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Greg McElroy calls Oklahoma a 'sleeping problem' ahead of Year 2 under Brent Venables

Barkley-Truaxby:Barkley Truax•08/18/23•

BarkleyTruax

Oklahoma State v Oklahoma
NORMAN, OK - NOVEMBER 19: Head coach Brent Venables of the Oklahoma Sooners takes the field with his team for Bedlam against the Oklahoma State Cowboys during Bedlam at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on November 19, 2022 in Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners won 28-13. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)

Was 2022 a warning of what’s to come for Oklahoma in the SEC? Or should the Sooners be treating it like a blip on the radar?

Only time will tell, but when discussing the pulse of the program heading into the new season with On3’s Andy Staples, college football analyst Greg McElroy is leaning toward the latter when it comes to the Sooners reemerging as a contender in year two under head coach Brent Venables.

“Name a more consistent program over the last 20 years than Oklahoma as far as conference championships won,” McElroy told Staples. “I’m all for Oklahoma having high expectations. When Lincoln Riley left, there was a void there and it was almost like a gunshot to the gut and the covered it with a band-aid. I’m not calling Brent Venables a band-aid, but there was a hurt there than no one wanted to acknowledge.

“A lot of people said [Oklahoma] would be better for this, but that was misguided. But we also glossed over the fact that the turnover that existed on the roster was challenging.”

When Riley left for USC, he took QB1 Caleb Williams with him. The two went on to bring the Trojan program back from obscurity and back to a national stage. It culminated with Williams winning the Heisman Trophy while Oklahoma finished with its worst record since the turn of the century.

“There was a hurt there,” McElroy said of Riley’s departure. “You had to acknowledge, you had to process and then you had to move forward. What they’ve done is have really nice job assessing their weaknesses at the spots they need to get deeper at. Re-enforcing the line of scrimmage on the defensive side … and now you have another year in the system offensively where Dillon Gabriel and company are going to feel more comfortable.

“I think Oklahoma is a sleeping problem. I’m not going to call them a sleeping giant, but they’re a sleeping problem in the Big 12. No one is talking about them this year.”

Last season was his Gabriel’s first in Norman, and he put up strong numbers having thrown for 3,168 yards and 25 touchdowns compared to six interceptions to go along with a 62.7% completion percentage. If Oklahoma is improved in 2023 — it’ll be his doing.

The Sooners kick off their 2023 season ranked No. 20 in the preseason AP Top 25, and will look to improve that ranking during Week 1 when they host Arkansas State.