These can feel like grasping at straws sometimes, but in this case, I really think Jacob Jordan can be the difference for the OU passing game. Deion Burks probably isn’t going to play. Jalil Farooq has already been downgraded to questionable after he gave it a try two weeks ago at Mizzou. The return of those two players — for better or worse — did almost nothing for the offense in Columbia. Meanwhile, as the coaching staff inserted their stars back into the lineup, it came at the expense of Jordan, the true freshman walk-on who had blossomed in a three-week stretch, catching six passes for 86 yards against South Carolina, six for 38 and a touchdown at Ole Miss and three for 36 against Maine. At Mizzou? Jordan got to play one snap and was relegated to the end of the bench. OU defenders say he’s a frustrating player to cover because he runs such precise routes and catches almost everything. Also, when Jackson Arnold was benched and running the scout team, he developed some chemistry with Jordan. The Sooner staff would be wise to utilize him against the Crimson Tide.
— John E. Hoover
Alright, a Butkus Award semifinalist and the heartbeat of Oklahoma’s football team is probably too high-profile to qualify as “under the radar,” but it’s Senior Night and I’m going to bend the rules. Stutsman was everywhere against Missouri, totaling 19 tackles and preventing the Tigers from having much of a rushing attack at all. He’s going to say all the right things, but Stutsman’s final game on Owen Field means a great deal to him and his family, and I expect we’ll see another fantastic outing from the talismanic linebacker. And Oklahoma will need it. Jalen Milroe’s ability on the ground makes Alabama’s entire offensive operation go. The teams that have had success bottling him up, Vanderbilt and Tennessee, were able to upend the Crimson Tide. Any path to a shock OU victory runs through a night to remember for Stutsman — something he’s completely capable of on Saturday.
— Ryan Chapman
Even though Saturday marks Senior Day in Norman, the Sooners will be leaning heavily on a true freshman against the Crimson Tide. Coming off a career-high 56 yards on nine carries against Missouri, running back Xavier Robinson said he’s burning his redshirt seems to be in line for an increased share of the team’s carries this week when Alabama comes to town. If the Oklahoma City product has another strong performance, it could be enough to spark Oklahoma’s offense and keep the Sooners in contention against a formidable opponent who has been able to light up the scoreboard this season.
— Randall Sweet
The Sooners will need explosive plays to have a chance to take down Alabama. With receiver Deion Burks injured and sidelined again, the speedy Brenen Thompson might be OU’s best chance at a big play. Thompson has reached the end zone twice this season, and the last time was a 54-yard touchdown connection with Jackson Arnold, proving what Thompson is capable of if he and Arnold get the time they need. Alabama might also overlook the 5-foot-9 receiver and focus on a bigger threat like Jalil Farooq, possibly freeing Thompson, if even for one big play.
— Dekota Gregory
Oklahoma’s wide receiver room has been a hot topic of conversation all season long. The Sooners have been banged up and the passing game has been extremely quiet. Whether it’s the quarterback spot, the offensive line, or the short handed receiver group, it’s been an all-around failure. Jalil Farooq has been injured for most of the season, but returned to the lineup against Missouri two weeks ago. He was expected to have a breakout campaign, but injuries have hampered his time on the field. Farooq looked rusty in his first week back, and it looked like he might not fully trust his foot yet. With a bye week in the past, this is the time for Farooq to make a difference, though. Oklahoma will desperately need him with no other starting receivers healthy, and could force feed him early and often.
— Ross Lovelace
NORMAN, Oklahoma — The stage was set for Oklahoma. Heck, the Sooners earned the right to set it. This was supposed to be the ushering in of a new era of postseason football for the No. 8 team in the country that had won 10 games in what was one of the toughest schedules this year.
No. 9 Alabama was even one of those teams that Oklahoma beat on its way to earning this spot. And Saturday night, all was going well for the Sooners. It was going so well, in fact, that after the first quarter, some Oklahoma fans might’ve peeked at flights and hotel rates for the Rose Bowl from inside Memorial Stadium.
And then the Alabama Crimson Tide curled and rolled the Sooners, 34-24, and are headed to Pasadena. After opening with 17 unanswered points, Oklahoma collapsed under the weight of that wave, becoming the only team in College Football Playoff history to blow a 17-point lead. And now, the Sooners have done it twice — before Saturday, in 2018 against Georgia.
[Best Teams in the College Football Playoff Era: Creating the Ultimate 12-team CFP]
Here are my takeaways from Alabama’s College Football Playoff first-round victory against Oklahoma on Saturday:
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: Zabien Brown #2 of the Alabama Crimson Tide stiff-arms John Mateer #10 of the Oklahoma Sooners during the second quarter during the 2025 College Football Playoff first-round game on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
Crimson Tide quarterback Ty Simpson is an avid reader and listener of college football news. Following the largest comeback win in Alabama postseason history, Simpson took a moment to facetiously thank media members for choosing Oklahoma to win on Saturday night.
“I guess we can thank you guys for that,” an emboldened Simpson said. “You guys kind of wrote us off in a sort of way. So I appreciate that.”
