needs to seal his guy inside and Simmons needs to fold around him and face up or kick out the linebacker who’s coming in a dead sprint.
A step later, the D end is crashing hard, Simmons doesn’t see Nwaiwu preparing to pin his guy inside. Simmons thinks he needs to take the pink path like a traditional counter look of kick out with the guard and he swabs the hole. With what Auburn is doing, it makes it really tough on the pullers, and both guys have to adjust on the fly. Simmons should take the blue path and block the linebacker who…
Has cleared the duo of pullers. Imagine if Simmons blocks the guy who is unblocked attacking Mateer Most likely he’s able to set up Kanak’s block at the top by stretching to the sideline and be one on one with the circled safety. Then, if Sategna is able to get something on the safety on the bottom hash Mateer either scores a TD here or gets a good gain.
Here’s another play where Mateer goes in untouched if we block it correctly. Ozeata is comin round the mountain here, but he’s a little too deep. If he’s able to kick this guy out, Mateer stretches the block out, Barnes leads up into the hole and Mateer is celebrating on the M.
But that’s not what happens.
Bear with me on this. Ozeata should be inside of the inside defender (pink path), while it will give time for Barnes to block out on the Yellow path. Then Mateer could set it up and choose to dip inside and get to the goal post or…
If Ozeata doesn’t get confused and he blocks the guy Barnes is blocking, and Barnes takes the guy that Ozeata gets called for holding, then it’s an easy block for Blaylock on the outside. From inside out Ozeata 1, Barnes 2, Blaylock 3. You have numbers, you just didn’t execute. So with that, as much as anyone wants to say that Oklahoma isn’t physical enough up front and this is the SEC blah blah blah blah, this is a between the ears thing. I’ll see if I can dig up some more examples, but these are just two plays that Oklahoma should have scored on. I’m excited to see if they’ve cleaned this stuff up this week. Mix in at least one of the pick sixes and a 7 point game becomes a 21 point game. Boomer
Tough to Beat Mentality
– Super K – Posted on: October 2, 2025
Thinking back to the Auburn game reminded me of something we had hoped for when Brent was hired. It was something we saw in Dabo’s teams not too long ago.
They were tough to beat. It didn’t matter how good the other team was, Clemson didn’t relent. They kept coming.
It was interesting watching the Michigan game where the Sooners made so many mistakes and it felt like, here we go again, they’re going to give the game away. But, they didn’t.
And in contrast, Auburn kept making mistakes but it felt like they kept coming. But, they just couldn’t beat OU. OU had an answer for them at every turn.
I don’t know if this is a trend. And I don’t know if it’s because BV has his hands on the defense – after all, Clemson hasn’t been nearly as hard to beat since Brent left. But right now, the Sooners are exuding that tough to beat vibe.
Responses to Trench Warfare Questions
– JY – Posted on: October 2, 2025
First off,
Thanks so much for the kind words regarding Trench Warfare. I’m so glad that you guys till enjoy them. There were a lot of questions, so I figured I’d respond to them in a separate thread.
From Soonerfandave84
JY, I know a lot of people are ‘meh’ on Coach Jones due to last season and a relative lack of depth this season but I’m seeing a group of WRs who block their tails off this year and have made big plays when given the opportunity. Could you(or AK)do a TW breakdown of that position to show their blocking effort and what routes they excel in?
–I will say that I’m very impressed with how well the receiving corps has been blocking this year. The perimeter game whether it’s wide zone, jet sweeps or screens rely on a high level of execution from the receivers. It’s night and day different than it was a year ago. I’ll see if I can find some examples of blocking up the perimeter game from a receiver standpoint. As far as what routes specific receivers excel at more than others, That may be a question for Alex. I’m not great at understanding route trees or coverages. I’m a knuckle dragger by trade.
From hOUligan_3
The only thing better than a Trench Warfare post is a BOOM post and I see we have both. I’ve always thought pass blocking, where you’re ‘catching’ was more difficult than run blocking, where you can be more aggressive. Any thoughts JY on this and how this might play into OUr line being good at pass protection but not so good at run blocking? Thanks, JY. Always great getting your perspective.
–Houligan! thanks for the kind words man! I know that several people have talked about the mobility issues that the guys were dealing with a couple of weeks ago. Specifically the statement that there were 8 good ankles amongst the five starting O linemen. Like Venables defensive scheme, Arbuckle’s offense is very complex, or at least has a ton of moving parts. More specifically, Jet Sweeps, GT counter, G Lead, GH Counter etc, all have guys moving around a lot. With that, there has to be a lot of mental reps and as a former player, I had to see it and do it. You could explain it to me until you were blue in the face, but watching film ON MYSELF on a daily basis of practice, and seeing what I did wrong, and then making a conscious effort to not make the mistakes again, I was able to get a half a step quicker, a half a beat more aggressive, and just a little bit stronger because I wasn’t hesitating. Some of the errors made against Auburn were unforced errors, while other mistakes weren’t. People don’t realize how hard it is to be an offensive lineman. Other than being bigger and stronger, you’re trying to catch players who are much more athletic and much faster than you. To counter that, and not have your strength and size negated, you have to be faster in your mind. Keep in mind that it was only week four of a brand new system for everyone outside of Mateer and Arbuckle.
