The Oklahoma Sooners are looking to come back from a beyond disappointing 2022 campaign. Brent Venables is entering year number two and is looking to get the Sooners back on track in 2023. Oklahoma lost five games by one score last year. It is easy to say luck wasn’t on the Sooners side last year. However, the luck is due to turn around in their last year in the Big 12. Here is the preview for the 2023 Oklahoma Sooners.
Offense
The Oklahoma Sooners have arguably the best quarterback in the Big 12 with Dillon Gabriel. Gabriel won Big 12 offensive newcomer of the year last year and threw for 3,168 passing yards to go along with 25 touchdowns. Gabriel looked real good last year, however he is going to need to continue to improve as behind him currently is five star recruit and the Gatorade National Football Player Of The Year in Jackson Arnold. Arnold is the future of this program, but right now this is still Gabriel’s offense.
This Sooners offense needs new guys to step up in 2023. The third leading receiver from last season Jalil Farke is the only returning playmaker. They will rely on him and wide receiver transfer Andrel Anthony from Michigan to be the big players at the receiver spot. At the running back spot, one of Jovantoe Barnes or Gavin Sawchuk are going to have to step up to fill the void of Eric Gray who went pro. Barnes averaged 4.5 yards per carry and was the second leading rusher on this team last year. He will likely be more of the workhorse for Venable’s offense. The strength of this offense has to be their offensive line. A ton of depth all-around and Stanford transfer Walter Rouse will anchor the offensive line at left tackle. This group is going to give Gabriel a ton of time to throw and create. I think this offense could be better than it was a season ago.
Defense
When Venables became the head coach of Oklahoma, nobody thought defense was going to be the issue of this team. However, last year they gave up 30 points per game and got bullied around last year. In the front seven, the Sooners are led by linebacker Danny Stutsman who led the Big 12 in tackles last year with 125 and he is the leader that this defense needs. They also brought in freshman All-American linebacker Dasan McCullough from Indiana to help solidify that linebacker core. On the defensive line, the Sooners brought in Rondell Bothroyd from Wake Forest to play defensive end for them. The other defensive end Ethan Downs is poised to have a great junior season for the Sooners.
In the secondary, they are led by senior cornerback Woodi Washington who was fifth on the team in tackles a season ago. The Sooners also brought in two transfers from the portal that’ll be vital to their secondary’s success. Those two are safety Reggie Pearson from Texas Tech and cornerback Kendel Dolby from NEO A&M College. Sophomore cornerback Gentry Williams is also due for a big breakout sophomore campaign. I think last season was a fluke for Venables’ defense. They will be a lot better in 2023.
Win Total Bet
The win total is set at 9.5 on the FanDuel Sportsbook, with both the over and under having the odds set at -110 . The Sooners luck turns around in their final run in the Big 12. I think Oklahoma goes over this total and gets double digit wins. Take the over 9.5 win total at -110 odds for 1 unit. Dillion Gabriel is arguably the best quarterback in this conference and this offensive line is going to do wonders for him. With the defense taking a step forward and the Sooners not losing five games by a single score, they are back in contention for the Big 12 title.
Schedule Predictions
Blowout Win vs Arkansas State (1-0)
Win vs SMU (2-0)
Win at Tulsa (3-0)
Convincing Win at Cincinnati (4-0)
Win vs Iowa State (5-0)
Loss at Texas (5-1)
Win vs UCF (6-1)
Win at Kansas (7-1)
Loss at Oklahoma State (7-2)
Win vs West Virginia (8-2)
Win at BYU (9-2)
Close Win vs TCU (10-2)