This preview is the eighth in a 12-part series previewing the upcoming KU football schedule.
If you’re planning on attending any of Kansas’ seven home dates this fall, Week 8’s homecoming game against Oklahoma will surely be a tough ticket. It’ll be the last meeting between the two Big 12 Conference charter schools, at least for the foreseeable future, in a series that’s been largely dominated by the Sooners.
With OU destined for the Southeastern Conference, Brent Venables is eager to round the corner from a 6-7 (3-6 Big 12) first impression that left much to be desired. In their last lap around the conference, the Sooners will be eager to erase the defensive miscues that plagued them for much of Venables’ first year.
On that conference calendar is a new-look KU program that’s garnered a respectable level of preseason attention, including Jalon Daniels’ Big 12’s preseason offensive player of the year award.
The last time KU faced OU was in a 52-42 road loss last year, and it was Jason Bean leading the Jayhawks’ offense after Daniels suffered a shoulder injury at home against TCU a week earlier. That game also saw the return of OU starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel — the same QB Venables will likely call on to lead his offense in 2023.
Gabriel, who transferred from UCF a year ago, battled through an early-season concussion and still managed to earn Big 12 offensive newcomer of the year honors, throwing for 3,168 yards and 25 touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore last season.
But it’s not entirely certain that Gabriel will get the job of leading the Sooners’ offense, which finished just fifth in the Big 12 last year with 32.8 points per game. Jackson Arnold, a five-star incoming freshman and Gatorade National Football Player of the Year, will be pushing for reps, too.
Far more certain than the QB position is the Sooners’ run game. In the absence of Eric Gray, who went to the New York Giants in the fifth round of this year’s NFL draft, Jovantae Barnes and Gavin Sawchuk will be tabbed with replacing the 1,366 yards that Gray posted during his senior season.
Barnes, the Sooners’ second-leading rusher from last year with 4.5 yards per carry, returns to the team after posting 519 yards and five touchdowns during his true freshman debut. Sawchuk, who redshirted last season, earned 105 yards and a touchdown’s worth of experience last year.
OU’s wideouts will have a new coach this season — but one who might be familiar to KU fans. That’s Emmett Jones, who was the receivers coach at KU for three seasons, then spent 2022 at Texas Tech before Venables hired him this winter.
Returning target Jalil Farooq, the Sooners’ third-leading receiver in 2022, will be testing his ceiling after logging 37 receptions for 466 yards and five TDs a year ago. Michigan transfer Andrel Anthony brings 328 career receiving yards and 26 games of experience.
On the other side of the ball, OU has some work to do. The defense, which returns 11 defensive linemen with four or more years of experience, will be looking to bounce back from a poor year across the board.
Last season, the Sooners allowed 30.0 points per game and ranked 99th nationally under defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Ted Roof. Among the several returners, linebacker Danny Stutsman — the conference’s leading tackler (125) in 2022 — will be the face of the OU defense.
Additionally, Indiana transfer Dasan McCullough joins the linebackers room after four starts and 49 total tackles that earned him freshman All-American honors with the Hoosiers.
Last year’s defense limited held nonconference opponents to 14 or fewer points, with the exception of a 35-32 loss to Florida State in the Cheez-It Bowl.
The Sooners kick off the year with two home games against Arkansas State (Week 1) and SMU (Week 2) before traveling to Tulsa in Week 3. OU opens its conference slate at Cincinnati in Week 4 on Sept. 23.
