Oklahoma football 2022 season prediction, preview, awards, 2022 bowl game

Brent Venables takes over Oklahoma football from Lincoln Riley, but can the new head coach bring the Sooners the same success right away?

It’s been a calm, ho-hum offseason in Norman with Oklahoma football just going about business as usual. Nothing to see here, just the Sooners staying under the radar.

Or, ya know, the exact opposite of that.

The Oklahoma football program was rocked by the abrupt departure of Lincoln Riley for USC and, more notably, the exodus on the roster and recruiting trail that led to. Luckily, they called in an old friend in now-former Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables to take over the Sooners and try to not just keep the ship afloat, but keep it forging forward through rough seas.

So far, it looks as if he’s done that — Cale Gundy controversy aside. Hitting the transfer portal hard, doing his best to keep some talent in the building, and constructing an impressive recruiting class, Venables is putting in the work. But now it’s time for the same on the field.

Coming in at No. 12 the FanSided Top 50 Preseason Rankings, the Oklahoma Sooners!

Oklahoma football 2021 season in review

For as tumultuous as the offseason was and how disappointing the 2021 season might’ve felt, there are a ton of programs in college football that would do more for an 11-win season than they would for a Klondike Bar.

Of course, expectations are built a bit differently in Norman, so the fact that the Sooners had a letdown start behind Spencer Rattler early in the year that paved the way for now-traitor Caleb Williams to take over, but still fell in two crucial games to not be able to play their way into the Big 12 Championship Game out of left a sour taste in the mouths of many fans.

All told, the Sooners fell at Baylor and in Stillwater for Bedlam, even if they were able to win Red River. Tack on the Alamo Bowl win over Oregon and the program finished the year 11-2 but with the offseason holding the biggest storylines yet to come.

Previewing Oklahoma Sooners offense for 2022 season

Returning starters (4): WR Marvin Mims, LT Anton Harrison, OC Andrew Raym, RG Chris Murray
Notable newcomers: QB Dillon Gabriel (UCF), WR J.J. Hester (Missouri), WR LV Bunkley-Shelton (Arizona State), OG McKade Mettauer (Cal), OT Tyler Guyton (TCU), TE Daniel Parker (Missouri), 4-star RB Gavin Sawchuk, 4-star RB Jovantae Barnes, 4-star OL Jake Taylor, 4-star QB Nick Evers, 4-star WR Jayden Gibson
Impact player: Dillon Gabriel

Officially, it will go down as four returning starters for Oklahoma this season but that doesn’t reflect the experience and breadth of talent that new offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, a notable and impressive newcomer in his own right, will have at his disposal.

Mims returns to the receiving corps that saw Mario Williams and Jadon Haselwood transfer out but he’s not alone. Theo Wease is back after missing the 2021 season due to injury and a host of transfers and freshmen figure to be absolute factors in a prolific aerial attack. Meanwhile, Eric Gray and Marcus Major are more than capable of filling the hole left by Kennedy Brooks in the backfield.

The same is true of the offensive line as three proven starters return but also add two terrific transfers in McKade Mettauer and Tyler Guyton to the mix as well. There is hope that the experience and new blood will help remedy the issues in pass protection from a year ago.

But really, a lot rests on the capable shoulders of Dillon Gabriel. He was a statistical monster while at UCF and figures to be more of the same in this offense. It’s a step up in competition, but everything we’ve seen and heard suggests he’s ready for the challenge and can succeed.

Previewing Oklahoma Sooners defense for 2022 season

Returning starters (5): DT Jalen Redmond, CB Woodi Washington, CB D.J. Graham, LB DaShaun White, S Key Lawrence
Notable newcomers: DL Jonah La’ulu (Hawaii), DL Jeffery Johnson (Tulane), CB Trey Morrison (North Carolina), CB C.J. Coldon (Wyoming), 4-star CB Gentry Williams, 4-star S Robert Spears-Jennings, 4-star LB Kobie McKinzie
Impact player: Jonah La’ulu

The returning starters for the defense might be even more misleading than for the offense. Part of that is due to the transfers, a group that is most notably bolstered on the defensive line with Jonah La’ulu and Jeffery Johnson coming in to fill big holes alongside veteran Jalen Redmond. La’ulu in particular should have big expectations to make an impact as a penetrating presence up front.

More importantly, though, the Oklahoma defense is simply a tale of experienced and proven rotational players stepping into larger roles. Both in the secondary and in the linebacker corps, there are players who have made plays, seen the field plenty, and now have a defensive-minded head coach in Venables coming into the fold to help take them to the next level.

