Oklahoma enters the 2026 season with a lot going for it, and ESPN’s Matt Barrie is buying in all the way.
The Sooners are coming off a 10-3 season that ended with a College Football Playoff berth, and they open this year ranked No. 10 in the AP poll. With fall camp winding down, there’s a real sense that Oklahoma has more stability than it did a year ago, and that matters in a league as unforgiving as the SEC.
Barrie put that belief plainly on “SportsCenter.”
"Feel free to get me on this one over on SEC Nation all fall on campuses, but I'm a big Oklahoma believer," Barrie said. "I think they're that team that can surprise and maybe go on a run to a national championship game."
That’s not just empty hype. Oklahoma is bringing back a loaded core, starting with one of the nation’s top defenses. The Sooners also return quarterback John Mateer, leading running backs Tory Blaylock and Xavier Robinson, leading receiver Isaiah Sategna and four of their five starting offensive linemen from last season.
There’s also a clear sign of offseason work on the offensive side: Oklahoma overhauled its tight end room after it had been one of the weakest parts of the team in recent years.
The continuity extends beyond the roster. Oklahoma already knows what life looks like in the SEC, and Brent Venables now has another year of experience in his system to lean on. That kind of familiarity can matter when the margins get tight.
The defense may be the strongest argument for why Barrie’s take doesn’t sound so wild. Oklahoma brings back multiple key pieces from a unit that was among the best in college football last season, giving Venables a sturdy base to build on again.
Mateer’s return might be just as important. After playing through a thumb injury for much of last season, he enters 2026 healthy and with a full year under his belt as Oklahoma’s starter.
There are still questions to answer, especially with another difficult SEC schedule ahead. But Oklahoma has experience, talent and momentum heading into the season. If the offense takes the next step, Barrie’s championship prediction could start looking a lot more grounded.
In Other News...
Oklahoma May Have Found The Offensive Help John Mateer Needed
During fall camp, one of the quieter developments around Oklahomas offense has been the way the Sooners are leaning into 12-personnel, with two tight ends on the field more often and a fuller package around quarterback John Mateer. Former Oklahoma offensive lineman and podcast host Gabe Ikard has come away impressed by what he has seen, pointing to the addition of three transfer tight ends as a meaningful boost for the run game and, by extension, the passing game.
Ikards read is that the personnel group is giving Oklahoma more ways to stress defenses and create cleaner looks for Mateer, rather than asking the offense to live in the same spread looks all the time. The real question now is whether that early camp promise holds up when the Sooners face a more revealing challenge soon, the kind of game that can show if the tight end room is just a useful wrinkle or a true weapon. [Read more 🡒]
Jonathan Hatton Jr Is Giving Oklahoma A New Backfield Dilemma
Jonathan Hatton Jr. has made Oklahomas backfield competition a little more interesting than expected. The largest running back on the roster is also earning attention for his speed, and he has quickly inserted himself into a group that already had plenty of names vying for carries. For a Sooners offense trying to sort out roles, that kind of emergence only adds another layer to an already crowded room.
Lloyd Avant has been viewed as a potential starter, Xavier Robinson has led the backfield in camp, and the depth chart picture stays fluid with Tory Blaylock working back from a hamstring injury. Add DeZephen Walker and Andy Bass into the mix, and Hattons push for playing time gives Oklahoma a good problem to sort out as camp moves along. [Read more 🡒]
Adepoju Adebawore Is Suddenly At The Center Of Oklahomas EDGE Battle
Fall camp is winding down in Norman, and one of the clearest battles left for the Sooners has been at EDGE, where Adepoju Adebawore and Danny Okoye are competing to help replace R. Mason Thomas. It is the kind of late-summer decision that can shape how Oklahomas defense looks early in the season, especially with the staff still sorting out how the front end of the line will come together.
Former Oklahoma All-American Gabe Ikard has been upbeat about where Adebawore is heading, pointing to a developmental step forward that could put him in position for a bigger role. He also noted that being surrounded by other talented defensive linemen can make that transition easier, which adds another layer to a competition that is nearly finished and still very much worth watching as the opener approaches. [Read more 🡒]