Greg McElroy thinks Oklahoma has a Top 10 defense in college football

USA Today

2 days ago

If the Oklahoma Sooners got one thing right last year, it was their defense.
After years of clamoring for better play on that side of the ball, Sooner Nation got to watch arguably the best defense OU has produced in a decade and a half. Head coach Brent Venables has engineered a total turnaround on defense in Norman.
The only problem was, Oklahoma's offense, which hadn't been the problem in years, fell off a cliff in 2024. The Sooners couldn't put enough points on the board. Despite a very good defense, OU fell to a 6-7 record.
While there have been a lot of changes made to the offensive side of the ball, there's a lot of continuity on defense for the Sooners. Key contributors like Danny Stutsman, Billy Bowman Jr., Ethan Downs, and Da'Jon Terry have moved on to the NFL, but Oklahoma returns plenty of starters.
With defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Zac Alley leaving to take the same job at West Virginia, Venables decided to take control of the defense himself this year. He'll call the plays in addition to all of his duties as the head coach.
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Greg McElroy, who hosts the "Always College Football with Greg McElroy" podcast, and is a college football color commentator for ESPN, believes that Oklahoma has one of the top ten defenses in the country heading into 2025. He ranks the Sooners as the No. 7 defense in the nation as we approach the fall. The former national championship-winning quarterback of the 2009 Alabama Crimson Tide pointed out that OU returns 60 percent of their defensive production from last year, when they ranked 19th in total defense. He thinks that with Venables taking command of the defense, the Sooners will be even better.
Now I think this group has a chance to be the most improved group in the country from where they were a year ago. Part of why I'm so optimistic about Oklahoma, not just on offense but also on defense, is because of coach Brent Venables. He he got the job at Oklahoma because of how good he is as a defensive play caller. Well he's now taking over as the primary play caller. Now this was a strategic decision to take over the duties and he has widely been considered one of the best minds in college football for a really long time. He's got two national championships as a defensive coordinator at Clemson to to show for it. He also obviously had a great stint at Oklahoma as well. Then I think he's going to be just fine. They're going to attack. They're going to be aggressive and they're going to have a great understanding of what the opponent's offense is going to be doing from week to week. - McElroy, The Always College Football Podcast
At defensive tackle, coached by Todd Bates, Oklahoma has a strong two-deep of Jayden Jackson, Damonic Williams, Gracen Halton, and David Stone. That group might be the strength of the entire team, a stark contrast from what Venables inherited when he arrived in Norman.
The defensive ends will be led by the returning R Mason Thomas, who decided not to enter the NFL Draft or the transfer portal and instead stayed at OU this year. He had nine sacks last season, six of which came in SEC play. He's the team's best pass rusher and will be counted upon to carry more of the load this year. Coach Miguel Chavis has Marvin Jones Jr., Adepoju Adebawore, Danny Okoye, and Taylor Wein competing for snaps on the other side of the line. Jones and Adebawore are looking for breakout seasons.
Venables hired Nate Dreiling as his new inside linebackers coach and Wes Goodwin as his new assistant linebackers coach and outside linebackers coach. Both coaches have experience as defensive coordinators.
The Sooners will have plenty of versatility when it comes to the linebacker spots in 2025. Kip Lewis and Kobie McKinzie are in line to start at the inside spots, and Sammy Omosigho will play plenty as well. At cheetah, Kendel Dolby returns to a position he's excellent at, and Kendal Daniels, who figures to play inside some as well, arrives via the transfer portal. Omosigho has plenty of experience playing the cheetah role as well. There are plenty of younger players who could get snaps at cheetah as the season progresses as well.
Jay Valai's cornerbacks need to stay healthy this year, as Eli Bowen returns after an excellent true freshman season. He was in a boot this spring, and the Sooners need him on the field on the outside. Gentry Willams can boost this defense even higher if he's healthy, but he missed almost the entire 2024 season due to injury. Jacobe Johnson is in line for plenty of snaps, as the local product could be a starter if Williams can't make it on the field. Devon Jordan could also get more reps if injuries continue to plague this position group.
At safety, coach Brandon Hall returns the duo of Robert Spears-Jennings and Peyton Bowen. Both players had solid seasons last year. It's a young group behind them, as Jaydan Hardy, Reggie Powers III and Michael Boganowski are waiting for their turn to make an impact.
Venables is regarded as one of college football's best defensive play-callers. He's assembled a very deep staff of Bates, Chavis, Dreiling, Goodwin, Valai and Hall to back him up and play to their individual strengths. With Venables in charge and plenty of returning standouts, the ingredients are in place for Oklahoma to have one of the best defenses in all of college football in 2025.