Brent Venables 'incredibly pleased' with Oklahoma transfer portal players

Following his inaugural season as the Oklahoma coach, Brent Venables hit the transfer portal hard. The Sooners brought in 13 transfers this offseason to rank second in the Big 12 and 21st overall according to the On3 Transfer Portal Rankings.

Those new faces got the chance show out in front of fans for the first time Saturday as OU hosted its spring game. In a press conference following the game, Venables offered his thoughts on how the new additions performed.

“There’s a lot still in front of us, but even prior to today I’ve been incredibly pleased with the work, the buy-in, the humility, the competitiveness and the play,” he said. “It certainly hasn’t been perfect with any of ’em, but there’s signs that we’re moving in the right direction. Bringing those guys in are making everyone around them better. Certainly they’re gonna be able to help us.”

Of all the players to transfer to Oklahoma, none arrive with higher expectations than former Indiana linebacker Dasan McCullough. The No. 25 overall player in On3’s Transfer Player Rankings, he was named honorable mention All-Big Ten this past season as a true freshman. McCullough ranked seventh among all Hoosiers players with 49 tackles (6.5 for loss) in addition to four sacks and three passes defended.

The 6-foot-5, 222-pound McCullough showed just how impactful he’ll be for the defense in the spring game. He finished with three tackles, got pressure on the quarterback and broke up two passes. But he wasn’t the only transfer player to make an impact on defense.

Former Davon Sears (Texas State) and Jacob Lacey (Notre Dame) also made an impact on the interior defensive line. Former Wake Forest defensive end Rondell Bothroyd also made a couple of plays. All three players will be vital in turning around a Sooners defense that ranked ninth in the Big 12 this past season in yards allowed per game (461.0).

Offensively, Oklahoma added former Michigan receiver Andrel Anthony and brought back tight end Austin Stogner, who played his first three seasons with the Sooners before transferring to South Carolina last offseason. Anthony had two catches for 23 yards while Stogner hauled in an 11-yard reception in the spring game.

Oklahoma finished 6-7 this past season for its first losing record since 1998 and is counting on these transfer portal additions to help turn right the ship. If their performance in the spring game is any indication, the 2023 season will have a much better result.