John Mateer explains benefits of teaching offense to new Oklahoma teammates

John Mateer arrived in Norman shortly after Oklahoma hired Washington State offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle to the same role this offseason. Mateer had a breakout season as the Cougars’ starter in 2024, and he’s hoping to enjoy similar success with the Sooners.

That gives Mateer a leg up on most other QB transfers around the country — he doesn’t have to learn a new offense. Instead, he’ve been given an opportunity to help Arbuckle and company teach it to the rest of the team this offseason.

“Teaching is — I think it’s scientifically proven to the best way to learn something,” Mateer said at SEC Media Days. “So being able to do that is huge. Pre-snap, you can think about what you should do, where you should go, but once the play starts, it has to be instincts.

“So to be able to know those instincts and have them wired into my brain is huge in getting to the next progression. That’s been a huge thing I’ve been wanting to work on.”

Mateer proved he was capable of executing on those instincts in Arbuckle’s offense last season. His first year as the main starter for Washington State, Mateer finished the 2024 season having thrown for 3,139 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also showcased his ability to run the football having scored an additional 15 touchdowns on the ground to go along with 826 rushing yards.

Now in a new environment in Norman, Mateer has already been able to find himself in a leadership role with the program. That was evident based on his presence alone at SEC Media Days earlier this month.

“I was fortunate because I didn’t have to learn a whole new offense,” Mateer said of his leadership role with the Sooners. “I was able to take time and learn from the players that I was going to play with, build relationships in the locker room and hang out with them and help them learn offense. Because better relationships are the most important thing in leading is that you can’t lead people you don’t know. They’re not going to trust you if they don’t know you.”

Mateer will make his Oklahoma debut against Illinois State on Aug. 30. Kickoff between the two programs is set for 6 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN+. Their schedule gets serious the week after when they host the Michigan Wolverines.