After building a three-score lead, the Sooners watched the Crimson Tide recover a fumbled punt, pick off Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer and return it 50 yards to the end zone — all before their First Team All-American kicker Tate Sandell missed not one but two field goals in the final minutes to solidify the worst collapse in College Football Playoff history.
Meanwhile, the Alabama Crimson Tide will prepare to take on No. 1 Indiana in the Rose Bowl for the CFP quarterfinal game. This team that punches back and played its best football with its back against the wall is one that the Hoosiers must prepare for on New Year’s Day.
[College Football Playoff Predictions: First-Round Winners to The National Champion]
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: John Mateer #10 of the Oklahoma Sooners is hit by Deontae Lawson #0 of the Alabama Crimson Tide during the first quarter during the College Football Playoff first-round game on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
The Crimson Tide began down — just like they did against Georgia in the SEC championship game. But the last three quarters of Saturday’s game demonstrated Alabama to be just who it says it is: the kind of team that can open with a loss to a bad Florida State and also be the first team in six years to walk into Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia, and come out with a win.
DeBoer’s task now is to find a way to make certain that the team that showed up at Georgia earlier this season and at Oklahoma in the first round is the same one against the Hoosiers. Linebacker Deontae Lawson said that’s his job too. But Bama’s best trait isn’t one that shows itself until it’s in a fight for its life.
“Man, I just think we’re a resilient team,” Lawson said. “And even though we were down 17-0, we didn’t really look at the scoreboard. Coach DeBoer always says, ‘Keep playing the game. The game will come back to you.’ … We just keep fighting.”
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: Head coach Brent Venables of the Oklahoma Sooners speaks to an official during the fourth quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
Let’s look at the bigger ones:
These are blunders. Errors that aren’t forced but self-inflicted. It’s difficult to win any game with those kinds of mistakes on your drive chart. It’s nearly impossible in a game of this magnitude, against a team as talented and as resilient as the Crimson Tide.
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA: Keon Keeley #31 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates after defeating the Oklahoma Sooners in the College Football Playoff first-round game. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Oklahoma usually plays 50 Cent’s “Many Men” before the start of the fourth quarter. In an attempt to make a statement for its first CFP game at Owen Field, the Sooners brought the rapper himself out onto the field to perform the song for fans in a Hard to Kill Hoodie.
“I didn’t know it was live,” DeBoer said.
“I didn’t know who 50 Cent was,” Simpson said, “but I know that song.”
“We play that song at practice on Fridays,” Lawson said.
RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him @RJ_Young.
Hello college football fans, and welcome to The Athletic’s live coverage of the 2025 College Football Playoff!
Yes, after a 2025 season full of an incredible amount of twists, turns, controversy and pure chaos, the second edition of the 12-team College Football Playoff gets underway tonight. Our opening matchup is a battle of blue-bloods whose first meeting this season contributed to that chaos, as No. 9 Alabama takes on No. 8 Oklahoma in Norman.
Follow along for live pregame build-up and the latest news, play-by-play updates and real-time analysis from The Athletic’s college football staff!
The College Football Playoff gets underway Friday night as Alabama heads to Norman to take on Oklahoma. But to ESPN’s Michael Wilbon, there’s even more at stake for Crimson Tide coach Kalen DeBoer.
DeBoer’s name has been the subject of rumors throughout the offseason in the coaching carousel. Most recently, he received questions about the opening at Michigan following Sherrone Moore’s firing for cause, though he made it clear he intends to be at Alabama in 2026.
However, Wilbon didn’t sound as convinced. He predicted Alabama would not only lose to Oklahoma on Friday night, but DeBoer would also be on a flight to Ann Arbor to take the Michigan job afterward.
“Let me tell you about … two schools that could be in the coaching carousel after [Friday night],” Wilbon said Thursday on Pardon The Interruption. “Because when Alabama loses to Oklahoma – let me say it again, when Alabama loses to Oklahoma – the coach of Alabama, half the people in the state will want to run him out. And he’ll be on the carousel – oh, wait, that’s a G5 being flown to Ann Arbor, Mich., where he has said, ‘Oh, no. I ain’t got no interest in that.’ He’ll have interest [Friday night].
“And then, Alabama will be in the coaching carousel because they’ll be looking for a coach. … The Alabama coach is going to have a job-on-the-line situation in 24 hours and then, headed to Michigan once he loses. And then, Alabama’s looking. Then, what are you going to say?”
During a press conference this week ahead of the College Football Playoff opener, Kalen DeBoer was directly asked if he intended to be Alabama’s head coach next season. He responded, “Yes.”
Earlier in that press conference, DeBoer received a question about the rumors surrounding him. He again spoke highly of his tenure at Alabama so far and made it clear he’s happy in Tuscaloosa.
“A lot of the same things I said before, a couple weeks ago, when asked really the same question, just feel completely supported,” DeBoer said. “My family loves living here. Just all the things that we continue to build on, love the progress. Haven’t talked with anyone, no plans of talking with anyone. So just, I think that’s a lot of what I said a couple weeks ago, and continues to be the same thing.
“Feel strong about it. And our guys, if there’s been any distraction, I haven’t seen it, haven’t felt it. I’m really proud of the way they’ve handled whatever noise is out there. And again, we probably all season long, have dealt with enough noise to where it wouldn’t surprise me on how they handle this.”
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