Oklahoma
Baker Mayfield vs. Jalen Hurts: Oklahoma football QBs meet in 2024 NFL playoffs
Former Oklahoma football stars Baker Mayfield and Jalen Hurts will be rivals Monday when Tampa Bay visits Philadelphia in the NFC wild-card round of the NFL playoffs.
The two did not play at Oklahoma at the same time, but both were part of the Sooners’ three-year run of Heisman Trophy finalists: Mayfield won in 2017; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray won in 2018; and Hurts finished runner-up in 2019.
REQUIRED READING: Lincoln Riley like ‘proud father’ ahead of Jalen Hurts vs. Baker Mayfield NFL playoff clash
Mayfield, who was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2018, spent four seasons there. This is his first season with Tampa Bay (9-8), passing for a career-high 4,044 yards, with 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He had a disappointing 2022, when he went 1-5 for the Carolina Panthers, was waived, then claimed by the Los Angeles Rams, where he went 1-3.
Hurts, who played one season at Oklahoma after transferring from Alabama, was drafted by the Eagles in 2020. He was the NFL MVP last season and led the Eagles to the Super Bowl. This season, he has thrown for 3,853 yards with 23 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, and rushing for 605 yards and 15 TDs.
This will be the third time Mayfield and Hurts have encountered each other in the NFL, with Hurts beating Mayfield 25-11 in Week 3 this season. Mayfield was with the Browns in 2020 when they defeated the Eagles 22-17, but Hurts was not the quarterback in that game, and in fact had just one rush for 6 yards.
Here’s a look at Oklahoma’s Heisman stretch from 2017 to 2019 that featured Mayfield and Hurts:
More: Which OU football players have won the Heisman Trophy award?
Oklahoma success with Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts
With former coach Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma had a three-year stretch with some of the best offenses in the history of college football.
Mayfield won the Heisman over Stanford’s Bryce Love and Louisville’s Lamar Jackson, with 732 first-place votes, sixth most all-time.
Hurts transferred to Oklahoma for the 2019 season after Tua Tagovailoa asserted himself as the Crimson Tide starter. Under Riley, Hurts was second in Heisman voting to LSU’s Joe Burrow, who had the second-most first-place votes all-time (841). Hurts received 12 first-place votes and finished with 762 points, ahead of Ohio State’s Justin Fields (747).
More: OU football co-defensive coordinator Zac Alley ‘a winner’ who brings ‘aggressive defense’
Baker Mayfield college stats
- Career stats: 1,026 of 1,497 (68.5%) for 14,607 yards with 131 touchdowns to 30 interceptions; 404 rushes for 1,083 yards with 22 touchdowns
- 2013 (Texas Tech): 218 of 340 (64.1%) for 2,315 yards with 12 touchdowns to nine interceptions; 88 rushes for 190 yards with three touchdowns
- 2015 (Oklahoma): 269 of 395 (68.1%) for 3,700 yards with 36 touchdowns to seven interceptions; 141 rushes for 405 yards with seven touchdowns
- 2016: 254 of 358 (70.9%) for 3,965 yards with 40 touchdowns to eight interceptions; 78 rushes for 177 yards with six touchdowns
- 2017: 285 of 404 (70.5%) for 4,627 yards with 43 touchdowns to six interceptions; 97 rushes for 311 yards with five touchdowns
Baker Mayfield NFL stats
- Career stats: 1,750 for 2,825 (61.9%) for 20,332 yards with 130 touchdowns to 74 interceptions; 251 rushes for 823 yards with seven touchdowns
- 2018 (Cleveland): 310 for 486 (63.8%) for 3,725 yards with 27 touchdowns to 14 interceptions; 39 rushes for 131 yards
- 2019: 317 of 534 (59.4%) for 3,827 yards with 22 touchdowns to 21 interceptions; 28 rushes for 141 yards with three interceptions
- 2020: 305 of 486 (62.8%) for 3,563 yards with 26 touchdowns to eight interceptions; 54 rushes for 165 yards with one touchdown
- 2021: 253 of 418 (60.5%) for 3,010 yards with 17 touchdowns to 13 interceptions; 37 rushes for 134 yards with one touchdown
- 2022 (Carolina and Los Angeles Rams): 201 of 335 (60%) for 2,163 yards with 10 touchdowns to eight interceptions; 31 rushes for 89 yards with one touchdown
- 2023 (Tampa Bay): 364 of 566 (64.3%) for 4,044 yards with 28 touchdowns to 10 interceptions; 62 rushes for 163 yards and a touchdown
More: OU football: Sooners’ offensive line overhaul continues with SEC on horizon
Jalen Hurts college stats
- 2016 (Alabama): 240 of 382 (62.8%) for 2,780 yards with 23 touchdowns to nine interceptions; 191 rushes for 954 yards with 13 touchdowns
- 2017: 154 of 254 (60.6%) for 2,081 yards with 17 touchdowns to one interception; 154 rushes for 855 yards with eight touchdowns
- 2018: 51 of 70 (72.9%) for 765 yards with eight touchdowns to two interceptions; 36 rushes for 167 yards with two touchdowns
- 2019 (Oklahoma): 237 of 340 (69.7%) for 3,851 yards with 32 touchdowns to eight interceptions; 233 rushes for 1,298 yards with 20 touchdowns
Jalen Hurts NFL stats
- 2020 (Philadelphia): 77 of 148 (52%) for 1,061 yards with six touchdowns to four interceptions; 63 rushes for 354 yards with three touchdowns
- 2021: 265 of 432 (61.3%) for 3,144 yards with 16 touchdowns to nine interceptions; 139 rushes for 789 yards with 10 touchdowns
- 2022: 306 of 460 for 3,701 yards with 22 touchdowns to six interceptions; 165 rushes for 760 yards with 13 touchdowns
- 2023: 352 of 538 (65.8%) for 3,858 yards with 23 touchdowns to 15 interceptions; 157 rushes for 605 yards with 15 touchdowns
New Iowa State wrestling coach Brent Metcalf outlines vision for team
New Iowa State wrestling coach Brent Metcalf outlines vision for team
Iowa State wrestling’s first commitment of the Brent Metcalf era will be a transfer portal addition.
