Oklahoma QB Jackson Arnold is ready for his moment in the SEC

Jackson Arnold will have pressure on him at Oklahoma, to say the least.

The sophomore quarterback was the named full-time starter heading into 2024 and he'll have his work cut out for him — especially being that the Sooners are now a member of the SEC.

With a schedule that still features the Texas but now also includes Tennessee, Auburn, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Missouri, Alabama and LSU, Oklahoma won't get much time to slowly ease into SEC play.

That's not a concern for head coach Brent Venables, though. Even though Arnold is going into his first season as a starter after a freshman campaign that saw him appear in several games as a backup before starting in the Alamo Bowl, Venables feels his quarterback has the right temperament for SEC play.

“Jackson understands better than anybody what goes into being a quarterback of a football team, of a locker room, the leader, the face, the responsibilities, the challenges,” Venables said at SEC Media Days, per On3 . “You know, what I feel best about and have the most peace about is his ability to be able to handle the highs and the lows, the challenges, the success, the failure that a season will bring you."

Arnold threw for 563 yards and four touchdowns with three interceptions last season. That's not a great stat line but it is a small sample size. All three of those interceptions came in the bowl game loss to Arizona, but he also did throw for 361 yards and two touchdowns in that contest.

He is a former five-star recruit, ranked as the No. 8 overall player in the 2023 class, so Arnold does have the pedigree and profile to be successful at Oklahoma.

He also has a coach who is all-in on helping him succeed, which you can argue is more than half the battle at the college level.

“Nobody is more competent or more ready now, even though he’s a young player and we’ve got to in some ways be the headlights for him," Venables said. "That’s why they call us coach, but his skill, his arm talent, his toughness, his instincts, his ability to lead people bring out the best in people. No question about it. He’s ready for his opportunity and his moment.”