Oklahoma’s fall camp opens Thursday, and while Brent Venables doesn’t have a quarterback fight or a full-scale overhaul on the offensive line to sort through, the Sooners still have some real decisions to make before the 2026 season gets rolling.
Venables guided OU back to the College Football Playoff and to a 10-3 record last season, but Year 5 still comes with a few unfinished pieces on the depth chart. With UTEP coming to Norman on Friday, Sept. 4, the Sooners will spend camp trying to settle a handful of spots that remain up in the air.
One of the biggest questions sits on the offensive line, where Oklahoma brings back four established starters: left tackle Michael Fasusi, left guard Eddy Pierre-Louis, center Jake Maikkula and right tackle Ryan Fodje. That group is set to return in 2026, but the final spot beside them is still open, and whoever wins it could force some movement across the line.
E'Marion Harris looks like a major contender. Oklahoma brought him in from Arkansas, where he started 24 games over the last two seasons and logged plenty of SEC snaps.
Most of that work came at right tackle, and Harris has already made it clear he expects to play tackle at OU as well. If he grabs the fifth spot, Fodje would likely slide to right guard.
Then there’s Heath Ozaeta, who has carved out a significant role already with 15 starts, all at left guard, in 21 games for the Sooners after arriving as a four-star recruit. He’s got SEC experience too, which only adds to the appeal.
On defense, cheetah looks like the clearest puzzle Venables still has to solve. It’s a flexible, matchup-driven spot, but someone still has to be the top option there the way Kendal Daniels was last year.
Michigan transfer Cole Sullivan entered the offseason looking like a likely starter at MIKE, but Owen Heinecke’s surprise return changed that picture and bumped Sullivan down a rung. That may leave cheetah as the cleanest way to get Sullivan on the field with the first unit.
Reggie Powers III seemed like the early frontrunner there, though Jeremiah Newcombe has a chance to keep pushing through camp. Kip Lewis, expected to back up at SAM, is another name in the mix, and Taylor Heim has also earned more chances after coming up through the program.
The other spot that still feels wide open is defensive end opposite Taylor Wein, who has one side locked down. The competition there appears to be between senior Adepoju “P.J.” Adebawore and redshirt sophomore Danny Okoye, two former blue-chip recruits who have yet to fully break through, largely because of how deep the position was on OU’s 2025 roster.
Neither has separated enough to claim the job outright just yet, and that leaves the door cracked for freshman Jake Kreul as well. He was the headliner of the Sooners’ 2026 signing class, and there’s at least a chance he’s ready enough to get involved right away.
In Other News...
Oklahoma Just Got A Huge New Roster Question This Offseason
A federal judges latest ruling could create an unexpected layer of uncertainty around Oklahomas offseason roster, opening the door for some players to pursue a fifth college season even after exhausting four years of eligibility. The decision applies to athletes from the 2022 recruiting class and arrives despite the NCAAs planned five-in-five rule, which was not supposed to take effect until the 2027 recruiting class, giving programs across the country another potential round of roster movement to monitor.
For the Sooners, the issue is especially notable because several players on the 2025 roster could fall into that window and suddenly have a choice to make after the 2026 NFL Draft. If any of those players decide college is still the better move, Oklahoma could be dealing with a fresh wave of roster decisions well after the usual offseason business is supposed to be settled. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Enters Camp With One Huge Question Up Front
Fall camp is about to open for Oklahoma, and with Brent Venables heading into his fifth year, the Sooners still have a familiar source of intrigue up front. The defensive tackle room has been reshaped by NFL departures, graduation and transfers, but Jayden Jackson and David Stone are back as the anchors, giving Todd Bates at least a proven starting point in a unit that was among the better-regarded parts of the defense a year ago.
What comes next is the real test, because the Sooners need that group to hold up after losing so much experience. Oklahoma has blended in transfers and freshmen to help fill the gaps, and the early weeks of camp will go a long way toward showing whether the new-look interior line can match the standard the program expects, or whether this becomes the kind of spot that takes time to sort out. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahomas 2026 Offense Hinges On One Long Awaited Change
Fall camp has arrived in Norman, and with it comes a familiar offseason priority for the Sooners: making the run game and offensive line sturdier before the 2026 season gets underway. Oklahoma has spent the buildup adding experience on both fronts, bringing in offensive lineman EMarion Harris and running backs coach Deland McCullough as part of a broader push to add physicality and depth. The goal is clear enough, even if the work is just getting started, with the opener against UTEP serving as the first chance to see whether the changes are showing up where they matter most.
For Oklahoma, this is about more than just shoring up one phase of the offense. The Sooners have returning players mixed with new additions, and the challenge now is turning that blend into a line and backfield that can hold up over a full season. The identity they are chasing is a more dependable, more physical attack, and fall camp will reveal how close they are to getting it before the spotlight tightens in September. [Read more 🡒]