We are exactly ten days away from the Oklahoma Sooners taking the field for their 2024 season opener against the Temple Owls. The Sooners' first season in the SEC brings plenty of change to the team but is filled with potential as Oklahoma takes that first step into their new conference home.
What Sooners are ready for a breakout season in 2024?
1. Robert Spears-Jennings
Perhaps no player has garnered more buzz throughout the offseason than Spears-Jennings, who ended the 2023 season on a high note and carried that momentum into the spring.
While Oklahoma boasts a talented duo of Billy Bowman and Peyton Bowen, Oklahoma has rotated safeties pretty heavily under head coach Brent Venables, and the three of them are talented enough to run 3-safety looks (likely with Bowman as a nickel).
The junior from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma looks poised to be a significant contributor in 2024, turning safety into a real position of strength for the Sooners.
2. Kalib Hicks
We're still trying to figure out what the running back room will look like this season, as the Sooners have multiple options they can rely on.
How about redshirt freshman Kalib Hicks? With how inconsistent the Sooners' run game looked in 2023, there's room for snaps to go anywhere. Hicks has flashed all offseason and delivered some highlight plays throughout Oklahoma's spring game.
3. Bauer Sharp
Many didn't know what to expect from Bauer Sharp, who showed up as a transfer from Southeastern Louisiana (yes, really). However, the redshirt junior has quickly stepped up to fill the vacuum left behind by Austin Stogner's departure as the team's starting tight end.
Venables has emphasized improving the offense's ability to attack the middle of the field, something Dillon Gabriel struggled to do, and Sharp offers an athletic mismatch target to help the Sooners do just that.
4. Adepoju Adebawore
Adepoju Adebawore, the brother of Indianapolis Colts DT Adetomiwa Adebawore, was a prized part of the Sooners' 2023 recruiting class and flashed virtually right away. Boasting a seven-foot wingspan with tremendous bend and quickness off the edge, Adebawore is the very definition of toolsy.
The Sooners have their "base" edge rushers set with Caiden Woullard and Ethan Downs, but I'm expecting Adebawore to be a frequent wrecking ball in sub-packages. He added more weight in the offseason and is up to 251 pounds, but has seemingly kept his bend and explosiveness. It feels like the sky is the limit with his athletic tools, and Oklahoma will need him in their first year in the SEC.
5. Jaquaize Pettaway
Oklahoma's wide receiver corps has taken some hits in the offseason, with a season-ending injury to Jayden Gibson, Nic Anderson missing time recently with injury, and Andrel Anthony working his way back from an ACL tear. This opens up the door for some of the younger wide receivers on the team to step up and earn their spot in the offense.
Pettaway, a 2022 Under Armour All-American, has the athleticism to be a big-play threat with the ball in his hands. His track speed pops off the film, and new offensive coordinator Seth Littrell should be able to create plenty of ways to get him targets in space.
Other Names to Monitor
- LB Lewis Carter
- LB Samuel Omosigho
- CB Jacobe Johnson
- DT Jayden Jackson
- C Josh Bates
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