Oklahoma closed the book on spring football in April, but that doesn’t mean the development process goes on ice throughout the summer. 

The next few months are crucial as OU’s strength coaches get another chance to shape the team while the players work with each other to continue to build chemistry. 

With no post-spring transfer portal window this season, every program across the country must look internally this summer to increase depth on the roster instead of to other rosters across the country. 

Here are five Sooners who could raise Oklahoma’s ceiling this fall with a productive summer leading up to fall camp.

DT Nigel Smith

David Stone and Jayden Jackson are going to be Todd Bates’ go-to guys at defensive tackle, but their absence in the spring allowed for players like Nigel Smith to get crucial reps throughout spring football. 

Smith, a converted defensive end hoping to have a breakout season at defensive tackle, was perhaps the biggest beneficiary. 

Injuries kept Smith from pushing for a spot in the rotation last year, but without Damonic Williams, Gracen Halton and Markus Strong, Smith projects to be one of the first names called upon behind Stone and Jackson. 

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables praised the “maturity” of OU’s defensive tackles, but Smith needs to build on the momentum from the spring to achieve his potential this fall. 

WR Trell Harris

Virginia transfer Trell Harris was one of the Sooners’ big offseason additions from the transfer portal. 

Harris underwent a cleanup procedure right before spring practice, however, which held him out of OU’s practices and the Spring Game. 

Quarterback John Mateer said Harris was always around, doing everything he could to learn the offense and build chemistry with his new quarterback in team meetings and from the sideline, but the summer will offer Harris the chance to get back out on the field and catch passes from Mateer, even if the duo is just battling air. 

Harris will have an uphill battle to fight. 

Last spring, Mateer had ample time to get on the same page with fellow transfer Isaiah Sategna, which led to Sategna emerging as Mateer’s favorite target and enjoying a career year. 

Harris is eager to prove that his 2025 campaign was no fluke, so he’ll want to hit the ground running in fall camp with Sategna, Parker Livingstone and the rest of Mateer’s targets.

LB James Nesta

Owen Heinecke’s victory over the NCAA means the Sooners have three experienced linebackers — Kip Lewis, Heinecke and Michigan transfer Cole Sullivan — but James Nesta’s development will be important for both 2026 and beyond. 

Lewis and Heinecke are entering their final seasons in Norman. Venables and inside linebackers coach Nate Dreiling will want to develop the next wave of linebackers, and it’s a position that the Sooners have been willing to play a large rotation in the past seasons. 

Nesta played in 13 contests last year, totaling four tackles, and like Smith, he was able to take a majority of the snaps in practice this spring with Heineicke awaiting the ruling in his injunction and Lewis playing the role of additional coach while younger players got to spur their development in practice. 

The third year in Venables’ defense has been a season where the light bulb has come on for many players, and Nesta coming on strong with a big summer and fall camp would only bolster OU’s options at the heart of its defense. 

TE Jack Van Dorselaer 

Like Nesta, tight end Jack Van Dorselaer is a player whose development could be important for 2026 and beyond. 

General manager Jim Nagy, Venables and offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle completely overhauled Oklahoma’s tight end room over the offseason. 

Florida veteran Hayden Hansen was brought in, as was Colorado State redshirt senior Rocky Beers, to work under new tight ends coach Jason Witten.

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OU also added Van Dorselaer, who earned a role in Tennessee’s offense last year as a freshman. 

Spring offered a clean slate for all, with the trio getting adjusted to a new school, a new offense, and a new position coach, but Van Dorselaer believes he can offer the Sooners much more than the five catches for 23 yards and one score that he gave the Vols in the passing game in 2025. 

The summer will offer Van Dorselaer more opportunity to dive further into the playbook and set himself up for a productive season that he can build on in 2027 and beyond as the Sooners’ veteran presence at tight end.

DB Jeremiah Newcombe

Jeremiah Newcombe is another Sooner who felt ready to contribute in 2025, but was forced to rehab an injury.

Now, Newcombe will be relied upon to help Reggie Powers provide depth at cheetah. 

Newcombe practiced throughout the spring with a blue non-contact jersey out of an abundance of caution, but the summer will provide a chance for Newcombe to get fully back into the swing of things so that when fall camp rolls around, he can play with the physicality that is demanded of every piece in a Venables defense. 

The Sooners need Newcombe to play a real role, too. 

Kendal Daniels is now an Atlanta Falcon, and while Powers is an experienced replacement, Venables will be looking to a handful of new players to mix and match with Powers to replace Daniels’ snaps. 

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