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As the Oklahoma Sooners look to rebound from a 6-7 season in 2024, much of the discussion this offseason has revolved around the two primary phases of the game, and rightfully so. Fourth-year head coach Brent Venables has taken over the play-calling duties for a defense that should be pretty good again in 2025. New offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle is looking to dig the OU offense out of the mud and play complementary football to go with that defense.
But it's the third phase of the game, special teams, that deserves some recognition as well. Second-year special teams analyst Doug Deakin has had to rebuild almost the entire unit this offseason, as a veteran group from a year ago had mostly run of eligibility. After being weak on special teams for the first two seasons of the Venables era, the Sooners were better there in 2024. However, the next step for Oklahoma is to impact games with their special teams instead of just avoiding mistakes.
The Sooners were busy in the winter transfer portal, trying to add talent on special teams, but the spring portal window could be another opportunity for OU to find more depth at some of the key positions. This winter's roster crunch in college football hurt teams like Oklahoma regarding walk-ons, who are typically key contributors on special teams.
After Luke Elzinga was one of OU's best players a season ago at punter, Deakin has brought in Jacob Ulrich, a Kennesaw State transfer, to replace him. Ulrich has big shoes to fill, as Elzinga was able to consistently pin opponents deep after the Sooner offense faltered, giving the defense a chance to get a stop. Oklahoma also lost Josh Plaster and Ashton Logan, who were backups to Elzinga a year ago. Plaster was the team's holder, so Ulrich is also likely the first option to take over at that spot as well.
Zach Schmit and Tyler Keltner split the kicker duties a season ago, and both have since graduated, so Deakin needs to find a reliable option for field goals, extra points, and kickoffs. Austin Welch, Liam Evans, and Grayson Miller are in line to compete for the job. Welch and Miller are transfers from Kennesaw State and Central Oklahoma, while Evans redshirted as a true freshman a season ago. With the razor-thin margin for error that comes with a very tough schedule in Year 2 in the SEC, missed kicks simply can't happen for the Sooners in 2025.
Ben Anderson is the only returning special teams starter, and he'll once again fill the role of long snapper for Deakin. His backup, Ethan Lane, has graduated, but the Sooners bring in true freshman walk-on Seth Freeman to learn behind Anderson.
The Sooners struggled in the return game for most of last season. Peyton Bowen will once again serve as the primary punt returner, and Oklahoma is hoping he'll provide a much-needed spark from that spot. Kick return is a more interesting proposition, as Billy Bowman, Jalil Farooq, and Dez Malone have all moved on. Deion Burks and Taylor Tatum both possess the speed and elusiveness that could be fit on kickoff return, or the Sooners could turn to reserves such as Sam Franklin or Devon Jordan to keep their starters healthy. Incoming transfer Isaiah Satagna could provide a spark in the return game.
It was great to see a noticeable improvement on special teams under Deakin a season ago, and it's something Venables stressed had to be better last offseason. Now, it's time for a new group of specialists to build on that foundation and give Oklahoma a boost this fall as the program enters a very crucial season.
This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma Sooners have rebuilt their special teams
Continue reading...
But it's the third phase of the game, special teams, that deserves some recognition as well. Second-year special teams analyst Doug Deakin has had to rebuild almost the entire unit this offseason, as a veteran group from a year ago had mostly run of eligibility. After being weak on special teams for the first two seasons of the Venables era, the Sooners were better there in 2024. However, the next step for Oklahoma is to impact games with their special teams instead of just avoiding mistakes.
The Sooners were busy in the winter transfer portal, trying to add talent on special teams, but the spring portal window could be another opportunity for OU to find more depth at some of the key positions. This winter's roster crunch in college football hurt teams like Oklahoma regarding walk-ons, who are typically key contributors on special teams.
After Luke Elzinga was one of OU's best players a season ago at punter, Deakin has brought in Jacob Ulrich, a Kennesaw State transfer, to replace him. Ulrich has big shoes to fill, as Elzinga was able to consistently pin opponents deep after the Sooner offense faltered, giving the defense a chance to get a stop. Oklahoma also lost Josh Plaster and Ashton Logan, who were backups to Elzinga a year ago. Plaster was the team's holder, so Ulrich is also likely the first option to take over at that spot as well.
Zach Schmit and Tyler Keltner split the kicker duties a season ago, and both have since graduated, so Deakin needs to find a reliable option for field goals, extra points, and kickoffs. Austin Welch, Liam Evans, and Grayson Miller are in line to compete for the job. Welch and Miller are transfers from Kennesaw State and Central Oklahoma, while Evans redshirted as a true freshman a season ago. With the razor-thin margin for error that comes with a very tough schedule in Year 2 in the SEC, missed kicks simply can't happen for the Sooners in 2025.
Ben Anderson is the only returning special teams starter, and he'll once again fill the role of long snapper for Deakin. His backup, Ethan Lane, has graduated, but the Sooners bring in true freshman walk-on Seth Freeman to learn behind Anderson.
The Sooners struggled in the return game for most of last season. Peyton Bowen will once again serve as the primary punt returner, and Oklahoma is hoping he'll provide a much-needed spark from that spot. Kick return is a more interesting proposition, as Billy Bowman, Jalil Farooq, and Dez Malone have all moved on. Deion Burks and Taylor Tatum both possess the speed and elusiveness that could be fit on kickoff return, or the Sooners could turn to reserves such as Sam Franklin or Devon Jordan to keep their starters healthy. Incoming transfer Isaiah Satagna could provide a spark in the return game.
It was great to see a noticeable improvement on special teams under Deakin a season ago, and it's something Venables stressed had to be better last offseason. Now, it's time for a new group of specialists to build on that foundation and give Oklahoma a boost this fall as the program enters a very crucial season.
This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma Sooners have rebuilt their special teams
Continue reading...
