Game of the week: No. 15 Michigan at No. 18 Oklahoma Our panel voted 13-1 in favor of Oklahoma. No homerism here. Nah. This is the top game in the country this weekend. All eyes are on Norman. Gameday is…
The 18th ranked Sooners kick off their 2025 campaign today at 5 pm in a non-conference match against the Illinois State Redbirds in Norman. The game will be televised on SEC Network+ and ESPN+.
The opponent isn’t the focus for most fans looking for a cleansing of the palette after a dismisal 6-7 season last year, concluded by an unrecognizable OU team that lost to Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth last December.
The focus will be on glimpses that this Sooners bunch is different than that. And there is reason to think they are.
Obviously the heralded Washington State transfer John Mateer at quarterback brings a seasoned leader to an offense that struggled in the last season. But it doesn’t stop there. Transfer wide receiver Isaiah Sategna III from Arkansas and running back Jadyn Ott hope to infuse energy in an offense that struggled, in part due to injuries and inexperience.
The Sooners enter year two of their SEC experience hopeful that a new QB, a healthier WR corps and an already strong defensive line will improve their chances against the same murderer’s row conference schedule in 2025.
It will be an important test for head coach Brent Venables who is on the hot seat in his fourth year at Oklahoma, after a disappointing 6-7 record last year and managing to win only two conference games.
Certainly the second game of the season at home against Michigan will set an early tone for OU; but, the real test comes in October when the Sooners face No. 3 Texas, go on the road against a stout No.13 South Carolina and then return to Norman to face No. 24 Ole Miss.