Oklahoma will be without redshirt junior running back Marcus Major and junior center Andrew Raym when it faces Florida State in the Cheez-It Bowl, head coach Brent Venables confirmed Wednesday.
Raym underwent surgery for an undisclosed injury in late November, while Major, a 298-yard, three-touchdown rusher this season, continues to battle an ankle injury. He was seen wearing a walking boot at both of OU’s bowl practices open to the media.
“Other than that, we feel the guys that traveled down here are with us,” Venables told reporters in Orlando. “We haven't had any injuries, so everybody else will be full tilt.”
Without Raym, redshirt senior Robert Congel, who started Oklahoma’s last two regular season games, will continue duties at center.
The Sooners were already down a running back against FSU with senior Eric Gray opting out for NFL draft preparation before Major was ruled out. Freshman Jovantae Barnes is expected to receive most of the carries, with freshman Gavin Sawchuk and redshirt sophomore walk-on Tawee Walker relieving him.
Barnes has rushed for 411 yards and four touchdowns this season while complementing Gray. He and the Sooners (6-6) kick off against FSU (9-3) at 4:30 p.m. Thursday (ESPN).
“It’s a great opportunity for Jovantae,” offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby told reporters in Orlando on Monday. “...We have guys that are capable, and we’ve got guys that are going to play really well on the 29th. I look forward to those guys doing what they can to help us win.”
Peyton Bowen’s impact
Six days ago, Venables tweeted a partial picture of a letter of intent and a poker chip with the OU logo on it.
The cryptic message, which Venables joked might’ve came out of boredom with players at home for the holidays, turned out to be a preview of Oklahoma signing five-star safety Peyton Bowen, who flipped his commitment from Notre Dame to Oregon on the first day of the early signing period, but didn’t sign, eventually turning to the Sooners.
The nation’s No. 14-ranked player per 247Sports’ Composite rankings released a statement on Dec. 22 owning up to the mistakes he felt he made regarding his recruiting process.
Speaking for the first time since landing the nation’s No. 14-ranked player per 247Sports’ Composite rankings, Venables spoke highly of Bowen’s decision.
“I am really proud of Peyton and his family,” Venables said. “As you all know, covering student-athletes and watching their journey, these life-changing decisions are never necessarily an easy thing, and quite a journey for Peyton and his family. I am incredibly proud that he chose the Sooners, and they are just wonderful people.”
Bowen was teammates with five-star quarterback Jackson Arnold, a fellow Oklahoma signee, at Denton Guyer High School. The 6-foot, 185-pound prospect was not only a standout defensively, but also specialized on punt and kick returns.
“Peyton brings a tremendous skill set, dynamics, instincts, speed, just great, great instincts, natural feel for the game,” Venables said. “He is a winner. Comes from one of the best high school programs in the country, Denton Guyer.
“He is going to bring a wealth of experience playing at a very high level from a competition standpoint. He is a humble, hardworking guy. ... Just really excited to add another dynamic piece to what we are trying to build on both sides of the ball, but obviously Peyton in the return game and on defense in particular.”
OU football interim wide recievers coach L'Damian Washington during Sooners’ fall open practice on Aug. 23.
Venables undecided on next year’s receivers coach
Venables is undecided on whether L’Damian Washington, OU’s interim receivers coach, will keep his position full-time next season, but nonetheless, has been proud of the 31-year-old’s progression.
Washington entered the 2022 season with one season of experience as a college position coach, coaching receivers at Southern University in 2021. He was originally hired to Oklahoma’s staff as an offensive analyst, but was thrusted into a difficult position following longtime assistant Cale Gundy’s resignation.
“LD has done a fantastic job,” Venables said Wednesday. “I am incredibly proud of him. As you said, (he was) thrown into a very difficult situation. I have always said, you stay ready, so you don't have to get ready. It is better to be prepared for an opportunity that may never come, as opposed to never being ready for an opportunity when it does come.”