There are questions, particularly in the front seven, but the track record of Venables indeed suggests that we’ll see that group coalesce and not show any letdown in performance — if not see an improvement.

Oklahoma football players awards watch for 2022 season

Dillon Gabriel, Heisman/Maxwell/Davey O’Brien/Walter Camp Player of the Year

Gabriel’s hype should be evident by the fact that he’s on every major awards watchlist and by the fact that I’m also naming him a Heisman candidate. His style of play should fit the Lebby offense like a glove and the numbers he could put up could be truly eye-popping.

Marvin Mims, Biletnikoff/Paul Hornung

Mims handles both the WR1 duties and the returning duties as well for the Sooners, so it’s no wonder he’s up for these two awards. Another beneficiary of the new offense, it’s his time to take up the mantle as the next star wideout in Norman.

Eric Gray, Doak Walker

Some fans were disappointed in Gray last season after transferring from Tennessee but I remain confident in his ability and versatility. He should be a big threat as a runner and pass-catcher alike and you can go ahead and mark him down as a dark horse to actually win the Doak Walker.

Oklahoma football biggest game on 2022 schedule

In terms of importance, you could make the argument that both Bedlam and facing off with Baylor are the most crucial games for Oklahoma this year, but I’d be hog-tied and drug behind the Sooner Schooner through the streets of Norman if I didn’t say the Red River Rivalry game against Texas on Oct. 8 here.

More than it just being a massive rivalry matchup, though, we’re also looking at a Longhorns team with high expectations in their own right now that Quinn Ewers is in tow with some high-profile players around him. This is supposed to be the year that Texas actually starts looking back before Arch Manning gets them all the way there, so it would be a huge confidence boost and a huge Big 12 win for Oklahoma to march into Dallas and dispatch their hated rivals — especially if they can do so handily.

Oklahoma football best-case scenario

Herman Boone once demanded perfection and that should be considered the highest mark for the Sooners this season.

While understanding that there are so many new pieces both on the field and the sidelines that will need to acclimate, the fact of the matter is that talent wins in college football games and Oklahoma has more of that than any other team on their schedule. More importantly, they have a nice start to the season with games against UTEP, Kent State and Nebraska, the finale of which could be tough, but shouldn’t be too much of a hurdle.

Games against Texas, Oklahoma State and Baylor will be tough, but OU has everything in the arsenal to find their footing early in the season and then assert their dominance over the rest of the conference for a 12-0 regular season.

Oklahoma football worst-case scenario

Naturally, there is a flip side to the optimistic look at this team.

Let’s say that getting the offense clicking under a new coordinator and with so many new faces at the party. I’m higher on Nebraska than most and think a game in Lincoln could be a difficult test for an unproven group of Sooners going in there. So in a worst-case scenario, that’s a loss to start 2-1. Kansas State could be trouble the week after, but we won’t go that far here just based on the Oklahoma talent pool.

In a true worst-case for the Sooners, that means a loss in Dallas to Texas as Ewers outduels Gabriel in a shootout and then, three weeks later, the Baylor defense stifles the OU offense. The same would be true in Norman for Bedlam as the Pokes come in and flip the Sooner Schooner on its side faster than a too-sharp turn.

That would put Oklahoma at 8-4 in the regular season, which would immediately start raising some questions about Venables as a head coach, whether that’s fair or not.

Oklahoma football 2022 season prediction

The short of it is that the only reason I have Oklahoma at No. 12 in FanSided’s preseason rankings is because of the unknown. But when I look at the talent, the coaching staff, and the overall pieces that are on this Sooners team, my belief is that this team is that they aren’t losing a game this season.

OU might’ve suffered big losses but the job that Venables and his staff have done to keep things running smoothly in spite of that has been nothing short of remarkable. And I think we see the fruits of that labor with Gabriel ending up legitimately in the Heisman race, the offense being one of the nation’s most dangerous, the rest of the Big 12 not being able to live up to that, and the Sooners punching a ticket to the College Football Playoff with a spotless 12-0 regular season and Big 12 Championship Game crown to propel them there.

Oklahoma football 2022 bowl game prediction

It could be another trip to the playoff for the Sooners this year as the first projections from CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has Oklahoma football in a clash with Alabama in the Peach Bowl for a College Football Playoff semifinal matchup.

Up Next: No. 11: Oregon Ducks

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