The Cyclones added Oklahoma State transfer Brayden Thompson, who announced his commitment on April 18 via Instagram. Thompson is a one-time NCAA qualifier at the 2024 NCAA Championships, doing so as a true freshman. He redshirted in 2024-25, but competed in open tournaments at 184 pounds and was 9-0. He did not wrestle a match in 2025-26 and will have at least two years of eligibility remaining.
Out of high school, Thompson was ranked the No. 3 pound-for-pound wrestler and No. 1 at 182 pounds in the 2023 recruiting class by Flowrestling. He also won Powerade and Ironman titles, two of the more prestigious high school tournaments in the nation. Assuming Thompson returns to 184 pounds where he last wrestled, he should fill in nicely as a potential replacement for Isaac Dean after his graduation.
Thompson is Iowa State’s first transfer portal addition after several departures, including Anthony Echemendia and Christian Castillo, who also entered the portal.
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
NORMAN — The Oklahoma Sooners liked their wide receiver room a year ago. They want 2026 to be even better.
Isaiah Sategna’s return helps that desire. Earning experienced pass catchers Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone via the transfer portal gives you added play makers. But after the Sooners Spring Game on Saturday, an unlikely hero emerged.
When Jahsiear Rogers flipped from Penn State to Oklahoma last December, he drew the usual excitement that comes with a new commitment. But few expected him to climb the depth chart this quickly, even with the injuries that hit Emmett Jones’ room.
Rogers did just that and more on Saturday. He led all pass catchers with five receptions for 70 yards in Oklahoma’s annual Red/White game.
“I knew it was time to showcase,” Rogers said after the game. “It was amazing to see the fans and get used to the OU way. I’m a playmaker. They really want to put the ball in playmakers hands. I pretty much knew I had to lead the white team.”
Rogers got the ball rolling early. On the second offensive play for the white team, backup quarterback Whitt Newbauer rolled to his right wide, then stopped and looked towards the middle of the field where he saw Rogers running open. Newbauer connected with Rogers for a 39-yard gain.
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With Rogers on the white team, he is running against (most of) Oklahoma’s starting defense. As fate would have it, on that 39-yard reception, Rogers beat his favorite teammate to compete against — Reggie Powers.
“He is just a leader, good guy,” Rogers said of Powers. “Me and him go after it every day in practice. Reggie is strong. When I come at him, I have to really come at him.”
Rogers’ big play over Powers was the second-longest catch of the spring game — Sategna’s 50-yard reception that appeared to be a touchdown before coaches pulled it back to set up a red-zone rep. The other four catches weren’t flashy, but they were important in their own way, and Rogers looked like he belonged on the field.
“I love it. As long as I can get the ball, I can be me. I love it,” Rogers said. “When I am on the field, I am ready to go. I am ready to be a playmaker.”
The season is still months away, and Rogers hasn’t earned a spot high on the depth chart yet. A strong spring and an encouraging Red/White Game can only lead to early playing time if he carries that momentum into summer and fall camp.
More experienced players will return from injury and receivers who’ve been in the program for a few years will have an extra leg-up.
But Rogers is taking everything in stride and leaving no stone unturned in his development.
“Just learning from the older guys,” Rogers said. “Manny Choice, Isaiah Sategna, Trell Harris, Mackenzie Alleyne. Really all of them. We lean on each other, learn from each other. That is kind of how our room is.”
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The Oklahoma baseball team is back in the mix and trending upward.
After a rough few weeks in Southeastern Conference play, the 14th-ranked Sooners have won three of their last four games to get to .500 at just beyond the halfway point of the league slate. Friday’s 9-6 win over Missouri allowed Oklahoma to move to 8-8, tied with three other teams for eighth in the standings.
Friday’s win wasn’t truly that close, even. OU took a 9-3 lead into the ninth before Mizzou made it somewhat interesting with three runs in the frame. Two of them came with two outs, though, and Mason Bixby induced a groundout with the bases empty to hold on.
The large edge came via a home run-happy night. The Sooners popped four over the wall at Kimrey Family Stadium, including three in a four-run seventh inning that gave OU a four-run lead.
Jason Walk, who hit one of the four homers, had the best day at the plate. He went 2 for 5 with the shot, three RBIs and a run. Camden Johnson, who also homered, went 2 for 3 with a walk, a double and two runs, and Dasan Harris went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs, and three runs. Trey Gambill hit the Sooners’ other jack.
Oklahoma jumped out to a four-run lead in the second behind four hits and a walk. Missouri helped the Sooners out with an error that resulted in a bases-loaded situation and three unearned runs registered to Tigers starter Josh McDevitt.
The runs were more than enough for Oklahoma’s LJ Mercurius, who pitched six strong innings, giving up three runs on six hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.
Game 2 in the series is set for 4 p.m. Saturday and the finale will be played Sunday at 2 p.m., weather permitting.
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