Gavin Freeman runs 82-yard punt return back for touchdown

Last week, Gavin Freeman was placed on scholarship at Oklahoma. The sophomore wide receiver impressed during training camp, and he shed the walk-on tag as it wrapped up.

On his first punt return of the season, Freeman showed just how electric he can be.

After Oklahoma jumped out to an early 7-0 lead over Arkansas State, Freeman took a punt and ran it all the way back for an 82-yard touchdown to extend the Sooners’ lead just over two minutes into the game. It was quite a start to the year for OU — and, for Freeman, it was a huge way to start his time as a scholarship athlete.

He cannot be stopped 🏃‍♂️@TheGavinFreeman with the second Sooner TD!

📺 ESPN | #OUDNA pic.twitter.com/yhSWFzXdUU

— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) September 2, 2023

It’s the second straight season Freeman took his first touch of the season for a touchdown. He also had a 46-yard rushing touchdown in last year’s game against UTEP. All told, he took seven carries for 71 yards in addition to three receptions for 46 yards.

Brent Venables on Gavin Freeman earning a scholarship at Oklahoma: ‘This is what it’s all about’

The Oklahoma social media team captured the moment Freeman found out about his scholarship, including Brent Venables’ speech after the celebration.

“This is what it’s all about,” Venables said in the video. “You know what’s awesome about that? That’s literally a dream come true. As a little kid, he’d been coming to these games. Watched his dad come here, ball out. You want to talk about a legacy? You want to talk about a dream come true? Walking in the good ol’ days – right now, these are the good ol’ days for you. I’m so proud to honor you the right way. You’ve earned it every step of the way.”

Freeman was a three-star recruit out of Heritage Hall (OK) High School and was the No. 1,662-ranked player in the nation from the 2022 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Before choosing Oklahoma, he originally committed to Texas Tech. Once they made coaching changes, he decided to flip his commitment and eventually become a preferred walk-on for head coach Brent Venables. In the offseason, Freeman has impressed, drawing plenty of praise from Sooners wide receiver Drake Stoops.

“Gavin – he’s just a baller. He was balling last year as we all saw him explode onto the scene Game 1 and then, yeah, just continuing to mature over the offseason,” Stoops said, via SoonerScoop’s Bob Przybylo. “Getting bigger with Schmidty, continuing to push himself in conditioning, make sure he’s in great shape and then he’s just coming out here and playing like he always does.”

On3’s Wade Peery contributed to this report.