What to expect from Oklahoma football in 2020

oklahoma football
John Barry Posted on

With the Oklahoma Sooners first game upon us during this very different 2020 season, here is my analysis of what to expect for Lincoln Riley and Oklahoma football.

Passing game

First off, the question everyone has been asking and speculating on the No. 1 position change for the Sooners, their brand new and young quarterback. Spencer Rattler is Oklahoma’s first QB in the past three years to not be a transfer. He’s young with little experience and will go up against some tough veteran teams such as the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma State Cowboys during a very unpredictable year. The young quarterback has a lot hype to live up to considering his past three predecessors either won the Heisman or finished second.

Luckily for Rattler, he’s got Riley and a great young wide receiving corps. With no more Ceedee Lamb, Jadon Haselwood recovering from offseason injury, Trejan Bridges waiting on his suspension appeal, Theo Wease and Charleston Rambo need to have a lot of big games this season as well as Austin Stogner at tight end. Rattler also has a very good offensive line protecting him.

Running game

This has been a crucial position at Oklahoma for as long as football has been around. The Sooners lost two very key running backs in their offense this offseason. Trey Sermon transferred to Ohio State, and Kennedy Brooks opted out of the season. Sermon, in his three years at OU, had over 2,000 rushing yards while Brooks had that in just two seasons.

The Sooners will need the young backs to step up as well as Rhamondre Stevenson depending on his suspension appeal. Again, the Sooners’ offensive line has been strong and has a returning leader in Creed Humphrey at center so expect good protection with great run/pass blocking

Defense

Now, the most important improvement OU has had in a long time is its defense. This defense made the most strides since Alex Grinch came in and is looking to continue with that momentum. The Sooners’ defense will truly be key this season against each opponent. Offense has not been a problem at all for Oklahoma especially with Riley as the play caller. The only problem for this defense is - again suspensions - as well as Jalen Redmond deciding to opt out of this season. Redmond led the team in sacks and made him and Ronnie Perkins two serious threats on the defensive front line.

Now let’s back track for a second. Right before the Peach Bowl last season against LSU, the Sooners had three key players suspended for failing an NCAA random drug screening. Trejan Bridges, Ronnie Perkins and Stevenson all were suspended prior to the game. This week they are appealing the suspension as the NCAA rules state if you test positive you miss 50% of the season. Bridges being one of the Sooners young stud wide receivers, Perkins is the Sooners best pass rusher and Stevenson is a freight train at running back who had a great season with 64 carries and over 500 rushing yards. If they win their appeal, this will be an enormous win for OU. Seeing these players back will help on both sides of the field.

Nevertheless, I see the Oklahoma Sooners winning their sixth straight Big 12 title this year. So much talent under a great head coach with a fierce defensive coordinator. If Rattler can stay solid and the defense can continue the improvement, the Sooners could be a playoff team again.