The Oklahoma Sooners have spent the offseason rebuilding the room around John Mateer, and the result is a wide receiver group that looks far more dangerous than the one Oklahoma rolled out a year ago.
That matters because the passing game in 2026 came in two very different versions. Over the first four games, Mateer was playing like a Heisman candidate and the aerial attack was humming.
Then came the thumb injury against Auburn, and everything changed. The passing game dropped off hard for the next couple of months.
Even so, Isaiah Sategna kept making his presence felt.
Sategna’s speed gave Oklahoma a jolt when the offense needed it most. He turned limited chances into big plays and helped create some of the Sooners’ most memorable moments while the unit was grinding just to reach the end zone late in the year.
The All-SEC second-team selection and Oklahoma’s top receiver from last season is back after a breakout 2025. He finished with 67 catches for 965 yards and eight touchdowns, the most receiving yards by a Sooner since Drake Stoops had 962 in 2023.
Now Sategna should have much more support.
JerMichael Carter is back after transferring in during the 2025 offseason and proving he could deliver whenever the ball came his way. Oklahoma also returns two younger options with real upside in Manny Choice and Elijah Thomas. But Jim Nagy and Brent Venables clearly wanted more certainty at the position for Mateer in 2026, so they went to work in the portal.
The additions of Trell Harris, Parker Livingstone, and Mackenzie Alleyne changed the picture.
Harris arrives after earning All-ACC honors at Virginia and serving as the top target for former Oklahoma quarterback Chandler Morris. He was a big part of a Cavaliers offense that averaged 30 points per game, finishing with 59 catches for 847 yards and five touchdowns.
Harris has been out since the spring, but he has been running routes at full speed in offseason training and is expected to be ready for Week 1. He brings experience and the kind of versatility that lets him win at every level of the passing game.
Livingstone gives Mateer a different kind of weapon. The former Texas receiver’s move across the Red River drew attention, but his game is what will really matter.
At 6-foot-4, he offers a massive target in the intermediate area and has the size and strength to handle press coverage at the line. He also showed real production as a redshirt freshman for the Longhorns, posting 29 receptions for 516 yards and six touchdowns while leading all players with at least 10 catches in yards per catch at 17.4.
Alleyne is the wild card of the group. He saw limited action for Washington State a year ago, but he flashed in the Cougars’ bowl win over Utah State with three catches for 63 yards and a touchdown. He also turned heads during spring ball while Harris was sidelined, and he’ll be in the mix for snaps with Carter, Thomas, and Choice.
There’s also a promising group of true freshmen waiting in the wings: Jayden Petit, Daniel Odom, and Jahsiear Rogers. Petit and Odom had quieter springs, but the upside is obvious. Rogers, meanwhile, stood out in the spring game and was the top performer for the second-team offense against Oklahoma’s first-team defense.
After losing Deion Burks, Keontez Lewis, and Javonnie Gibson in the offseason, Oklahoma looks better equipped at receiver than it did a year ago. The Sooners now have a deeper group built on proven Power Four production and a collection of younger players with real juice.
That gives Oklahoma a chance to turn the passing game into something much bigger in 2026.
In Other News...
Adrian Peterson Just Put Oklahomas Running Back Battle Under Pressure
Adrian Peterson did not soften his assessment of Oklahomas backfield, and his words land with extra weight because the Sooners are trying to turn a corner on the ground. After a season in which the offense never quite found the explosiveness it wanted, Oklahoma averaged just 118.5 rushing yards per game and has not had a 1,000-yard runner since 2022. With key players and offensive linemen back for 2026, the expectation is that the run game should be ready to carry more of the load.
New running backs coach Deland McCullough is now the one tasked with sorting through the group and finding a lead option before fall camp settles the conversation. Colorado State transfer Lloyd Avant has already been singled out as a name to watch, which only sharpens the competition inside a room that knows the standard in Norman is much higher than what the last few seasons delivered. Petersons criticism may have been blunt, but it also gave the Sooners backs a clear reminder of what is at stake. [Read more 🡒]
Jonathan Hatton Jr. Is Making Oklahoma's Backfield Battle Much Harder
Freshman running back Jonathan Hatton Jr. has been turning heads in Oklahoma camp, and it is not hard to see why the buzz keeps building. Isaiah Sategna III has pointed to Hattons blend of speed and size as one of the traits that stands out most, the kind of profile that makes a young back look ready to matter sooner rather than later.
For a Sooners backfield already crowded with returning players and transfers, that kind of instant impression only makes the competition tougher to sort out. Hatton arrived with real recruiting pedigree after flipping back to Oklahoma before signing day, and his physical tools have already invited the kind of comparison that raises expectations in Norman. The question now is how quickly those traits turn into snaps when the real decisions start. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahomas Linebacker Shakeup Just Put Cole Sullivan In A Tough Spot
A routine positional meeting with Oklahomas linebackers turned into something much bigger when Owen Heineckes status changed in the middle of the room. A local district judge granted Heinecke a preliminary injunction against the NCAA, opening the door for him to return to the Sooners for a sixth season and immediately reshaping the competition at one of the defenses key spots.
For transfer linebacker Cole Sullivan, the timing made the news especially significant. What had looked like a clearer path into the rotation suddenly became more crowded, and the ripple effect of Heineckes return reached the player who stood to feel it most. The Sooners now have another experienced option back in the mix, and the next layer of that linebacker battle will be worth watching. [Read more 🡒]