Closer to Home, Tight End Hayden Hansen Looking to Thrive in Oklahoma's Offense

NORMAN — It didn’t take long for new Oklahoma tight end Hayden Hansen to know he was in a different place.

During a January conditioning drill, the Florida transfer pulled up when he reached the cone that he thought signalled the end of the drill.

Sophomore offensive lineman Michael Fasusi jumped on him.

“You’ve got to run two steps after the cone,” Fasusi said.

Hansen appreciated the direction, and it opened his eyes that things were different with the Sooners than they were in Gainesville.

“It was clear to me these guys let nothing slide like through the smallest detail,” Hansen said Monday at Oklahoma’s newcomer’s media day. “And it just lights a fire and you get ready to play.”

Hansen never expected to leave Florida after spending four seasons there, where he was plenty productive.

After redshirting in 2022, Hansen has 57 catches for five touchdowns over the last three seasons including 30 catches for 254 yards and a pair of touchdowns last season.

When Billy Napier was fired seven games into last season, Hansen decided he needed certainty for his final season and liked the prospect of being close to his Weatherford, Texas, home.

“It’s a results business and when you don’t meet the (expectations), things happen,” Hansen said.

Oklahoma was on Hansen’s radar early.

“Where I started was the head coach, him (Napier) and (Brent) Venables both learned under (Dabo) Swinney and they both hold the same core values and how they teach,” Hansen said.

By the time the transfer portal window opened, Jason Witten’s name was already being mentioned as a strong candidate to replace Joe Jon Finley as the Sooners’ tight ends coach.

Having grown up in Texas, Hansen was enamored with the possibility of playing for Witten.

“All the stars started lining up and I took a lot of pride in becoming the first guy to commit here and starting the wave,” Hansen said. “I just know there’s something special here and I’m ready to be a part of it.”

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Witten is excited to have Hansen in his room.

“He’s your prototypical tight end,” Witten said. “... But also he’s very coachable. That’s one of the things that you always think about with veteran players sometimes is just, you know, ‘Hey coach, I kind of got this figured out.’ You see it in the NFL. And I think the best ones … they want more and they’re hanging on every word. So in the short time we’ve had together, I think he’s been very open to that.”

Working with Witten has already helped Hansen’s game, he said.

“He’s the best of the best,” Hansen said. “What a great opportunity. He’s very intense. That’s what you expect from a guy that’s going to be a future Hall of Famer. At first, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is my coach. Like, no way, Jason Witten,’ you know. Then he just kind of ripped me, and I was like, ‘OK, this is my coach.’ The fun stuff’s over. … He’s already immediately finding spots from where we sat down and watched all my film from Florida. He pointed out all my weak points and we’ve been cleaning it all up. …

“When you play in the league 17 years, you know stuff that other people don’t because you have to go through it all.”

Hansen has also left an impression on Witten, both on and off the field.

“Anytime you walk into a new program, and I’ve gone through it as a player as well, it’s hard to take ownership early on,” Witten said. “You don’t want to step on toes. You’re trying to figure out the lay of the land. He’s done a great job of kind of setting the tone. Our actions are going to speak louder than words, and just kind of diving in head first.”