Paul Finebaum Names College Football Program That Is ‘On The Way Back’

The Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners officially joined the SEC on July 1. Texas won the Big 12 title last season, and Oklahoma is coming off a 10-win campaign in 2023.

Paul Finebaum appeared on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning on Monday. He said the Sooners are "on the way back" to relevancy in college football under Brent Venables.

Lincoln Riley had Oklahoma in a pretty good place before leaving to coach with the USC Trojans. Riley coached Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray at Oklahoma, both of whom went on to win the Heisman in 2017 and 2018.

Finebaum noted that the program hit a roadblock when Riley left. However, there is some growing confidence in Norman. Venables has proven he can recruit, with consecutive top-10 recruiting classes in 2023 and 2024 , per the On3 Industry Rankings.

"They took a bump and a hit after Lincoln Riley left. They had to reprogram the entire place, reboot it. … From a vibes standpoint I think the program, I think this year if they can land somewhere between 8-4 and 9-3 they'll be OK, considering their schedule," Finebaum said. "But I don't have any doubt Oklahoma is clearly on the way back."

Oklahoma fans have a lot to look forward to. Linebacker Dasan McCullough, linebacker Danny Stutsman, and defensive back Billy Bowman Jr. are returning defensively.

Offensively, fans will see how Jackson Arnold performs under center as the full-time starter. Gavin Sawchuk, Jalil Farooq, Andrel Anthony are some of the returning offensive starters.

Venables has brought Oklahoma to two bowl games in two seasons. His overall record thus far is 26-16. Oklahoma fans will be hoping for even more growth this year.

Oklahoma starts the season against the Temple Owls on Aug. 30. Kickoff will be at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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