Spencer Rattler expects 'good competition' from Oklahoma, Texas in SEC

Texas and Oklahoma have plenty of connections to the SEC before even joining the conference. You have former Alabama assistant Steve Sarkisian in Austin, while the Sooners have ties to Tennessee‘s Josh Heupel and South Carolina‘s Shane Beamer. Go a step further to look at players and Spencer Rattler was the OU starting quarterback not too long ago in the 2021 season.

Seemingly everybody in Nashville this week gave their opinion on the two Red River schools in the SEC. Rattler was no different but refused to comment on how he thought they would fare. Instead, the South Carolina quarterback admitted they will bring more competition to the conference — even if he is off to the NFL by that time.

“I think it’s going to be fun to watch,” Rattler said on Thursday at SEC Media Days. “I think it’s going to be good competition.”

Rattler played his last snap in an Oklahoma uniform in Nov. 2021 and the program looked completely different. Lincoln Riley was the head coach and had not made a move out West either. Future Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams was still in Norman too, being in the midst of a breakout true freshman season.

Things are, of course, different now. Brent Venables will be leading the Sooners into the SEC, just wrapping up his first season with the program. Oklahoma has a completely different identity under Venabels compared to Riley, one everyone is hoping translates to the SEC.

Texas is under the same leadership from the last time Rattler saw them. It’s likely a game he would like to forget — even if Oklahoma eventually won — being the beginning of Williams taking over his job.

Or, who knows? Maybe it can be viewed as the beginning of a new chapter and Rattler’s eventual journey to South Carolina.

Rattler is entering his fourth season of college football, split down the middle at Oklahoma and South Carolina. If things go right for him in 2023, he is likely off to the NFL. A former five-star prospect, this is viewed as the season Rattler lives up to the potential throughout an entire 12-game schedule.

But if he does return to Columbia, he will get to face off against Oklahoma. South Carolina is scheduled to travel to Norman in 2024 and if Rattler is still the starter, it would make for a fascinating storyline.

Over a year out of the hypothetical matchup, we already know Rattler believes the game will be a competitive one.