Sooners on SI will spotlight ten players who need a big spring to solidify their place on the depth chart, improve and/or help Oklahoma build off its 2025 College Football Playoff momentum. Each day, we’ll break down one player’s background, progress, and what’s on the line as Brent Venables’ team takes shape during spring football.

Last season, Oklahoma was sort of forced into playing freshman tackle Michael Fasusi. His talent, coupled with the Sooners’ lack of established returning starters — who were healthy — allowed for the right situation for the young Fasusi to see the field as a starter.

Fasusi was later joined by fellow true freshman guard Ryan Fodje on the offensive line partially due to his budding talent but also injuries that forced Bill Bedenbaugh to shuffle guys around.

As the season wore on, Fasusi established himself as a solid starter while Fodje was inconsistent as he switched from guard to tackle and back to guard. Redshirt freshman Eddy Pierre-Louis came in during the second half of the season to establish a foundation for the future.

All to say, while OU feels significantly better about its offensive line situation heading into 2026, there’s still room for young players to establish themselves this spring — like incoming true freshman Deacon Schmitt.

The 6-5, 315-pound guard from Windsor, CO, has the physical tools you’d want in a player with a goal to see the field early. As an early enrollee, he will have the advantage of working under new strength and conditioning coach James Dobson to get physically ready to establish himself in the spring.

Schmitt was one of two offensive linemen (Noah Best being the other) to sign with the Sooners last December for the class of 2026. Per On3, Schmitt earned a high-4-star rating along with being a top-20 player at his position in the country. Both freshmen will have real chances to climb the two-deep this spring, but Schmitt’s physical tools give him the edge over Best.

More Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma lost Febechi Nwaiwu and Derek Simmons to graduation following 2025.

Depth pieces like Jacob Sexton (Oklahoma State), Luke Baklenko (Arizona State), Logan Howland (Virginia Tech), Jake Taylor (Iowa State), and Isaiah Autry-Dent (Mississippi State) all transferred out of the program.

General manager Jim Nagy grabbed former Arkansas starting right tackle E’Marrion Harris — who has the upper hand to take over for Simmons on the right side — as well as Caleb Nitta from Western Kentucky and Peyton Joseph of Georgia Tech. The latter two players appear to be depth or developmental additions.

If Schmitt can ascend up the depth chart thanks to a strong spring, it would be a welcome addition to a top-heavy offensive line unit.

While Fodje impressed at right guard and right tackle for a freshman, the young lineman still has a ways to go. Competition would only allow for a better product if Schmitt can push this spring.

Schmitt’s trajectory is not to supplant anyone on the offensive line, but merely to develop quickly to help rebuild Oklahoma’s offensive line back to its pre-2020 greatness.

OU hit it out of the park with their freshman offensive line additions last season. It hastened the pace of Bedenbaugh’s line, returning to the days of Creed Humphrey and Orlando Brown. But they’re not quite yet at the summit. They’ll need another season of young players like Schmitt thrusting themselves into the two-deep so the Sooners aren’t an ankle roll away from disaster.

This Sunday’s Super Bowl is widely recognized as the biggest day for legal sports betting, consistently shattering records in the billions.

Many fans in Oklahoma are expected to place wagers on the game, but the state itself will not see any of that revenue.

Capitol Reporter Haley Hetrick is examining the odds that sports betting could become legal in Oklahoma this year.

One bill could change everything

Only a handful of sports betting bills have been introduced at the state Capitol, but supporters say just one needs to pass to move Oklahoma forward.

Sen. Bill Coleman believes the state is close to legalizing sports betting and says he is ready to act.

“I think we’re first down and goal on sports betting in Oklahoma from about the six-yard line.”

Coleman says his perspective shifted after personally traveling out of state to place a wager.

“I took a drive to Wichita, Kansas, just south of there to the casino, to make a sports bet.”

That experience, he said, highlighted the money Oklahoma is losing to neighboring states.

“I realized we’re losing money in the state of Oklahoma. We’re losing it to out of state.”

Betting is already happening in Oklahoma

Supporters of legalization argue that sports betting is already taking place in Oklahoma, just not in a way that benefits the state.

Sports betting is one step closer to being legal in Oklahoma. Representative Ken Luttrell is back this year with gaming legislation after his bill failed last year, saying he’s hopeful the new bill will make it through this time around.

February 13, 2023 04:19 PM

2 min read

Advertisement

One example is Kalshi, an online prediction market where users can wager on outcomes ranging from sports to politics.

Users can even place wagers on the state’s next governor.

“You can do anything on this thing, and it’s perfectly legal. The state of Oklahoma gets zero revenue from Kalshi. The state of Oklahoma has no say in how it’s regulated,” Coleman said.

