The names of Oklahoma football players who are approaching college football free agency via the transfer portal began to surface just a few days after what head coach Brent Venables refers to as Oklahoma football Team 129 concluded its final regular-season game as a member of the Big 12 Conference.
While the most of the announcements were not very startling, many fans were taken aback by one name. Not because the player was moving on, but rather because of his route and destination
, he still had one more season of eligibiMany people anticipated that quarterback Dillon Gabriel would enter the NFL Draft following this campaign. Despite the truncated Covid 19 seasonlity, thus he decided to use his eligibility waiver and play one more college season after finding out his NFL Draft predetermination. Gabriel committed to play for the Oregon Ducks in the upcoming season, as almost all Sooner supporters are aware, when he signed up for the transfer portal.
Naturally, among the Sooners who have accessed the site, Gabriel is the main attraction. Thirteen Oklahoma players have announced their plans to transfer as of December 11. O-linemen Andrew Raym and Tyler Guyton, two more former Sooners, have submitted their draft selections. Though it was first thought that All-American linebacker Danny Stutsman would follow him to the NFL, he decided to stay for another season.
Among those we know of so far who are leaving Norman via the transfer highway are three running backs (Marcus Major, Tawee Walker and Daylan Smothers), two defensive linemen (Kelvin Gilliam Jr. and Marcus Hicks), three offensive linemen (Cayden Green, Savion Byrd and Nate Anderson) as well as QB Gabriel, DE Reggie Grimes, DB Key Lawrence, TE Jason Llewellyn and WR D.J. Graham. The negative side of the transfer portal ledger always runs ahead of incoming transfer side because it takes some time before the transfer candidates find a new landing place.
The OU transfer ledger’s positive aspects are beginning to gather momentum. As the two-way vetting process progresses, we will undoubtedly learn about more inbound transfers in the upcoming weeks in addition to the three that we now know about.
Two days after the 2024 transfer portal opened, Michigan State offensive tackle Spencer Brown made his commitment to the Sooners on December 6. Brown is a graduate transfer student at Norman. Walter Rouse, whose eligibility expires in the 2023 season, is anticipated to be replaced by him. He has one more season remaining. The 315-pound, 6-foot-6-inch O-lineman started 24 games for Michigan State.
Defensive back Dezjohn Malone committed to Oklahoma on December 10 this past weekend. Malone played for the San Diego State Aztecs for four seasons, appearing in 25 games. He will still be eligible for two more years.
Deion Burks, a highly sought-after wide receiver who transfers from Purdue to Oklahoma, is the third new player to commit to the Sooners. Burks had an excellent 2023 season for the Boilermakers as a redshirt sophomore. He was selected to the second team of the Big Ten and caught 47 passes for 629 yards and seven touchdowns. He had a discussion with Brent Venables this week and decided not to go to Texas, one of the states that was interested in hiring him.
