Oklahoma’s first depth chart of the 2026 season is almost here, and fall camp has already done plenty to reshape the picture.
The Sooners open against UTEP on Friday, Sept. 4, in Norman, and after months of building the roster through the transfer portal and the 2026 signing class, the battle lines are finally starting to settle. Some spots look exactly like they did when camp opened. Others got thrown into the blender by injuries, new arrivals and a few surprise performances.
At quarterback, there’s no mystery at the top. John Mateer is back as the starter, a fact that has been known since December.
The real question was who would back him up, and junior Whitt Newbauer appears to have edged out freshman Bowe Bentley for the No. 2 job to start the year. Bentley still looks like the future of the position, but Newbauer’s experience and comfort in his second year in the system give him the early advantage.
Running back is the one room that still feels wide open. Colorado State transfer Lloyd Avant looks poised to open Week 1 as the lead back after turning heads with new position coach Deland McCullough throughout the offseason.
Xavier Robinson sits behind him, while Tory Blaylock has been slowed by an injury through spring and fall and now appears to be RB3 after leading the Sooners in rushing yards last season. Robinson is still the name many expect to take over eventually, and freshman Jonathan Hatton Jr. remains a candidate to push his way into the mix.
For now, though, this group is still very much unsettled.
The receiver room has a more familiar look at the top. Isaiah Sategna III returns as Oklahoma’s No. 1 target, with transfers Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone brought in to give John Mateer more firepower.
Behind that top trio, Mackenzie Alleyne, Jer’Michael Carter and Elijah Thomas should all see steady run in the rotation. Alleyne was the quiet portal pickup who has impressed after arriving as a former walk-on at Washington State, Carter came in through the portal last year, and Thomas is the one who may be ready to break through.
Tight end might be the most dramatically changed group on the roster under new coach Jason Witten. Hayden Hansen is the leader of the room, flanked by Rocky Beers and Jack Van Dorselaer.
All three were starters at their previous schools, and Hansen and Van Dorselaer both bring SEC experience from Florida and Tennessee, respectively. The Sooners now have real depth here, and all three should factor in heavily.
Up front, the offensive line took a hit when starting center Jake Maikkula was injured in a scrimmage and is expected to miss at least the opener, and probably longer. That forces Oklahoma to sort through Ryan Fodje, Caleb Nitta and Noah Best at center.
Fodje is the most talented and versatile of the group, even without experience snapping the ball, and if he slides inside from right guard, Heath Ozaeta would move into the starting lineup at guard. The rest of the line remains largely as expected: Michael Fasusi at left tackle, Eddy Pierre-Louis at left guard and Arkansas transfer E’Marion Harris at right tackle.
Even with the change in the middle, every projected starter on the line has already started multiple SEC games.
Defensively, the edge picture is clearer on one side than the other. Taylor Wein has one end locked down, while Adepoju Adebawore should get the first crack at the other spot over Danny Okoye.
Adebawore, now a senior, gets the initial nod as a former five-star recruit trying to finally turn that pedigree into production, but Okoye remains in the race. Inside, there’s no real debate: Jayden Jackson and David Stone are the starting tackles.
Georgia State transfer Bishop Thomas and Trent Wilson look like the primary backups, though freshman James “Tank” Carrington was one of camp’s biggest surprises and may have worked his way into the conversation.
At linebacker, Owen Heinecke’s return changes the math. His comeback gives Oklahoma another returning starter next to Kip Lewis, but it also complicates things for Michigan transfer Cole Sullivan, who was expected to land in Norman and take over a linebacker role.
Sullivan is simply too talented to leave on the sideline, so he has been getting plenty of work at cheetah, where Reggie Powers III is also an option depending on the matchup. James Nesta is the projected backup behind Lewis at SAM, while Cole Sullivan sits behind Heinecke at MIKE.
In the secondary, Peyton Bowen is back after earning Second-Team All-SEC honors last season and anchors the strong safety spot. The bigger change is at free safety, where Michael Boganowski steps in to replace Robert Spears-Jennings. Jeremiah Newcombe and Omarion Robinson have both established themselves as capable backups, giving Oklahoma some depth behind the projected starters.
This is where the Sooners stand heading into Week 1: some roles locked in, some still up for grabs, and a few spots clearly changed by camp. The official depth chart will tell its own story, but the shape of Oklahoma’s 2026 opener is already coming into focus.
In Other News...
Sooners May Have Landed A Backfield Difference Maker After All
Jonathan Hatton Jr.s recruiting path was winding even by modern standards, but Oklahoma never really stopped being part of the conversation. The four-star running back first committed to the Sooners in October 2023, backed off that pledge in December 2024 and later chose Texas A&M in March 2025 before flipping back to Oklahoma in November 2025, just ahead of signing day. For a program trying to keep building out its offense, landing a player with that kind of track record matters almost as much as the talent itself.
Brent Venables recently shared a story from Hattons recruiting process and made clear why the staff kept pushing. The Oklahoma coach praised Hattons physical and mental traits, and the Sooners believe he can become a key offensive piece once he gets on campus. The only question left now is how quickly that promise turns into production. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma Freshman Back Is Giving Sooners A New Reason To Watch This Battle
Jonathan Hatton Jr. is making one of the quieter but more important kinds of preseason progress for Oklahoma, the sort that usually decides whether a freshman back gets on the field or spends his first fall learning from the sideline. In practice, he has been showing early growth in recognizing protections and reading defensive fronts, a key step for any young running back trying to earn trust in a system that demands more than just carrying the ball.
John Mateer has noticed the work Hatton is putting in, pointing to his work ethic and his willingness to pick up blocking assignments, both of which matter when coaches are sorting out playing time in the backfield. With the Sooners also dealing with concerns about the health of other running backs, Hattons development adds another layer to a competition worth watching as camp moves forward. [Read more 🡒]
Brent Venables Is Closing In On A Recruiting Win Nobody Expected
The early work in Oklahomas 2028 class has started to draw attention, and Jay Schell is a big reason why. The four-star linebacker from Rabun Gap-Nacoochee High School in Georgia has become one of the more intriguing national targets on the Sooners board, with recruiting experts now projecting Oklahoma as the likely landing spot even as Clemson and Georgia stay heavily involved. He has picked up offers from a long list of major programs, which is part of what makes this feel like the kind of battle that can swing quickly once a prospect starts narrowing things down.
For now, Schell has not released a final list of schools or made a decision, so there is still plenty of time for the picture to change. But if Oklahoma can finish this one, it would be an eyebrow-raising win for Brent Venables and a meaningful one for a class that currently has just one commitment. The Sooners are expected to add more recruits soon, and this is the type of name that can give an emerging group some real national credibility early. [Read more 🡒]