Pittsburgh transfer quarterback Davis Beville’s mantra is to always stay ready, and he was fully prepared when he received his first snaps with Oklahoma against UTEP on Saturday.
Beville didn’t attempt a pass but he orchestrated a nine-play fourth quarter drive that resulted in a field goal. Although he rushed just once for four yards last week, he’s likely to see more action Saturday when the Sooners face Kent State.
“Definitely running out of that tunnel the first time, clearing through that smoke and just seeing 85,000 plus was just awesome,” Beville said of his OU debut. “It's nothing like I've ever experienced before. I've had that many people cheering against me, but definitely not for me.
“I wanted to sling it around a little bit, but got my nose dirty a little bit on that run, and I'm always ready to go.”
Beville was Pittsburgh’s third-string passer behind starter Kenny Pickett and backup Nick Patti for most of last season. However, Pickett opted out of the Peach Bowl in December for NFL Draft preparation and Patti broke his collarbone in the first quarter of the game. Despite his best friend going down with a severe injury, Beville was ready for action against Michigan State.
He completed 14-of-18 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown, but the Spartans defeated the Panthers 31-21 after he threw a pick-six interception with 22 seconds remaining. After Pitt picked up Southern California transfer Kedon Slovis in the offseason, Beville decided to enter the transfer portal.
“I'd say it was huge for me,” Beville said of playing the Peach Bowl despite the loss. “God works in mysterious ways and obviously the game didn't go how I wanted it to. It finished with the worst possible outcome. So I never thought I'd end up here and if the game would have gone differently, maybe (I wouldn’t have). So I'm just blessed to be here and that experience on the field was definitely big too just for being ready.”
Beville took his official visit to Norman and had two dinners with offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby after Pitt finished spring practice. He liked the similarities between Lebby’s up-tempo offense and the system he ran in high school and found OU to be the home he was looking for.
“I knew this was kind of the best spot for me to grow not only as a football player but also as a great man,” Beville said. “Coach (Brent) Venables, obviously, being from Clemson, I'd known him growing up. I played against both of his sons in high school. So it was just kind of the whole family atmosphere of it. It kind of made the decision very easy.”
Lebby reminded Beville to always be ready, which is the redshirt junior’s goal this season as he balances graduate student online classes with backing up starter Dillon Gabriel. Fortunately, he has already earned Lebby’s trust as OU’s top reserve passer and quickly gelled with the rest of the quarterback room.
“Those guys are friends I'll have for life, no doubt,” Beville said. “Just kind of starting in the beginning of the summer we had the DimeTime Retreat that Dillon set up, so it's been awesome. We've kind of grown as close as you can possibly be. It's like brothers already.”
Freshman running back Jovantae Barnes during the home opener against UTEP on Sept. 3.
Barnes maintains tight bond with Murray
Jovantae Barnes always wanted to attend OU. Though he was entering decision-making time in late 2021 and Lincoln Riley left Norman for USC, Barnes stayed true to becoming a Sooner because of his strong relationship with running backs coach DeMarco Murray.
Barnes, a four-star recruit in the 2022 class, per 247Sports’ Composite rankings, announced his commitment to Oklahoma on Jan. 2 at the Under Armour All-American Game, although he secretly signed with the program a few weeks prior.
OU, which fought off a late push from Riley’s Trojans and Florida State, kept its third-best recruit of the 2022 cycle due to Murray’s connection with Barnes.
“It’s been amazing,” Barnes said of working with Murray, a fellow Las Vegas native. “He’s been an amazing leader, amazing coach. He’s kind of like a big brother. And he’s just somebody I feel like — I wouldn’t ask for nobody else. It was an amazing choice. And he’s been teaching me things (like) how to be a man. (He’s teaching me) not only about football. I feel like he was a life choice, not only a football choice.
“The best choice I made in my life.”
Barnes, a freshman, made his regular season debut last Saturday against the Miners. He had four carries for 25 yards, and flashed the burst that made him a highly-touted prospect with a 15-yard rush late in the fourth quarter.
The 6-foot, 200-pounder also compared his running style to Murray, who was named the NFL’s offensive player of the year in 2014 and attended OU from 2006-10.
“I feel like ever since recruitment, I knew I wanted to come to OU,” Barnes said. “During my (official visits), schools, they get mixed around (and) kind of make it harder for me, stressful. But in the back of my head, I always knew the running backs coach I wanted to be coached by was DeMarco. I just felt like he wanted me to be his protege and you can see some of his playstyle in me and I felt like it was kind of a no brainer.”
Barnes sits behind senior Eric Gray, redshirt junior Marcus Major and sophomore Tawee Walker on Oklahoma’s official depth chart, but received more carries than Walker did.
One of the backs Barnes sits ahead of is fellow freshman Gavin Sawchuk, who was the Sooners’ No. 2-ranked prospect in the 2022 cycle. Since Barnes early-enrolled in the spring, and Sawchuk arrived in Norman ahead of the fall semester, the two have developed a relationship by helping each other adjust to college football.
“I feel like we teach each other different stuff,” Barnes said of Sawchuk, a fellow four-star recruit. “I mean, obviously we have two different games, and I feel like we’re really close. We always conversate on and off the field, and we really just teach each other stuff.
“This is gonna be a real duo in the future.”
Redshirt sophomore kicker Zach Schmit during the home opener against UTEP on Sept. 3.
Schmit makes starting debut
Oklahoma kicker Zach Schmit began his second season by drilling six extra points and a 22-yard field goal to give the Sooners a 45-13 lead to end the game.
The score was just Schmidt’s second career make after he notched a 46-yarder against Western Carolina last season. Schmidt, a redshirt sophomore from Oklahoma City, said his experience kicking behind Gabe Brkic last season helped him earn the starting job over freshman Gavin Marshall.
“Being behind Gabe really helped me out the past two years, I was able to go against him and just continue to get better as a kicker and person each and every day,” Schmit said. “So coming into this fall camp and going against Gavin … the battle was really good. It was really fun though. It's cool now to be the starting guy … and I'm excited for it. I was a little nervous to start out, but it's been good. Now the jitters are out and I'm ready to go.”
The Bishop McGuinness High School standout’s nerves went away quickly after running out of the tunnel in front of 83,173 fans as the starter for the first time. He said he dreamed of being the No. 1 option on the biggest stage since he was a kid.
Schmit also noted one of the most important things in his development as a kicker is having a short memory. While he hasn’t missed a kick in a game yet, when it inevitably happens, Schmit is ready to handle it.
‘You've got to have confidence in yourself,” Schmit said. “That's the main thing. If you don't have confidence in yourself, it's never going to end well. So I just always know to tell myself, I'm ready. I've done it 1,000 times, I come out here and kick in practice. Everything's fine. I know what to do. Just let the fundamentals and technique take over.”
