OU receiver Isaiah Sategna finishes regular season with another game-changing performance

NORMAN — Through all the ups and downs for Oklahoma’s offense in 2025, one player has consistently provided production, reliability and explosiveness.

Isaiah Sategna, who is the unofficial most valuable player of OU’s offense.

And he wrapped up his 2025 regular season with another memorable moment in last Saturday’s win over LSU.

With the Sooners trailing 13-10 late in the fourth quarter, the Tigers inexplicable failed to account for Sategna running a vertical route down the field. John Mateer found Sategna, who ran to the end zone untouched for a 58-yard game-sealing touchdown.

That catch gave Sategna another standout outing: 9 receptions, 121 yards, one touchdown. It’s been that kind of season for the former Arkansas transfer.

“Isaiah Sategna was pretty special,” OU coach Brent Venables said.

That wasn’t the only big play for Sategna, who has been a game-changer at both receiver and punt returner. With OU’s offense struggling late in the third quarter, Sategna ripped off a 39-yard punt return to set OU’s offense up near midfield. Two plays later, Mateer found Deion Burks for a 45-yard touchdown that tied the game.

When the Sooners have needed it, he’s shown up. Sategna leads the Sooners in every statistical category — receptions (65), yards (948) and touchdowns. He leads the SEC in receptions, he’s tied for second in yards and tied for third in touchdowns.

His ascension in the offense came after a slow start. He’s logged at least 61 receiving yards in nine of the last 10 games. Sategna had four games with over 100 receiving yards and a touchdown — the first Sooner wideout to have four such games in a season since Ceedee Lamb in 2019.

Sategna had a decently-productive season in 2024 at Arkansas, but this has been the true breakout season for him. And he attributes it to Venables believing in him.

“My whole college career I’ve been doubted,” Sategna said. “I wanted to go somewhere that has been doubted. People were hating on Coach Venables. You see the type of coach he is. That’s the type of place I wanted to go.

“… Former coach hated on me, didn’t believe in me. But Coach Venables did. That’s all I needed.”

Sategna has been the biggest impact punt returner in Norman for quite some time. He ranks 11th in yards per return (13.1) and is tied for eighth in both returns of 20-plus yards (5) and returns of 30-plus yards (3).

As a receiver, Sategna has been reliable from everywhere. He leads the Sooners in receptions with an average target depth of 20-plus yards (9) and receptions behind the line of scrimmage (23).

Both down the field and in short-yardage situations, Sategna has been the go-to guy.

“I think he has an awesome skillset,” OU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle said. “If you look back to when he was in high school, he was a 100-meter champion… Whenever he gets out in the open field and hits his stride, he’s really hard to catch, so that’s a special skillset right there. But I think his route-running, he’s very crisp, he’s very crafty in his route-running and the ability to get open and has really good hands.

“At the end of the day, he’s what you want a lot of receivers to be just from an holistic standpoint. Tack that on with the reliability that he has shown all year and the consistency that he’s shown all year has just put him in a position to have a lot of success. The coolest part about Isaiah is he’s really pretty humble about all of it too. He just shows back up and starts the process all over, so glad we have that guy.”

Fortunately for both Sategna and the Sooners, the season isn’t over yet. They likely locked up a playoff spot with the win over LSU, and Sategna needs just 52 yards to surpass the 1,000-yard threshold.

He’ll hit that mark as long as he continues to be the difference-maker he’s been all season for the Sooners.

“Long road that brought me here,” Sategna said after the game. “A lot of hard work and stuff. Extra work in the facility. It’s all showing. I thank God every day for that.”

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