Brian Bosworth on Danny Stutsman: 'It's time we had a generational linebacker'

Through the first two quarters of the 2024 season, Danny Stutsman and the Oklahoma defense made their presence known. The Sooners forced two turnovers in the first quarter against Temple before recording one more in the second as they took a commanding 20-0 lead with 8:05 left in the half.

Stutsman is the anchor of the unit and helped force one of those fumbles. He did so as Brian Bosworth – one of the Oklahoma legends at linebacker – looked on. The two have a close relationship, and Bosworth even narrated the video when Stutsman announced his return for this season.

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As Stutsman gets his senior year underway, Bosworth noted the importance of having someone of his caliber at the linebacker position. He didn’t just call Stutsman great, though. He called him “generational.”

“Just to see his growth – I’m not gonna say parental, but as a coach, kind of watching on the outside, knowing what he’s going through and the challenges he had to go through and his leadership, how it’s grown, his character,” Bosworth told ESPN’s Paul Carcaterra during the second quarter on Friday. “Making the big decision about coming back for this next year, I think it was a wise decision for him.

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“He is the leader of that defense. It’s time we had a generational linebacker. We’ve been good in a lot of places, we’ve had some great ones over the past. But it’s time for us to go from good to great, and I think Danny’s got that special stuff inside.”

Danny Stutsman generated some NFL Draft buzz last season after putting up huge numbers in Brent Venables’ scheme. He 104 tackles, including a career-high 16 tackles for loss, and three sacks as the anchor of the OU defense. That came after 125 tackles and two interceptions in 2022.

Those numbers put him in the same breath as, say, Brian Bosworth among the Oklahoma greats. As for whether Bosworth sees some of his traits in Stutsman, he said it’s tough to say as the game evolved. However, he sees the intangibles that make for great linebackers.

“It’s a different game, so it’s hard to see the same similarities,” Bosworth said. “Sometimes, I get frustrated because I want to go talk to him and say, ‘Man, you get in that b-gap. You go in there like you’ve got something on fire.’ But it’s a different concept that they have to play with because it’s such a spread-out personnel. So the game is played different, so everything is outside the hashmarks as opposed to inside the hashmarks.

“But instinctively, I see what he gets himself through traffic well, and he makes plays in space. And I think that’s huge for linebackers in this type of game.”