A much anticipated spring football season has officially begun for the Oklahoma Sooners. The Sooners will be back on the field going through drills and practices for the next five weeks with the annual Spring Game serving as the conclusion to the spring season.

There probably hasn’t been a spring season that is more anticipated than this one. OU is ushering in the beginning of the Brent Venables era after the unexpected departure of Lincoln Riley to USC the day after the Sooners Bedlam loss. Venables has been an hire that has been extremely well received for all Sooner fans and he is ready and willing to bring about some much needed culture changes to the program.

The Sooners will be looking for new players to step up across the board and fill the voids that have been left by departed players, be that to the NFL Draft or the transfer portal. The biggest holes to fill will be on defense. The Sooners lost a lot of experience and talent on that side of the ball after the conclusion of the 2021 season to the NFL Draft. However, Coach Venables has come in and assembled a great defensive coaching staff that knows how to coach great players and get them ready to play.

The Sooners also have the benefit of having some really high profile recruits coming in to play defense. Look for linebackers Jaren Kanak, Kobie McKinzie, and Kip Lewis to come in and make some noise during spring practices. I also like what the Sooners did recruiting the defensive backfield with Robert Spears-Jennings and Gentry Williams, two Tulsa area recruits.

OU also picked up some high profile defenders out of the transfer portal that are ready to make an immediate impact as well. I am intrigued to see what Jonah La’ulu, CJ Coldon, and Kani Walker can show during spring ball. All three of those guys have a ton of experience. So I wouldn’t be surprised if they begin to separate themselves as the leaders for what should be a new look OU defense.

The Sooners fell victim to the transfer portal during the off season on the offensive side of the ball. Quarterbacks Caleb Williams and Spencer Rattler transferred out out of the program along with star wide receiver Jadon Haselwood. However it wasn’t a completely grim outcome for the Sooners. OU picked up transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel to take the place of Caleb Williams and also picked up Nick Evers in the recruiting class. Wide receiver Theo Wease decided to pull his name out of the portal to return to the Sooners after OU announced the hiring of Brent Venables and new offensive coordinator, Jeff Lebby.

I think the biggest question mark for the Sooners on offense heading into the spring is how much will Dillon Gabriel bring to the team. He’s the guy that I will be keeping an eye on during these practices. He brings some high expectations due to the experience that he brings to the table. He is familiar with Jeff Lebby and the offense that he runs so he should be able to get into the fold nicely.

I believe receiver Marvin Mims is ready for a breakout season. He came in two years ago as a freshman with high expectations. While he hasn’t quite had a true breakout year yet, he has shown some impressive flashes that should have all sooner fans excited for this season. I don’t see the offense missing any steps in the first year with Jeff Lebby as the coordinator.

All in all, this should be a spring that answers a lot of questions that have come up throughout January and February. I expect we will hear a lot about which players break out and separate themselves. I do know that OU isn’t going to miss a beat in Venables’s first year. There is a standard here at Oklahoma to be the best and compete with the best. That isn’t going to go away or become lost in the coaching transition.