Washington was able to maintain receivers who committed during Gundy’s tenure, eventually signing four-stars Jaquaize Pettaway and Keyon Brown. He also landed a pledge from four-star Anthony Evans, who eventually flipped in November and signed with Georgia during the early signing period.
Some have speculated that Malcolm Kelly, TCU’s receivers coach since 2019 and a former Oklahoma wideout from 2005-08, could possibly be a target. If OU and Kelly were to reunite, it would likely be after the College Football Playoff, where the Horned Frogs are set to play Michigan on Dec. 31.
Nonetheless, Washington will coach the Sooners’ receivers at least once more, when they take on Florida State.
Venables praised how the former Missouri standout has commanded the position group this season.
“He is a relationship-driven guy, so it wasn't like he had to get to know everybody all of a sudden, both staff and certainly the players,” Venables said. “There were bridges already built and trust that is critically important when you are running a room and developing the trust of the players.
“I think he has done a great job both on and off the field this season.”
Signees at practice
Four early-enrollee freshmen from the 2023 recruiting class were confirmed to have traveled with the team to get practice reps before moving to Norman for the spring semester.
Four-star defensive lineman Derrick LeBlanc, three-star running back Kalib Hicks, three-star defensive lineman Ashton Sanders and preferred walk-on running back Chapman McKown were all with the Sooners to get a preview of college football.
Venables said all their early enrollees were invited, but many couldn’t come due to “obvious reasons,” alluding to the holiday season. He also noted that to come practice early, players had to forgo their postseason all-star game/
“That was fun, to get them, just to be able to pull the curtain back for them,” Venables said. “Give them exposure to what to expect, get our players to get their arms around them and welcome them. Helping them in their transition.
“That was a lot of fun for us as a staff to be able to watch these guys we have been recruiting relentlessly the last several months, and to be able to have them here as part of the bowl experience is really cool. … One of our guys wasn't able to play in the All-Star game because of injury. He just chose to come hang out with his new teammates. So, it was really cool.”
While early-enrollees will have to wait until the 2023 spring game to suit up for the first time in a game setting, the extra snaps could be beneficial for their future development.
“For us, (we) didn't necessarily need to see anything from them,” Venables said. “Get them exposure from fundamentals and how we practice, how we prepare, what the Bowl experience is like and transitioning relationship-wise with their teammates. I thought it is a cool thing for them to be able to experience. It is more about them and their experience than it was for us as a coaching staff.
Sooners celebrate after the game against OSU on Nov. 19.
How important is winning the bowl game?
Despite Oklahoma’s .500 results in the regular season, Venables doesn’t believe the importance of finishing 2022 with a win would be any different if his team’s record was 11-1 rather than 6-6.
Venables also explained that bowl time is “a season of its own” that has the potential to — but doesn’t always — create momentum.
As an example, he said, look at the 2014 Russell Athletic Bowl in Orlando, where he coached Clemson’s defense in a 40-6 demolition of OU. While the Sooners disappointed with an 8-5 finish that season, in 2015, they surged to a College Football Playoff rematch with the Tigers.
“You don't prepare any different. You don't look at it any different. You don't invest any different,” Venables said. “I don't want to our program and players to play to a record, to a bowl venue, to an opponent, to a scoreboard, to home or to away, whether it's a playoff or it's not a playoff, this is a meaningless game and all that.
“The locker room doesn't ever look at it that way, or at least the locker room we are trying to build for the long haul. Something that has longevity and sustainability.”
Always focused on the long term trajectory of his program, Venables has tried to keep his message consistent even as OU has weathered growing pains in his first season at the helm.
“You play and compete and perform and have expectations that are built around a standard,” Venables said. “Whatever those standards are for you and your program. That is our focus, and it is always incredibly important.
“You fight and prepare and work for victory. That's what it is all about. And when you don't experience that, when you come up short, man, it is incredibly disappointing. For us to try to build momentum and try to build this team the right way, this is another step and another opportunity in doing so.”
Editor’s Note: OU Daily’s reporting on the Cheez-It Bowl is being produced remotely from Norman.
