How Oklahoma LB Owen Heinecke Can Contribute for Sooners in 2025

Owen Heinecke has yet to play a major role for the Sooners, but OU coach Brent Venables believes that he’s ready to play one if needed.

Heinecke walked on as a linebacker at OU in 2022 after playing one season of lacrosse at Ohio State. He has played in 26 games in two seasons for the S ooners, primarily on special teams.

Now entering his third year wearing crimson and cream, Heinicke has taken a sizable step during the 2025 offseason.

“He's had as good a camp as anybody,” Venables said.

Heinecke is a Tulsa native and played both football and lacrosse for Bishop Kelley High School.

As a senior in 2020, Heinecke was named the District 5A-III player of the year in football for his contributions at running back and safety. He was also a high-level lacrosse player, leading the school to a 3-0 record before COVID-19 canceled the majority of his final high school season.

Despite holding football offers from Army, Navy, Northeastern Oklahoma State and Central Oklahoma, Heinecke opted to play college lacrosse at Ohio State. He appeared in only three games for the Buckeyes in 2021, his lone season at OSU.

Heinecke then transferred to OU as a walk-on ahead of the 2022 season. The linebacker sat out of that campaign before appearing in all 13 games in 2023. 

Most recently, Heinecke played every game in 2024, playing mostly on special teams with occasional reps on defense. He ended his redshirt sophomore year with seven tackles, five of which were solo and earned a full scholarship during the season.

Now a redshirt junior, Heinecke’s comfortability has risen.

“For me, I’m relaxed because I’ve been through it,” Heinecke said. “But I’v e always come pretty, pretty nervous to every practice just because I know that at any given point someone’s going to make a play and I need that to be me.”

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Linebacker is widely expected to be a strength for the Sooners in 2025.

After his best season a year ago, Kip Lewis will be OU’s starting weakside linebacker. Lewis registered 65 tackles, four tackles for loss and two pick-sixes in 2024.

In the middle, linebackers Kobie McKinzie and Sammy Omosigho are competing for the starting spot. McKinzie played 13 games and started two at middle linebacker last year, while Omosigho largely played the cheetah role, which is a hybrid between linebacker and defensive back.

Other Sooner linebackers include Oklahoma State transfer Kendal Daniels , redshirt sophomore Taylor Heim and redshirt freshman James Nesta .

The product of OU’s depth is competition — competition that has allowed both starters and reserves to elevate their games.

“Everybody has been working,” Heinecke said. “Everybody, at least from the linebacker position, has been healthy and it’s been good so far, so a lot of good competition.”

With so many high-quality players in front of him, it’s possible — maybe even likely — that Heinecke never cracks the starting lineup.

But Venables sees Heinecke as someone that can fill many different roles to help OU’s defense.

“He's super instinctive, very athletic, explosive tackler, good in space, excellent blitzer,” Venables said. “He's got really nice instincts now on the ball.”