Oklahoma

Should the Oklahoma Sooners have a quarterback competition?

Published

1 year ago

November 13, 2024

Should the Oklahoma Sooners have a quarterback competition?

The Oklahoma Sooners are 10 games into the season and haven’t found a consistent answer at quarterback in 2024. That’s such an anomaly for OU Football, a place that features four Heisman winners over the last 25 years and several more finalists. Poor quarterback play isn’t the norm in Norman.

The problems on offense are many. The offense has struggled with injuries, which has certainly impacted everyone around the quarterback. At the same time, turnovers in key situations once again killed any chance the Sooners had of winning a hard-fought game.

The Sooners’ defense gave Oklahoma a chance to win the football game. When OU only needed a field goal to beat the Tigers, Jackson Arnold fumbled the ball, and the game away.

Twice this season, turnovers have led to changes at quarterback. Arnold had another critical turnover on a night when he wasn’t productive in the offense, throwing for just 74 yards and 3.1 yards per attempt.

He and true freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. have each shown some good things this season. Neither has been able to stake their claim to the starting quarterback job with much authority.

Earlier this season, Brent Venables didn’t rule out the idea of using both quarterbacks in a game. With two games to go, the time may be now to do so.

What Oklahoma does at quarterback in 2025 is one of the bigger storylines ahead of the upcoming offseason. The Sooners have two more games to figure out if either guy can be counted on to be the guy next year or if they need to go into the transfer portal for a veteran quarterback option.

As the Sooners give some of the younger guys some snaps over the next few weeks, finding a scripted series or two for Hawkins could be good for his development. The last time he was on the field was early in the first quarter against South Carolina. He’s a better player than those first three series revealed.

Though Casey Thompson provides you with an experienced voice in the quarterback room, does it make sense to put him on the field and take valuable developmental snaps away from your young quarterbacks? I don’t think so. His experience is valuable, but in a lost season, you have to keep developing players and Arnold and Hawkins deserve the opportunity to finish the season on a high note.

Alabama and LSU will be tough matchups for whoever they put at quarterback. However, the Sooners should create an opportunity for Arnold and Hawkins to compete for snaps and playing time.

If practice is where players sharpen each other, allowing them to compete for playing time could be a catalyst for the final two games of the season and, perhaps, the future.

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Related Topics:Featured Football jackson arnold Michael Hawkins Jr.oklahoma quarterback Oklahoma Sooners Football OU Football

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Oklahoma

UCLA vs. Oklahoma State – Second round NCAA tournament extended highlights

Published

6 hours ago

March 24, 2026

Press Room

UCLA vs. Oklahoma State – Second round NCAA tournament extended highlights

Women’s Basketball

March 24, 2026

UCLA vs. Oklahoma State – Second round NCAA tournament extended highlights

March 24, 2026

Watch the highlights from No. 1 UCLA and No. 8 Oklahoma State’s matchup in the second round of the 2026 women’s NCAA tournament.

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Oklahoma

Fire in Oklahoma City scrapyard produces massive smoke plume visible from downtown

Published

18 hours ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

Fire in Oklahoma City scrapyard produces massive smoke plume visible from downtown

A fire at a scrapyard near the OKC Fairgrounds has produced a massive plume of smoke visible in downtown Oklahoma City, officials report.

Oklahoma City Fire Department Assistant PIO John Chenoweth told The Oklahoman that the fire started at the scrapyard building near Northwest 10th Street and May Avenue, northeast of the OKC Fairgrounds.

The fire has been marked as “basically contained” as the Oklahoma City Fire Department is currently shifting to defensive methods. There are some active rubbish fires surrounding the metal building.

Chenoweth states there are no injuries, and all inside the building have been evacuated.

The cause of the fire and the extent of damage are unknown.

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Oklahoma fire map: See smoke, wildfires across state, red flag warnings

Track the latest wildfire and smoke information in Oklahoma with data that is updated frequently based on input from several incident and intelligence sources.

If you can’t see the map below, please click here.

How to prevent wildfires

While severely warm weather can worsen a wildfire spread, most are the result of human behavior. In fact, nearly 85% of wildfires in the U.S. are caused by humans, according to the National Park Service.

With its wide acres, rural areas and inconsistent weather patterns, Oklahoma is prone to grass fires. Forestry and safety experts offer several guidelines for residents on how to avoid starting a fire, which can often breakout from just one wrong spark.

Avoid using welding equipment.
Never drive on a flat tire.
Extinguish cigarettes completely before properly disposing of them, and never throw them outside of a window while driving.
Avoid parking on dry grass or dragging chains behind your car.

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Oklahoma

Oklahoma ranked in top 10 states attracting new residents, study says

Published

1 day ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

Oklahoma ranked in top 10 states attracting new residents, study says

Oklahoma is in the top 10 states receiving new residents in the nation in recent years, a new survey suggests.

StorageCafe conducted a recent study utilizing U.S. Census data showing Oklahoma welcomed over 25,000 new residents in 2023, with millennials being the largest-represented generation among those entering the Sooner State.

Here’s what the study had to say about migration into Oklahoma.

Oklahoma among top 10 states to move to

According to StorageCafe, Oklahoma welcomed 25,000 new residents in 2023 in net migration.

New residents in Oklahoma were largely made up of millennials, those born between 1981 and 1996, at 27%.

Though Oklahomans and Texans don’t seem to be eye to eye in the football arena, Texas is “by far the largest source” of new Oklahoma residents.

Among the major reasons for the increase in migrants is likely Oklahoma’s affordability, with 36% of millennials buying a home within their first year in Oklahoma.

In addition, Oklahomans found major success in recruiting former California and Colorado residents to move to the state, rounding out the top 3 states bringing new residents.