Kalshi and similar platforms operate as prediction markets, classifying their offerings as financial derivatives rather than sports betting. That distinction allows them to bypass state-level restrictions. Market data shows more than $2 billion is traded on Kalshi every week.

“The longer we let them entrench themselves into this market, the less money we’re going to be able to take in what sports betting does become legal in the state of Oklahoma.”

Multiple stakeholders, one major hurdle

Legalizing sports betting in Oklahoma involves more than lawmakers alone.

In addition to legislative approval and the governor’s signature, any plan must also align with existing gaming compacts involving 39 tribal nations.

The Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association said delays have been frustrating.

Chairman Matthew Morgan says each group involved has its own priorities. Customers want access similar to what exists in 39 other states, while lawmakers are focused on availability statewide.

“The longer it’s drawn out, it has been a little bit frustrating for us, through the Oklahoma Gaming Association, because, you know, we feel like we’ve been at the table and ready to have productive and respectful conversations,” Morgan said.

For tribal leaders, the key issue is ensuring any plan does not violate existing gaming compacts.

What legalization could look like

Under current proposals, only tribal nations would be eligible for sports betting licenses. Professional sports teams, such as the Oklahoma City Thunder, could participate only as partners.

Oklahoma Senate passes Bill 585, opening a path for the OKC Thunder to receive a sports betting license. The proposal estimates $20 million in annual revenue for the state.

March 25, 2025 10:07 PM

1 min read

Advertisement

“I think under our proposals, what we’ve advocated for, you would see the vandals, the DraftKings, the fanatics, the Caesars all come into state to partner with the tribal licensee,” Morgan said.

Morgan believes an agreement could still be reached during this legislative session, opening the door for legal sports betting by the end of 2026.

“I think that there are a couple of bills out there that I would tell you, let’s do 3 or 4 tweaks you were probably there on. I mean, the bones in the foundation are there in a good way. Just needs a few tweaks here and there from my perspective.”

The legislative path forward

Ultimately, supporters say it would take just one successful vote in the Senate to move the process forward.

Two bills are currently under consideration. House Bill 1047, known as the “original plan,” would allow tribal nations to offer retail and online sports betting, with the state receiving a 10% revenue fee. House Bill 1101 offers a referendum path, sending the decision to voters if the original plan fails or is vetoed.

Both proposals would allocate gaming revenue toward education, mental health services, and responsible gaming initiatives.

Oklahoma lawmakers are considering several plans to legalize sports betting, including tribal and state-run options.

Advertisement

February 13, 2025 05:45 PM

2 min read

House Bill 1484, aimed at expanding fentanyl awareness and prevention education in Oklahoma schools, is one vote away from becoming law.

Rain’s Law, authored by Oklahoma State Senator Darrell Weaver, was introduced after 19-year-old Rain Reece overdosed on an Xanax laced with fentanyl.

“I got a call the next day that they found her dead in bed, with her schoolwork still open on her computer and her dog beside her. And I’m like, what happened? Like, there’s just no way. I just talked to her,” said Karla Carlock, Reece’s mother.

Reece attended Cameron University, and Carlock said she suffered from depression.

Reece called her mother on a Friday night, saying she was struggling and wanted to get back into counseling and on medication.

“I said, okay, Rain, I’ll call on Monday when they open and see if we can get you in. And I told her, I said, you know, and God loves you and has big plans for your life,” said Carlock.

May 27, 2023, would be the last time Carlock would speak with her daughter.

Sen. Darrell Weaver said this is something that happens all too often.

“They may be thinking they’re just taking an Xanax or some type of, or the most mild opioid, but now they just don’t wake up because it’s been laced with this high-powered fentanyl,” added Weaver.

If passed, Rain’s Law would require school districts to educate students in grades 6-12 on fentanyl abuse.
It would cover topics such as:

• Prevention of abuse
• Addiction to fentanyl
• Awareness of local school and community resources
• Suicide prevention
• Information related to health and substance abuse.

“This bill, quite frankly, is just not overwhelming. It’s just saying, let’s get this education component in the schools so we can start our young people thinking about this and have an understanding the risks that they’re taking,” said Weaver.

In 2023, he said there were about 700 deaths due to fentanyl overdoses.

Weaver served in the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics for almost three decades and adds that most often people are not aware that they are taking something laced that could cost them their life.

In a press release Sen. Weaver put out last year, he said fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is 50 times stronger than heroin and up to 100 times stronger than morphine.

Rain’s Law has gone through the Education committee, which was the first step. It now sits on the floor of the Senate and is in need of one vote.