Oklahoma is less than a week away from the launch of the 2022 campaign. Optimism and positivity have been pouring in from Norman’s camp all summer long, but elsewhere, people aren’t selling much about Oklahoma’s potential this season.
Some of the CBS Sports writers shared their thoughts on the Big 12 heading into 2022. The conference’s mainstay programs, Oklahoma and Texas, were considered his two most overrated teams. Shehan Jeyarajah said about Sooners:
Over the past six years, the Sooners have been a consistent model, but are entering a new era. More than 40% of the roster is new, according to Venables. The top two quarterbacks, his two rushers in the lead, he’s four of the top five receivers, and last season’s top three sacks his leader is gone. There’s a lot of new talent to make up for the loss, but they’re not playing together. This is not a turnkey operation and we won’t see Oklahoma at its best until November. – Shehan Jeyarajah (also Barrett Sallee), CBS Sports
There is some validity to the belief that Oklahoma won’t turn out like it did last year.
A struggling Spencer Rattler, a struggling offensive line, and a mid-season replacement by Caleb Williams gave them new life for a while. But even they still suffered from some of the same big problems that plagued the team when Ratler was at center.
Lost offensive talent outside of running back Kennedy Brooks isn’t much of a problem considering they have an all-new offensive system and the offensive line also has a new blocking scheme. The Sooners reinstated his three starters along the offensive line, their best wide his receiver Marvin his Mims, and Theo his Wies had been sidelined for most of his 2021.
Added to that is new starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who saw offensive success against Jeff Levy and brought freshman All-American honors in 2019.
Defensively, the losses they suffered could be more significant, at least in the current situation. , had a combination of experience and production that could not be easily replaced. And potentially more importantly, most of them were both program leaders and defensive leaders. They lost six starters in a defense they need to improve in 2022 over last year.
Players like DaShaun White, David Ugwoegbu, Woodi Washington, Key Lawrence and Jalen Redmond need to take big steps in production and leadership to maximize Oklahoma’s defense.
Overall, the notion that Oklahoma can be overrated may be a bit exaggerated. A game against Baylor, Texas and Oklahoma State tells us a lot about who they are. If they went 0-3 or 1-2, it’s safe to say they were overrated, but winning two of those or sweeping those three teams would make the Big 12 champions That would be enough to get them back in the Ship Games. An appearance and win there would take them away from the overrated category in a heartbeat.
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