Oklahoma’s quarterback situation is once again hanging over the program as Red River week arrives, and Brent Venables is still sorting through whether John Mateer will be the guy against Texas.
Mateer remains the starter for now, but the Sooners have spent the bye week giving Bowe Bentley and Whitt Newbauer extra work. Venables said the staff even debated pulling Mateer during the 41-13 loss to No. 2 Georgia before deciding to stay with him.
“I have no idea," Venables said. "We're not there right now … John's our starting quarterback."
That’s the reality for Oklahoma after a rough start. The Sooners are averaging 11.5 points per game against Power Four competition with Mateer running the offense, and the numbers around him have only gotten uglier. He’s completing 66% of his passes for 883 yards, but he’s averaging just 1.9 yards per carry and has thrown four interceptions in his last three games.
Oklahoma’s offense has slid into a bad place fast. The Sooners are last in the SEC in total offense and 15th in scoring offense as they sit at 2-2.
And now comes No. 1 Texas on Saturday at the State Fair of Texas in the annual Red River Rivalry.
The recent history in this game hasn’t been kind to Oklahoma either. The Sooners have dropped three of the last four meetings and are averaging only 3.0 points per game in those three losses. Three of Oklahoma’s four worst Red River scoring performances over the past 50 years have come under Venables.
If the staff does decide to make a move, the alternatives are thin. Newbauer and Bentley are both getting meaningful practice reps, but neither has a deep college resume to lean on.
Newbauer, a former Mercer transfer, is listed at 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds. He started seven games as a freshman at Mercer in 2024, completed 56% of his throws for 1,398 yards, 12 touchdowns and four interceptions, and helped lead the program to the FCS quarterfinals. Since arriving at Oklahoma, though, he has attempted only five passes for 12 yards over two seasons as a backup.
Bentley brings more upside. The freshman from Celina, Texas, was a four-star recruit, rated the No. 109 player in the Class of 2026, and led his high school team to a state championship.
As a senior, he completed 77% of his passes and threw for 2,911 yards and 32 touchdowns. He also had one incomplete pass against UTEP.
“We've got great belief in them, trust in them," Venables said. "There's a body of work that both of those guys, both Bowe and Whitt, have put out there and for us to evaluate. They're doing a nice job, they're working hard, improving incrementally and doing all the things that we want our quarterback to do as a whole, as a group."
Oklahoma has been here before. Two years ago, Venables benched Jackson Arnold after a slow start and turned to true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. Arnold had been a major recruit, the No. 10 player in the Class of 2023, and looked like a cornerstone piece after Lincoln Riley’s exit.
Hawkins gave the Sooners a win over Auburn in his first start, but the ride didn’t last. He struggled badly in a 34-3 loss to then-No.
1 Texas, a defeat that pushed Oklahoma toward a 6-7 finish in its SEC debut season. Hawkins was benched one game later in a 35-9 loss to South Carolina, and offensive coordinator Seth Littrell was fired as well.
Since losing Jeff Lebby to Mississippi State and Dillon Gabriel to Oregon, Oklahoma has never really found steady answers at quarterback. Venables could move on from Mateer or make a change elsewhere, but the problems on offense have been building for a while. The Sooners haven’t finished higher than 97th in yards per play on offense over the last three seasons, and their rushing game has declined every year since Riley left.
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