Oklahoma’s tight end room looks nothing like it did a year ago, and that’s by design.
As fall camp nears and Brent Venables enters Year 5, the Sooners have made a full reset at the position after a season that exposed just how thin things were there. The group that takes the field in 2026 will be built around new faces, a new coach and a new expectation level as OU pushes toward another College Football Playoff run.
The biggest name to leave the room is Jaren Kanak, who is off to the NFL Draft after serving as Oklahoma’s top tight end last season. He was joined out the door by Kaden Helms, who transferred to Minnesota; Will Huggins, who graduated; and Carson Kent, who transferred to Pitt. There are no returning starters listed at the position.
Kanak’s production tells the story of the unit pretty well. Oklahoma still had an All-SEC performer at tight end, but that came from a player who had only recently made the switch from linebacker.
He finished with 44 catches for 533 yards and no touchdowns, and even with that output, the blocking side of the job remained a problem at times. Beyond him, the Sooners didn’t get enough.
So Oklahoma tore it down and started over.
Joe Jon Finley is gone after five seasons coaching tight ends at his alma mater, and Brent Venables replaced him with Jason Witten. That’s a major swing. Witten, one of the top tight ends in NFL history, is taking on college coaching for the first time after spending the last few seasons coaching at a high school in Texas.
The personnel overhaul was just as aggressive. Oklahoma added five tight ends to the mix: redshirt seniors Hayden Hansen from Florida and Rocky Beers from Colorado State, sophomore Jack Van Dorselaer from Tennessee, and freshmen Tyler Ruxer and Ryder Mix. It’s a total reset, and the Sooners are clearly betting that a new voice and a new collection of bodies can lift a spot that lagged behind last season.
That’s the challenge heading into camp. Oklahoma doesn’t just need depth at tight end - it needs the whole room to look different.
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Jason Witten Is Already Changing A Key Piece Of Oklahoma's Offense
Brent Venables spent the offseason reshaping Oklahomas staff, parting with three assistants and making a notable change at tight ends coach when Joe Jon Finley was replaced by former Dallas Cowboys star Jason Witten. The move stood out on a staff that also saw cornerbacks coach Jay Valai and running backs coach DeMarco Murray leave for NFL jobs, but Wittens arrival has quickly become one of the more interesting developments for a Sooners offense looking to keep evolving.
The early returns at tight end suggest the hire is already paying dividends in recruiting and roster building. Oklahoma has added Hayden Hansen from Florida, Rocky Beers from Colorado State and Jack Dorselaer from Tennessee since Witten came aboard, giving the position a different kind of momentum than it had before the coaching change. For a program trying to strengthen every layer of its offense, the tight end room suddenly looks like a place where Oklahoma is gaining traction. [Read more 🡒]