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Big 12 football 2018 preview: Breakout stars, biggest games, predictions

By Daniel Stave

MANHATTAN, KS - NOVEMBER 11: Quarterback Will Grier (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images)
MANHATTAN, KS - NOVEMBER 11: Quarterback Will Grier (Photo by Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images) /
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PASADENA, CA – JANUARY 01: The Oklahoma Sooners are wait to run onto the field prior to the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal Game against the Georgia Bulldogs at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA – JANUARY 01: The Oklahoma Sooners are wait to run onto the field prior to the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal Game against the Georgia Bulldogs at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Freshman of the Year-Brendan Radley-Hiles, CB, Oklahoma

Oklahoma’s defense was up and down in 2017, eventually costing the team a spot in the national title game by giving up four second-half touchdowns against Georgia in the national semifinal.

They hope to get help in 2018 from Big-12 preseason Newcomer of the Year Brendan Radley-Hiles. The 5’10”, 183-pound defensive back graduated from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida as a five-star recruit.

Radley-Hiles, known as “Bookie”, played cornerback in high school, but may see time at safety for the Sooners.

Defensive backs coach Kerry Cooks was impressed by Bookie early on, according to the Norman Transcript, “Bookie is a very calm player, very smart football player,” Cooks said. “His personality, his knowledge of the game, coupled with his athleticism makes you feel more comfortable with putting a true freshman out on the field.”

“You can see his confidence, his ability to see the field,” Defensive coordinator Mike Stoops  added.
“He’s a natural playmaker. The game comes pretty natural to him. He just has a unique feel on the field.”

Still, moving from the high school level to a Power 5 conference is not a small task. “There’s still a lot of learning. He’d the first one to tell you that,” Stoops continued. “He’s done a great job in the film room and studies hard. Conceptually, he picks things up well, but just understanding field space, you want to be reactive, you don’t want to think when they game is being played. That’s the only thing he’s really missing right now, his body memorization of how these plays go, what you see and how you see it.”

The Sooners will need to rely on their defense more in 2018 with the transition to a new quarterback on offense.