Oklahoma is finally back on the field, and before the Sooners line up against UTEP, it’s time to swing big.
After months of roster breakdowns, fall camp notes and endless projections, this is the last chance to lay out the kind of season predictions that don’t play it safe. Some of these are rooted in what came out of camp.
Others demand major leaps from key players, or from Oklahoma as a team. That’s the whole point.
From individual honors to a Red River jolt to a playoff run that lasts longer than expected, here are 10 bold calls for Oklahoma’s 2026 season.
Jayden Jackson is the first name on the list, and the bar is high: first-team All-SEC honors. Jackson put up 28 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks last season while splitting snaps in a deep defensive tackle room.
Now the workload should grow, and this is shaping up to be his first fully healthy season. Add David Stone beside him, and Jackson should keep finding chances to make plays.
Even with that, he didn’t get preseason All-SEC recognition, so jumping all the way to the first team counts as a real reach.
Reggie Powers is another player who could turn camp buzz into a major season. He had 31 tackles last year, but a full-time starting job at Cheetah should put him in the middle of everything.
Run support, coverage, work near the line - that position touches it all. Finishing ahead of Kip Lewis and Owen Heinecke won’t be easy, but the expectation here is that Powers’ role grows enough for him to lead Oklahoma in tackles.
There’s also a defensive splash-play prediction that’s easy to picture: both Bowen brothers find the end zone on defense. Eli Bowen and Peyton Bowen each intercepted two passes last season, and Eli even turned one into an 87-yard touchdown against Alabama.
Both have the kind of instincts and athleticism that can turn a takeaway into six points. The call here is that each brother gets one.
The pass rush should take another step, too. Oklahoma logged 45 sacks across 13 games last season, and reaching 50 in a 12-game regular season would be a notable jump, especially after losing R Mason Thomas.
Still, the Sooners have options. Taylor Wein is back after seven sacks, and Adepoju Adebawore and Danny Okoye are in line for bigger roles.
Pressure should come from multiple places, and the prediction is that Oklahoma gets to 50 before the postseason.
The backfield has its own breakout candidate in Jonathan Hatton. Oklahoma didn’t have anyone rush for more than 480 yards last season, which leaves plenty of room for improvement.
Hatton brings a 235-pound frame and speed, and he flashed often in fall camp. That size should matter right away in short-yardage and goal-line work, which gives him a path to leading the team in rushing touchdowns.
Xavier Robinson and Lloyd Avant will both be involved, but the belief here is that Hatton ends up as Oklahoma’s top runner in both yards and scores.
Noah Best is positioned to make an immediate impact up front. He spent much of fall camp with the first-team offensive line at right guard, and his ability to play both guard and center keeps him in the mix no matter how the rotation settles.
He also looks set to become Oklahoma’s first true freshman offensive lineman to start a season opener since Dru Samia in 2015. Even if he winds up in more of a sixth-man role, the playing time should be enough to earn Freshman All-SEC honors.
Special teams gets its own bold call as well: Lloyd Avant returns a kickoff for a touchdown. His role in the backfield is still unclear, though he should get chances and might even be the first running back on the field Friday night.
But his biggest immediate value could come on returns. Across two seasons at Tulsa and Colorado State, Avant brought back 25 kickoffs for 660 yards and a touchdown, and he enters the season as Oklahoma’s top kickoff returner.
At some point, he breaks one.
John Mateer is projected to make the biggest leap of all. He accounted for 22 touchdowns last season, which was exactly half of the 44 he produced in his final year at Washington State.
With another year in Ben Arbuckle’s offense, better weapons around him and improved health, the expectation is that his numbers climb back toward that 2024 level. Oklahoma’s upgraded offense and running game should create more scoring chances, and Mateer’s ability to punch in a few himself near the goal line helps too.
Add in the postseason run that’s being forecast, and the total lands at 40 touchdowns.
Then comes the rivalry statement: Oklahoma beats Texas by double digits. Not just a win.
A convincing one. The last two meetings were ugly, with Texas outscoring Oklahoma 57-9.
This version of the Sooners is supposed to look different, especially on offense. The defense should be good enough to slow Texas down, and the offense should be better equipped to finish drives instead of leaving points on the board.
The prediction is that Oklahoma ends its two-game losing streak against Texas with a statement victory.
And finally, the boldest swing of all: Oklahoma wins two College Football Playoff games. The expectation is a 10-2 regular season and a return to the Playoff, with a path that could even include hosting a first-round game.
The defense is viewed as strong enough to hold up anywhere, and if the offense makes the jump that’s being projected, the Sooners should be better prepared to beat other playoff-level teams. In this scenario, Oklahoma doesn’t just get back in.
It wins its first two postseason games and reaches the national semifinals.
Not all 10 of these will happen. That’s what makes them bold.
But none of them feels out of reach, either. If the biggest ones hit, Oklahoma won’t just return to the College Football Playoff.
The Sooners will stay there awhile.
In Other News...
Oklahoma Just Got Dragged Into An SEC Fight Fans Need To See
A federal judges preliminary injunction has suddenly put roster rules back at the center of the college football conversation, and the SEC is not happy about it. The ruling blocks conferences from punishing teams simply for carrying former professional players, which opened the door for LSU to add former NFL players DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris ahead of its season opener against Clemson.
The conference is opposing the decision and could appeal, while Louisiana officials have voiced support for the ruling, setting up a familiar kind of late-summer legal standoff with real football consequences. For Oklahoma and the rest of the SEC, it is one more reminder that the leagues path to opening weekend may still run through a courtroom before anyone gets to the field. [Read more 🡒]
Sooners Face A Looming 2026 Problem In Ben Arbuckles Offense
Ben Arbuckles first Oklahoma offense offered enough clues this fall to make the long view worth taking seriously. A look at his play-by-play tendencies, compared with what he ran at Washington State in 2024 and then with John Mateer directing the Sooners in 2025, shows an offense that leaned more heavily on the pass in key spots, especially on third down, while the ground game never gave it much balance. When the run game isnt threatening, the sequencing gets easier to read, and the data from this season suggested Oklahoma spent too much time in that exact trap.
The bigger concern is what that means when the Sooners eventually move past Mateer and into 2026. Arbuckles scheme still has the shape of something dangerous, but the numbers point to fewer explosive passing plays than he produced before, dropping from 35% to 25% in the comparison the article examined. If the running game remains ineffective, the offense could become increasingly predictable at the very moment Oklahoma needs it to stay ahead of defenses that will have a full year of tape on how Arbuckle wants to build drives. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma May Be Closer To Another Proven Defensive Line Boost
Oklahomas defensive line for 2026 may be gaining another proven piece, with former Boise State tackle Braxton Fely cleared by a Cleveland County District Court order to enter the transfer portal and potentially suit up for the Sooners next season. Fely spent four seasons at Boise State and finished with back-to-back All-Mountain West Second Team nods in 2024 and 2025, which makes him the kind of experienced interior presence Oklahoma has been looking to stack around its returning talent.
Braxton Felys situation also adds another layer to a defensive front that already looks like one of the more promising parts of Oklahomas roster outlook. The Sooners were already expecting a strong 2026 line, and Felys availability now comes alongside the possibility of fifth-year lineman Danny Saili, who is dealing with eligibility issues, giving Oklahoma a chance to deepen a unit that could shape the defense for next season. [Read more 🡒]