Kobie McKinzie had a rough start to his OU career.
The former consensus four-star recruit, who was touted as a top 10 linebacker in the nation by ESPN and Rivals, tore his groin in his first fall camp with the Sooners and missed the first half of his freshman season. In the five games he eventually appeared in, McKinzie’s opportunity was minimal, causing him to redshirt after not recording any tackles.
One year later, the redshirt freshman has seized his opportunity in a much bigger role.
“I've never taken my mind off of anything, and I've always lived in every moment,” McKinzie said. “If you do that, you always ultimately end up where you’re supposed to no matter what.”
Despite not receiving the start to his OU career as he had hoped, head coach Brent Venables took note of McKinzie’s maturity in facing adversity.
“I've been real proud of him,” Venables said. “His mental part of the game is actually really good. And he takes full responsibility. A lot of young guys, they don't want to look at the man in the mirror, and they allow themselves to beat themselves every day, or occasionally, and they let external factors affect them. But Kobe has got tremendous maturity when it comes to those things.
“He's one of the smartest linebackers we have.”
Venables, who stressed the importance of his linebacking core being the “backbone of the locker room,” has seen McKinzie bring it to fruition. He’s served as an example of Venables' vision for the development of his young linebacking core, consisting primarily of sophomores Jaren Kanak and Dasan McCullough, redshirt freshmen Kip Lewis and McKinzie and junior Danny Stutsman.
Furthermore, the growth he’s seen from McKinzie since last season has made him even more optimistic about the future of the group.
“He’d fall down a lot 10 months ago,” Venables said. “He's gotten quicker with his feet, with his balance, with his blitz timing and his ability to strike, and he's got tremendous upside to it. He's got a high, high ceiling still in front of him as well.
“He's a guy that comes in on his own a lot, is going to let you coach him hard and takes responsibility. (I’m) proud of him, as well as that entire group … They’re a reflection of the growth and maturity of our football team.”
After OU’s 31-24 win over BYU on Saturday, Stutsman credited McKinzie for his communication prior to the fumble the Sooners’ defense caused to seal the game. It showcased the growth McKinzie has had since the beginning of the season, where in eight games he recorded nine tackles, one for loss and two pass breakups.
McKinzie seldom saw playing time for a bulk of the season, recording just one tackle in the five games between OU’s win over Cincinnati on Sept. 23 and its loss to Kansas on Oct. 28. In the Sooners’ past three games, McKinzie has recorded 13 tackles, a pass breakup and a QB hurry.
There were moments when McKinzie doubted whether he’d have the production he initially envisioned when coming to OU. His belief, however, not only led him to the impact he’d had on the Sooners in recent weeks, but has left the door open for the production he could have down the road.
“That's human nature,” McKinzie said about if he doubted whether he’d see this much playing time. “... The belief of knowing that (with) the work you put in, you will ultimately have the output. I've just lived my life like that. I've known that I’ve done my deeds, I’m gonna reap what I’ve sown. I've been happy for everybody in every moment no matter what, never jealous of anybody. As a man, that's just that aspect of growing up.
“It's good that it's happening. It's not a surprise to me at all because I know I’ve put in that work for it.”
