Oklahoma’s defense has done enough early in 2026 to stay out of the main blast zone, but senior safety Peyton Bowen isn’t interested in letting the unit off the hook.
Through four weeks, the Sooners are 2-2 with losses to Michigan and Georgia, yet the defense has held opponents to 16 points and 238 yards per game. Oklahoma has also piled up 13 sacks, good for fourth in the SEC. Even so, Bowen said the group has room to tighten up.
“I think we could be a little bit better,” Bowen said. “We will get beat by letting up the big plays.”
That assessment fits the tape. Oklahoma missed 45 tackles across its first three games, and Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood hurt the Sooners on the ground for 87 yards and a touchdown in a seven-point win for the Wolverines. Against Georgia, Oklahoma missed only four tackles, but the Bulldogs still found enough explosive plays, and the Sooners’ offense never gave them much help in a 41-13 loss.
The defense, though, is not where Oklahoma’s biggest problems have lived.
The Sooners have already coughed up the ball 10 times. They’re averaging just 2.9 yards per carry, and John Mateer’s turnovers have directly led to 27 points for opponents in 2026. Special teams has also had its issues, with kicker Tate Sandell missing two field-goal attempts and the team replacing punter Grayson Miller with Jacob Ulrich ahead of the Georgia game.
Bowen knows the defense is taking less heat than the other phases, but he’s not looking to split the room.
“Pointing fingers is not going to help us now at all,” Bowen said. “It’s just going to divide us, tear this team down.
And that’s not what we need right now. We need to pick up every single inch of this team.”
A captain before the season, Bowen is one of nine players voted into that role. He has not missed a game since arriving at Oklahoma in 2023 and has started 24 times. Now, with the Sooners trying to steady themselves, he says leadership has to come from the top of the locker room.
“I’m a team guy first,” Bowen said. “I’m not changing up my shot just because I’m a captain now.
I still like to goof around in the locker room, make jokes, all that stuff. But when it comes to being on that field, they need to know, it’s serious.
I think a little bit of it is that I've been too much of a friend and I need to put my foot down and let them know, this is serious.”
The schedule does Oklahoma no favors. After the bye, the Sooners get No.
1 Texas, then seven more SEC games, several against AP Top 25 teams. Bowen still thinks the path to the College Football Playoff remains there, but he says the team has to stay connected to get there.
“We’re still in position to accomplish all our goals,” Bowen said. “I think some guys have gotten into a different mentality, so I need to pick the room back up and pick the team back up.”
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