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Ken Ruinard / staff, The Greenville News via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Paul Finebaum Names College Football Powerhouse He's High On

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jaron Spor | Last updated Jun 21, 2025 10:00 AM ET

The 2024 college football season was challenging for several major programs looking to establish themselves in a new conference.

This was particularly true for the Oklahoma Sooners, who finished the year with a 6-7 record. This marked the second time in three seasons that Oklahoma ended with the same record under head coach Brent Venables.

A significant factor contributing to the team's struggles was their offense. In 2024, the Sooners ranked among the worst in the nation, placing 113th in total offense, 119th in passing offense, 76th in rushing offense and 97th in scoring offense.

Midseason, offensive coordinator Seth Littrell was fired and later replaced by Ben Arbuckle, the former offensive coordinator from Washington State.

Additionally, Oklahoma acquired Washington State quarterback John Mateer, who had an impressive first season as a starter. Last year, Mateer threw for 3,139 yards, 29 touchdowns, and only seven interceptions, while also rushing for 826 yards and adding 15 touchdowns.

On "The Paul Finebaum Show," an analyst from the SEC Network expressed optimism about the Sooners' potential for a better season, citing these two significant changes as promising factors.

"I'm really high on what has happened," Finebaum said. "I think that the combination of Mateer and his former coordinator at Washington State has made them a serious contender. The fact that the receivers, who were all hurt last year, are back."

Finebaum has expressed concerns about Oklahoma's upcoming schedule. He specifically highlighted the Michigan Wolverines, whom the Sooners will face in their second game, calling them a "very dangerous team."

He also mentioned the Texas Longhorns, predicting a loss for Oklahoma in their away game against South Carolina, as well as in another away game against Alabama.

In addition to these games, Finebaum didn't address other challenging matchups, such as the home games against the Ole Miss Rebels and the LSU Tigers. While he believes that Oklahoma has the potential to win more than eight games this season, he does not consider it a certainty.

Finebaum discussed the receiver issues the Sooners faced last season. He mentioned they are all back this season; however, only two receivers are back. Nic Anderson, Jayden Gibson, Deion Burks, Jalil Farooq and Andrel Anthony were expected to be the top five receivers, but with the exception of Burks, the others essentially missed the entire season.

Additionally, Anderson, Farooq and Anthony chose to transfer after the season ended. The Sooners also lost Brenen Thompson and J.J. Hester to the transfer portal; last year, they were ranked fifth and second in receiving yards on the team, respectively.

According to ESPN's Football Power Index, Oklahoma is ranked as the No. 10 team in the SEC and the No. 16 team overall, with an anticipated record of 7-5 in 2025. The FPI also gives the Sooners an 18.4% chance of making the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2019.

The Sooners will kick off their season against Illinois State at 6:00 p.m. ET on August 30.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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