John Mateer stepped up to the big stage and did not provide the Sooners with the level of quarterback play they needed.
The redshirt junior quarterback’s performance against Alabama marked an encapsulation of his 2025 season — a hot start before a later setback. He started out looking like the early-season Mateer that caused him to be in Heisman rankings before making mental mistakes that cost the Sooners.
He led the Sooners to a 17-0 lead out the gate with an 8-yard rushing touchdown and a 7-yard passing touchdown to redshirt junior wide receiver Isaiah Sategna but ultimately fell to a 34-24 loss.
“We lost the rhythm, and it's how the game goes, …” Mateer said. “It just didn't end up like the couple drives in the first half.”
The Crimson Tide climbed back to tie the game 17-17 before halftime, with a Mateer pass ending in a pick-six being the final score of the second quarter. He said he wrongly thought the defense was running a cover zero alignment on the play.
“It was a bad check, and I got tricked,” Mateer said. “And it's pretty bad. (If) you watch the tape, it was obvious. It wasn't a cover zero, and I got tricked.”
Another costly moment came before the interception when Mateer failed to connect with sophomore running back Xavier Robinson, as the Sooners were up 17-7 with 4:29 to go in the second quarter. Mateer said he thought about rushing but decided to try to sling the ball to Robinson because he was open. The play could have given the Sooners more momentum, but the Crimson Tide kept it with the later pick-six.
“In that moment, it's obviously a split decision,” Mateer said. “You trust your instincts. I knew I could run it, but he's running open. And it's unfortunate, just didn't work out. (I) could’ve put it on his nose and I didn't. But … I don't regret what I did.”
Offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle also said he is not upset with Mateer’s decision to pass — though he recognizes in reflection that running may have worked out better.
“I’m not mad at the decision that John made,” Arbuckle said. “It's easy to say in hindsight (that) I wish he would have just ran. But he saw a wide-open man downfield and delivered a really good ball. … (If) we catch that, (we) probably score, and who knows how the rest of the game looks?”
Mateer and the Sooners cannot dwell on asking “who knows how” it all would have turned out if done differently, though. They could also ask themselves: “who knows how” it would have gone if Mateer never injured his thumb against Auburn on Sept. 20 or if he rested one more game instead of playing against Texas? The Sooners can only face reality — Mateer being gutsy but not productive enough.
Mateer returned 17 days after surgery in a 23-6 loss to Texas that began a drop in production. He averaged 304 passing yards through the Sooners’ first four games but put up 209 per game following his return. He also played with KT tape, therapeutic wrap for pain relief and support, until his matchup with Alabama in the College Football Playoff.
Mateer’s determination to keep persevering through injury deserves respect, though, according to head coach Brent Venables.
“He's a warrior, man,” Venables said. “He's got everything that you want in a competitor and a leader in a quarterback. He's got great talent. He fought through. He’ll be his testimony. He was determined. Even the game after he hurts it, … he's like, ‘I want to suit up. I want to be with my guys. I'm going to go through warmups.’ And that's just the kind of human being he is, the type of leader he is.”
While Mateer fought through his injury, the defense and redshirt junior kicker Tate Sandell — through timely stops and critical field goals — often kept the Sooners in games enough to where they only needed the quarterback to come through on a few explosive plays each contest. However, between the top-10 defense giving up 27 unanswered points and the Lou Groza Award winner missing two fourth-quarter field goals, they needed more from Mateer against Alabama. They needed him to respond when they could not save him any longer, but he could not do so.
Mateer, after the game, said he could only reflect on his disappointment that the 2025 Sooners’ road had ended.
“I love these guys, and we all hate that it’s over,” Mateer said. “That's all I'm really thinking about right now.”
But Mateer is also not losing sight of what it means to him to be playing on the big stage in Norman.
“Sometimes, I sit back and still see the logo on my chest or my head, and it freaks me out,” Mateer said. “Oklahoma vs. Alabama and I just played in a game. It's all God's grace, and I'm grateful for where I'm at and how it all went even though it didn't go how we wanted it to.”
