Reggie Powers III has gone from promising piece to one of Oklahoma’s more seasoned defenders, and that shift has changed how he approaches the cheetah spot for Brent Venables.
The junior defensive back has logged 25 games over the past two seasons, including 13 last year, when he put together 31 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. He spent much of that time working behind Kendal Daniels, but now he’s in position to help steer the group rather than just learn from it.
That growth has shown up in the way Powers talks about the game. After practice Friday, he said the game has slowed down for him because the mental side is finally catching up with the physical tools.
“I’m feeling very comfortable,” Powers said after practice on Friday. “Finally, like last year, I felt like I knew the defense, but now just really like no second-guessing.
I can have the ability to help other people, bring other people up with me, and it's making me better. It's helping my preparation, everything like that.”
For Powers, the jump came from more reps and more confidence in what he was seeing before the snap. He said that deeper film work and snap experience helped him trigger faster and trust his reads.
“Getting more snaps in my preparation, my film watch, that's what helps me play fast,” Powers said. “When I can anticipate and know what the offense is going to do, and just play fast and trust the guys around me, that’s when we're on the same page. We can ball out.”
Oklahoma’s cheetah room now includes Michigan transfer Cole Sullivan, with defensive back Jeremiah Newcombe also available for depth. Sullivan could spend more time at outside linebacker after Owen Heinecke’s return, but Powers said the junior linebacker has already shown he can pick things up quickly.
“He's very smart. He's a guy who can play all three positions,” Powers said.
“He's very competitive, very technical in everything he does. He's always locked in.
He asks questions. He's one of the guys who we're gonna trust him when he goes out there.
He's gonna know what he's doing. So, adding him to the Cheetah position, it brings all of us up and makes everyone better.”
Powers sees the entire unit as a strength, especially with so many familiar faces around him heading into 2026.
“It's a great feeling, you know, looking around you, seeing guys, all-Americans, guys who I can trust,” Powers said. “I know what they're doing.
They know what I'm gonna do. We all know we're gonna compete and have each other's back.
“There's no second-guessing out there. It feels like a tight brotherhood.”
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