Brent Venables didn’t stray far from his favorite line this week at SEC Media Days: the league is won up front.
That message has been a constant from Oklahoma’s coach, and this year it comes with a little more reason for optimism. The Sooners are bringing back four starters on the offensive line, and they’ve added a veteran SEC right tackle to the mix. After seasons where the group needed time to sort itself out, this one looks far more settled before camp even gets rolling.
"I think there's going to be a better version of all those guys," Venables said. "I think they're stronger, more confident.
There's more chemistry, cohesion. Certainly, there's an experience factor, what it takes to be better in the SEC."
That stability is the big shift. For once, Oklahoma won’t be spending the early part of the season trying to figure out the five best bodies for the front. Offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh appears to have his starting group largely in place already.
Michael Fasusis is back at left tackle, Eddy Pierre-Louis returns at left guard and Ryan Fodje is set again at right guard. The three sophomores started a combined 22 games a year ago, and they finished the season together in the final five games.
At center, Jake Maikkula is entering his second year as Oklahoma’s starter after transferring from Stanford. He also comes into the fall bigger than he was late last season, when an infection that hospitalized him and kept him out of the final two games led to a significant weight loss.
The last piece is at right tackle, where Oklahoma went into the portal and landed Arkansas transfer E'Marion Harris. He brings real SEC mileage, with 24 starts over the last two seasons.
For Venables, that combination of continuity and experience is exactly the kind of foundation he wants in a league that starts and ends at the line of scrimmage.
In Other News...
Texas Just Handed Oklahoma Fans More Red River Fuel
SEC Media Days offered another little jolt to the Red River rivalry, this time with Oklahoma on the receiving end of some fresh Texas chatter. Steve Sarkisian addressed the transfer of wide receiver Parker Livingstone to Oklahoma while explaining how the Longhorns made room for portal additions, and Arch Manning also weighed in on the modern transfer landscape in a way that underscored just how routine these moves have become.
For Oklahoma fans, the more interesting part is how the conversation keeps circling back to familiar names and familiar colors. Brent Venables took a respectful tone on former Sooners cornerback Gentry Williams, now at Georgia, while Texas sounded plenty aware of where Livingstone landed and what that means for a rivalry that never needs much extra fuel. [Read more 🡒]
Former Texas Receiver Is Already Turning Heads At Oklahoma
Parker Livingstones move from Texas to Oklahoma has already become one of the more interesting subplots of the Sooners buildup to the new season, and it is not hard to see why. A receiver who once lined up for a rival program is now settling into a new playbook in Norman, and quarterback John Mateer has been among the first to notice how quickly Livingstone is picking things up.
Mateer has described Livingstone as big, dynamic and strong at the catch point, while also praising the way he is handling the mental side of the transition. There is still obvious curiosity around a transfer from Texas, but the conversations around the team have stayed more personal than tactical, with the two talking more about their experiences than about how the Sooners plan to use him. [Read more 🡒]
SEC Just Sent Oklahoma A Message About Brent Venables' Team
The SECs preseason media poll offered a clear little nudge toward Oklahoma, slotting Brent Venables team seventh in the league heading into 2026 after the Sooners were projected 10th a year ago. It is still a crowded upper tier, with Georgia, Texas, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, LSU and Alabama all sitting ahead of Oklahoma, but the climb matters for a program trying to prove it belongs in the conferences top half.
The poll also reflected why the Sooners have a real chance to keep moving up, with David Stone, Taylor Wein, Kip Lewis, Peyton Bowen, Eli Bowen, Isaiah Sategna, Michael Fasusi, Tate Sandell, Ben Anderson and Grayson Miller all earning preseason All-SEC recognition. Sandells first-team nod stands out after his Lou Groza Award season, and Oklahoma will get an immediate read on how much that respect translates once Georgia and Texas open a schedule that also brings Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Florida, South Carolina, Mississippi State, Kentucky and Missouri into the mix. [Read more 🡒]