Five Oklahoma Players in Need of Strong Showings at Fall Camp

Oklahoma fans have yet to see the best of Jake Taylor, but it’s hardly his fault. 

Taylor, a redshirt junior, sat behind talented offensive tackles in 2022 and 2023.

Last year, he carried multiple injuries into the year, which hampered his play. 

Taylor logged 169 snaps on offense across four games, per Pro Football Focus, and he was eventually shut down for the year. 

Competition will be stiff at tackle, giving o-line coach Bill Bedenbaugh plenty of options. 

Jacob Sexton is back from his own injury rehabilitation process, and he returns tons of key experience. When Sexton moved inside to guard last year, Logan Howland got a sustained run of action in SEC play. 

Oklahoma added redshirt senior Derek Simmons from Western Carolina from the transfer portal, and the hype around true freshman 5-star tackle Micahel Fasusi only grew during spring practice. 

With plenty of options and combinations at Bedenbaugh’s disposal, Taylor needs to string together a strong month of practices to fulfill his potential in Norman.

DE Adepoju Adebawore

Defensive end Adepoju Adebawore could follow a familiar path this year. 

After showing great promise as a freshman, an ankle injury disrupted Adebawore’s start to the 2024 season. By the time he had shaken off the injury, OU’s defensive line rotation was set with R Mason Thomas ripping off one end of the line and Ethan Downs setting the edge on the other side. 

Thomas also had his sophomore season limited by ankle injuries before breaking out as a junior. 

Adebawore, a former 5-star recruit, has the size and athleticism to make an impact across from Thomas in the SEC, but it’s time to put everything together for the Sooners. 

Oklahoma added former Georgia and Florida State defensive end Marvin Jones Jr. from the portal, giving defensive ends coach Miguel Chavis an experienced hand in the rotation, and Venables continues to praise redshirt freshman Danny Okoye.

Adebawore has 10 career tackles in 23 games, including 4.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks, but his potential needs to turn into production in 2025.

OG Febechi Nwaiwu 

Febechi Nwaiwu was the lone constant on Oklahoma’s offensive line merry-go-round in 2024.

He was the only offensive lineman to start every game, as he made the spot at right guard his own. 

But like Taylor, there are young faces in the offensive line room pushing for playing time. 

Eddy Pierre-Louis redshirted last year, but had he enrolled early, he may have played a larger role in 2024. He’s pushing for a starting spot at guard.

Heath Ozaeta is returning from an offseason surgery that cost him all of spring practice, too. The redshirt sophomore started the final seven games last year, meaning if Pierre-Louis is able to win a job, either Ozaeta or Nwaiwu will be left without a starting spot. 

Nwaiwu got a full year to adjust to life in the trenches in the SEC last year, but he’ll need a strong showing in fall camp to keep his job with Ozaeta and Pierre-Louis pushing in 2025.

DB Gentry Williams 

Oklahoma is a better defense when Gentry Williams is on the field. 

The 5-foot-11 junior was the Sooners’ best cornerback in 2023. He made 30 tackles, including four tackles for loss, while picking off three passes. 

But the injury bug hit him again in 2024. 

He made just two appearances before his season came to an end after he exited OU’s Week 2 contest against Houston. 

Eli Bowen impressed as a freshman later in the year, and cornerbacks coach Jay Valai would love to pair Williams and Bowen with Jacobe Johnson to form a nice rotation at corner. 

But Williams has to find a way to make it to Week 1 healthy.

Oklahoma did not add a veteran cornerback in the spring transfer portal window, meaning if Williams is unable to stay on the field this fall, the Sooners will be forced to turn to underclassmen to support Bowen and Johnson, which could yield inconsistent results.

RB Taylor Tatum 

Taylor Tatum experienced plenty of highs and lows last year. 

The true freshman running back was one of the few members of the offense who could deliver an explosive play, but he also fumbled the ball four times. 

Tatum finished third on the team with 278 rushing yards, but he got just five carries in the last three games of the season after Xavier Robinson’s emergence in the final stages of OU’s loss to Missouri. 

Oklahoma upgraded at running back after spring practice closed down. 

New general manager Jim Nagy struck quickly to sign former Cal rusher Jaydn Ott to serve as OU’s new feature back. 

Though Gavin Sawchuk transferred, Jovantae Barnes stayed to fight for carries and Tatum will have to earn the trust of the coaching staff again with Robinson primed to build on the final month of the 2024 season. 

Tatum will have to show that he can hold onto the football and that he also has much better mastery of the playbook during fall camp, or he could find himself sitting at fourth on OU’s initial running back depth chart against Illinois State — an unenviable position for the top-rated running back in the 2024 class.