Despite being from down the road in Oklahoma and his brother already being a Sooner, Blake Griffin recently admitted that playing at OU wasn’t always part of his plans.

Now retired after a 13-year NBA career, Griffin was recently on “New Heights” podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce when he was asked if he always knew he was going to end up at Oklahoma during his recruitment process out of Oklahoma Christian School in nearby Edmond, where his dad was the head coach.

Blake Griffin tells Kelce Brothers he eyed other programs over OU

“It actually wasn’t,” Griffin said. “So my brother (Taylor) committed and played there his freshman year, and then they got a new coach. Kelvin Sampson left, there were some recruiting violations, they got this new coach. Honestly, I loved Kansas, I loved Florida. …

“And then I had like Duke and North Carolina on my list, but it was kind of just like a — it felt like it was a lifelong dream of Duke and North Carolina.”

Obviously Griffin ultimately did end up staying home in Oklahoma and the rest is history. He committed to the Sooners as a McDonald’s All-American and one of the greatest recruits OU has ever landed in men’s basketball at the start of Lon Kruger’s tenure.

As a freshman in 2007, Griffin immediately cracked the starting lineup and averaged 14.7 points and 9.1 rebounds a game while becoming First-Team All-Big 12. Despite being a potential lottery pick, Griffin chose to return to OU and helped lead the Sooners to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament and swept national individual awards. He was then the first overall pick the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2009 NBA Draft, where his brother, Taylor, was also drafted at No. 48.

“I wanted to go to a place where, A, my brother was there, it was close to home, my parents could come watch us play, and then also just that I wanted to go to a place where you felt like they really believed in you and you were gonna be the guy and you were gonna get the opportunity,” Griffin said. “And I’m so glad I did.”

NORMAN — Oklahoma’s game against Florida on Saturday unexpectedly turned into a bullpen game for the Sooners.

OU starter Cameron Johnson exited the contest after only one inning of work, forcing the Sooners’ relief pitchers to record the remaining 24 outs. The results from Oklahoma’s bullpen were mixed, as the No. 15 Sooners ultimately lost 10-5 to the No. 25 Gators.

In his lone inning, Johnson allowed back-to-back baserunners to open the game before retiring three Gators in a row. Johnson went back onto the mound before the second inning before meeting with coach Skip Johnson and one of OU’s trainers. The pitcher then departed from the mound and Michael Catalano — OU’s usual midweek starter — entered the game.

Catalano gave up a run on a sacrifice fly in the second inning before Caden McDonald hit a three-run home run in the third to give Florida its first lead of the game.

Trent Collier was the next man up and entered with two outs in the third. Collier made it just one inning and allowed Florida to score two runs, both of which were unearned.

Nick Wesloski, who replaced Collier, had the longest night on the mound for the Sooners. He retired the first 10 batters he faced before giving up a solo home run to McDonald. 

Nate Smithburg, Mason Bixby and Jaden Barfield were OU’s final three pitchers to take the mound, and they gave up three runs over the final two frames.

Offensively, the Sooners scored early but not often.

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Jaxon Willits got OU on the board in the first inning with a two-RBI double to give the Sooners an early advantage. Camden Johnson logged a two-out two-RBI single to shrink Florida’s lead from four runs to two runs.

Four of Oklahoma’s five runs, though, came from those two hits. Deiten Lachance hit a solo home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth for OU’s first run in five innings.

OU finished the game with eight knocks, and Johnson (3-for-4 with two RBIs) was the only Sooner with multiple.

For Florida, McDonald was the star. He went 4-for-5 with two home runs, two doubles and six RBIs.

Oklahoma’s loss on Saturday follows its 4-3 win over the Gators on Friday. The Sooners scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth to earn their comeback win.

The Sooners dropped to 30-15 overall and 12-11 in SEC with the loss, while Florida improved to 30-17 and 12-11.

Sunday’s rubber match between Oklahoma and Florida will begin at 2 p.m.

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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