Following a disastrous 41-13 loss to No. 2 Georgia, OU finds itself with its back against the wall sitting at 2-2. The Sooners now head into the Red River Rivalry against No. 1 Texas, with national media weighing in on the poor start.
Former three-time all-American Georgia linebacker and current On3 college football analyst David Pollack was one of the first to weigh in on OU’s struggles. He was critical of quarterback John Mateer, who had a turnover-riddled outing against Georgia, including an embarrassing fumble at the Bulldogs’ goal line that was scooped up and taken back for a touchdown.
“At this point there is nothing that can be said to Mateer,” Pollack wrote on X. “He’s broken.”
Former Auburn center and current SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic also commented on Mateer and the offense’s struggles. Cubelic was on multiple successful teams, reaching the Southeastern Conference title twice, winning the 1997 Peach Bowl.
“Oklahoma has gone three straight games without gaining 300 yards of total offense,” Cubelic said.
The last time OU went three straight games without 300 yards was 2024 when former quarterbacks Jackson Arnold and Michael Hawkins Jr. led OU to 1-2 in games against Auburn, Texas and South Carolina. OU finished that season 6-7, not the result Sooner fans want to replicate in 2026.
The schedule for this year's OU team doesn’t bode well for fans hoping for a different outcome from 2024. Former Heisman-winning Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III previewed the Sooners’ gauntlet ahead.
"Oklahoma has (No.) 1 Texas, Kentucky and (No.) 24 Mississippi State in its next three games,” Griffin wrote. “(It is) staring 2-5 right in the face. (Its) fans deserve better than that."
With the schedule unrelenting, a losing season is possible, as well as one worse than 6-7 in 2024.. The last time the Sooners missed out on a bowl game was 1998 when the team finished 5-6 under former head coach John Blake. If OU finishes with six wins or less, it would be for the third time in the Brent Venables era, not something Sooner fans are accustomed to after years of success with former head coaches Bob Stoops and Lincoln Riley.
This story was edited by Joshua McDaniel.
