ESPN's biggest area of concern for the Sooners isn't really an issue
While Oklahoma added immediate impact players like John Mateer and Jaydn Ott to give the Sooners' offense a boost, there's still a question about the offensive line and tight end. ESPN's Chris Low believes tight end could be the one position that trips up the Oklahoma Sooners in 2025.
More: Oklahoma Sooners 2025 preview: Who will start at tight end for the OU in 2025?
While who starts at tight end may still be a mystery, even if it's just average, it won't impact Oklahoma's season that much.
Tight end wasn't great last year, but it was far from the biggest problem. Offensive line play, wide receiver health, and quarterback were far bigger issues. Bauer Sharp was relied upon in a greater capacity than what everyone intended, with the Sooners' top five wide receivers out for large portions of the season.
In 2023, tight end wasn't great when Austin Stogner returned for his last hurrah in college football. However, the Sooners' offense was still really good, finishing in the top five in the nation in scoring offense.
Tight end matters. But if everything else on the offense is functioning well, in particular offensive line and quarterback, it won't matter as much what's happening at tight end. The Sooners haven't needed great tight end play over the years to have success on offense but it can't be a negative. The trio of Will Howard, John Locke, and Carson Kent should be able to provide passable tight end play with upside if they're not the focal point in the passing game. Jaren Kanak has a lot of upside athletically, but he's new to the position.
Oklahoma threw numbers at the position, hoping that the competition throughout the offseason would answer the question. Time will tell what OU has at tight end in the fall, but given the improvements they've made on the roster elsewhere, Huggins, Kent, and Locke won't be the reason Oklahoma fails to achieve its goals in 2025.
The biggest area of concern for the Sooners is actually along the offensive line. They've added talent in Derek Simmons, Jake Maikkula, Luke Baklenko, Michael Fasusi, and Ryan Fodje while retaining all of their key linemen from 2024. There were numerous issues in 2024. If the offensive line had been better, those issues wouldn't have been as magnified. If Oklahoma fixes its line, the Sooners will be a problem in the SEC. If it's more of the same, it could be another long year for the Sooners.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.
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