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Preseason Hype: How Oklahoma's season can fall short in 2025

IMG_0985by: Griffin McVeigh08/20/25griffin_mcveigh
Brent Venables
Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Josh Pate is quite high on what Oklahoma could be this season. While he does not have the Sooners making the College Football Playoff, his Heisman Trophy selection is John Mateer. The hype in Norman is real, believing Mateer can help produce a major bounce-back campaign.

However, Pate spent some time Tuesday breaking down what would have to happen for his preseason take to age poorly. It’s the offensive line, in his opinion, believing Oklahoma’s shortcomings could come from the unit upfront.

“It whiffs if the offensive line doesn’t have its act in gear,” Pate said on Josh Pate’s College Football Show. “I still got questions about it, even as I’ve endorsed them. Because if that’s not in gear, you’re sitting there in Week 6, 7 saying ‘Man, Ben Arbuckle can’t even run his system because his quarterback doesn’t have time, he’s running for his life.’ Which he can, by the way… If that happens, it’s wobbly, and their schedule is too tough. They can’t do that.”

This goes a step further than just protecting Mateer. Running back Jadyn Ott was brought into the program with hopes of getting back to his 2023 season at Cal. Oklahoma has a great tradition of 1,000-yard backs, wanting Ott to be the next. If the offensive line cannot block for him up front, the job only gets that much tougher.

Offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh is widely considered one of the best out there. You constantly hear Oklahoma big men get picked in the NFL Draft due to Bedenbaugh’s development. Even so, the group has been an issue in recent years.

Attempted patchwork through the NCAA transfer portal, mixed with some massive recruiting wins, provides optimism heading into 2025. Some gelling will be needed once the best five are decided and likely quickly.

Pate mentions the brutal schedule heading Oklahoma’s way. Week 2 against Michigan is a big one before opening SEC play against Auburn. Flash forward to Oct. 11 against Texas, where a brutal back-half begins. Of the seven games, Missouri is the only one not ranked inside the preseason AP poll. Not many teams out there have a tougher slate.

In his latest mailbag, George Stoia of On3 | Rivals’ Sooner Scoop gave an outlook on what the Oklahoma offensive line could look like. Some familiar faces feature but Bedenbaugh is looking to bring in some of the new blood as well.