From Boom
JY, thanks for putting this together. Ozaeta has started at least 8-10 games, why is he still having issues with these pulls.
Wouldn’t BB coach Simmons understand this concept in more detail. He’s a senior so this shouldn’t be new to him, so I at a lose with this “execution”.
Again, appreciate your insight
–Boom, great question. Going back to my experience as a player, by my redshirt sophomore year, it was my third year in the system we had. So there were two full seasons, two springs, two summers, two fall camps and then the third season. I knew the system inside and out, and I also knew what other teams would do to try to shut it down. It made me wayyy quicker being able to diagnose what other teams were trying to do to shut us down IN the game and DURING the play. They may get me once, but not again. As I alluded to answering HOUligan above, it’s only week four, now week six for Simmons. He’s had to learn a new system every year. While I understand he’s been through a spring, summer and fall camp, there’s nothing like game speed in a league that prides itsself on physicality and great defense. I think the learning curve is accelerated for him since he is so experienced, but I expect to see a big jump execution wise this week and in the Texas game.
From JaymOU
4-0 two top 10 wins and OU has not played a clean game yet. Call me encouraged.
@JY – could Fodje at guard help the run game? Flip 54 to left and Ryan in at right? Sorry can’t spell “Nuwiwu”
–Man I gotta tell you I mutilate not only spelling Nwaiwu’s name but pronouncing it too. You’re not alone. Great question though. I think Fodje could help the run game, but if I put myself in Coach Bedenbaugh’s shoes, you gotta be careful moving guys around too much. You’ve got a hyper talented kid in Eddy Pierre-Louis at left guard as well as a more of a blue-collar guy like Ozeata at left guard. Not saying Ozeata isn’t talented, but his margin of error is smaller due to not being as physically gifted as a Fasusi or someone like that. You can have success without being hyper talented, but you just can’t make mistakes. Keeping that in mind, if you move those guys too much and put Fodje over there, I think you damage those two guys long term. Keep in mind that Bedenbaugh is playing the long game as well as the right now game. In my mind, next year, I bet we see EPL and Ozeata in a battle Royale for that left guard spot, because Maikkula has been a revelation at Center. No One, myself included saw him taking that center spot from Everett this quickly. Prior to that I would have had Ozeata bump down to center and EPL at Left Guard and Fodje at right Guard for next year. Now, that changes things. All that being said, my projection for next fall is Fasusi (LT), Ozeata or EPL (LG), Maikkula (C), Fodje (RG) and God knows who at RT. Letting guys stay in the same spot for a while builds continuity. There are about five different names I could throw at you for that RT spot right now looking ahead who are already on the roster. Howland, Sexton, Taylor, Dent and Akinkunmi, plus any stud who pops up in the portal. Still Nwaiwu and Simmons are seniors and you have to let guys settle into a spot so they can do things more effectively for longer and more consistently.
From pegray777
Thanks JY!
These are the best, and the reason I started subscribing. I like the stills better than video, as it helps me see what I am looking at, at the right time. Still learning the game after all these years, and makes me appreciate how hard it is for the players.
that said, any idea why it takes us so long to develop a run game, when few other teams seem to have these problems?
–As I get older, I think some of it is that we all watch OU football so closely, we have an emotional investment on how the guys perform on Saturdays. When they don’t perform we’re crushed. I wish, man I wish, my outlook wasn’t tied to how well the Sooners play football every Saturday. With all that, I think we notice every mistake the Sooners make, while we probably don’t pay attention that much to other teams, because frankly everybody else sucks right? Hahaha. Like I said before, I don’t think it’s an emergency situation by any stretch right now. I do think this season sets up very very well as far as having a bye week, then Kent State and then Texas. I’ll be honest, Texas is gonna have their hands full with Florida. Then after these five games we have another bye week before we face Alabama. This bye week, then Kent State and a whole ‘nother week of preparation for Texas gives you the ability to get healthy, watch a lot of film, iron out some kinks and be ready to open up the full playbook against Texas and the rest of the SEC. Don’t get me wrong, this stretch of 8 games is undoubtedly the toughest an Oklahoma team will ever have faced, but if they keep the right mindset, they can do it. This defense is otherworldly, and as the offense grows and cleans things up, I think they can be elite. The key is staying healthy and having guys step up and IMPROVE between the ears from game to game. I know it’s a long winded answer, but the signs are there. The sense I get from this team is that they’re no-nonsense, grit, hard work and they’re hungry. The defense gives em time to improve offensively. We need to see that improvement this week.
