After a 2025 season that left Oklahoma 13th out of 16 Southeastern Conference teams in rushing yards, the Sooners spent the offseason trying to fix the problem the old-fashioned way: by getting tougher up front and louder in the backfield.
That work now has a clear shape. Junior Xavier Robinson and sophomore Tory Blaylock are back to headline the 2026 rushing attack, while redshirt senior quarterback John Mateer returns as a major part of the ground game after leading OU in rush attempts and rushing touchdowns in 2025.
Mateer said the offense has shown real progress during spring practice.
“It's just important as a team and as a unit to be able to run the football, …” Mateer said. “It's been really good, like, super promising, super proud of all the alignment and the running backs, tight ends, receivers.
Perimeter blocking has been better, tight end blocking. Running backs are running.
It's all leveled up.”
Robinson will try to build on a 2025 season that included 421 rushing yards and four touchdowns, plus 106 receiving yards and another score. His year was interrupted by a sprained knee, so staying healthy will be a big part of the story as he enters his third season in crimson and cream.
Blaylock’s first year also came with a twist. He flashed early, including 100-yard games against Temple and South Carolina, and looked ready to claim the lead role.
But a lingering shoulder injury slowed him down and kept him from locking down the top spot. Even so, he finished his freshman campaign with 480 rushing yards and four touchdowns, which led the team in rushing yards.
The Sooners are also counting on a deeper group behind those two veterans. Freshmen Jonathan Hatton Jr. and DeZephen Walker, along with Colorado State junior transfer Lloyd Avant, are all in the mix for carries and snaps.
That trio made noise in OU’s 2026 spring game, with each player reaching the end zone. Walker paced them with 81 rushing yards, Avant followed with 69, and Hatton Jr. added 26.
Brent Venables liked what he saw.
“Really proud of that group,” Venables said. “They worked incredibly hard. (Running backs coach Deland McCullough) did a fantastic job of giving them the tools to be able to go and execute at a high level.”
Ben Arbuckle was just as encouraged after the game.
“They ran violent,” Arbuckle said. “They ran hard downhill; they were able to break some trash arm tackles. … I think that's huge.”
Avant may be the newcomer best positioned to make an immediate impact. At Colorado State in 2025, he rushed for 417 yards and five touchdowns and added 24 catches for 261 yards and another score. That receiving ability could matter in an OU offense that did not have a true threat out of the backfield last season.
For the Sooners, the biggest change may simply be numbers. Between Robinson, Blaylock, Mateer, Avant, Hatton Jr. and Walker, the room finally has depth and a mix of styles.
OU has not had more than three 300-yard rushers in the same season since 2023, when four players cleared that mark. Now the Sooners are hoping that versatility helps them climb out of the SEC’s lower rung in rushing production.
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