Seth Littrell details relationship with Jackson Arnold

When Jackson Arnold committed to Oklahoma, a huge reason why was his relationship with offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby. But Lebby has since moved on, taking over at Mississippi State as the head coach. Arnold will enter his first full season as the starting quarterback with somebody new calling plays — Seth Littrell.

The relationship will begin with Alamo Bowl prep heading into a matchup against Arizona. Littrell had nothing but positive things to say about Arnold beforehand, complimenting his work ethic. Even as a backup quarterback, Arnold was preparing as if he was the one going out there to play for Oklahoma on a weekly basis.

“Jackson is a phenomenal young man,” Littrell said during his Alamo Bowl press conference. “Extremely hard worker. He’s going to put all in the time that it takes to prepare every week although he wasn’t the starter in most of those games this year. So, like I told him — we’re both getting our first start together. So, it will be an amazing time, nobody better to do it with.”

Arnold stepped on campus as a Five-Star Plus+ prospect, being the No. 4 quarterback in the 2023 recruiting class per the On3 Industry Rankings. Even so, some growth was needed throughout a freshman campaign, even if it occurred on the practice field.

Littrell certainly saw improvements from Arnold and expects it to continue. Getting first-team reps should only speed up the process. Not just leading into the bowl game but also throughout spring practice and fall camp before facing off against SEC opponents in 2024.

“There has been a ton of growth,” Littrell said. “I think Jackson is one of those guys that is going to compete every single day with himself and get a day better… You’re going to get more and more comfortable with more days of practice and more days of reps with the first group.”

Not only has Littrell been promoted to offensive coordinator and play caller but he is also now coaching quarterbacks. He will be working directly with Arnold on his development to make sure he can become the player everyone in Norman knows he can be.

Excitement surrounding Arnold is certainly off the charts, dating back to National Signing Day over a year ago. With his first start now upon us, Thursday night against Arizona will be a sneak peek of what an Arnold-Littrell partnership can look like moving forward.