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'Full Karate Kid': Oklahoma Tight end Jaren Kanak Continues to Help Sooners' Offense

Jaren Kanak tried to pull off a leap over an Auburn linebacker Saturday. Instead, he delivered a jump kick that helped spark the Sooners.
Ryan Aber|
Oklahoma tight end Jaren Kanak's leaping kick was one of the pivotal plays in Saturday's 24-17 Sooners win over Auburn.
Oklahoma tight end Jaren Kanak's leaping kick was one of the pivotal plays in Saturday's 24-17 Sooners win over Auburn. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Oklahoma Sooners

NORMAN — Jaren Kanak had visions of pulling off a Trey Millard move.

Instead, it turned into a Mr. Miyagi crane kick.

Kanak turned in one of the most memorable plays of Saturday night’s 24-17 Oklahoma win over Auburn, when he came across the middle to catch a third-down pass early in the second half.

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Tigers’ linebacker Xavier Atkins squared up to try to bring Kanak down just past midfield.

Kanak expected Atkins to go low, but the linebacker stayed upright.

So instead of leaping over Atkins, a la Millard in the 2012 Red River Showdown, Kanak instead delivered a knee kick to Atkins’ chest.

While it didn’t spring Kanak free, it did give him a few extra yards on a critical third-down conversion on a drive that netted the Sooners a field goal.

“I don’t want to talk about it, all right?” Kanak said, laughing, after the game. “I thought I had hops. … It turned into a cool flying kick I guess. I was trying to go over him.”

Kanak finished with four catches for 62 yards.

But afterward, the biggest topic of conversation surrounding Kanak was the third-quarter kick.

“I told Jaren he needs to work on his moves but I didn’t know he was going to go full Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi,” linebacker Kip Lewis said. 

Kanak’s move to tight end has been better than anyone could’ve imagined.

“I don’t know, maybe,” Kanak said when asked if he was surprised with his production so far. “I’d like to say that I put the work in. I got a position to be confident in myself, so I just go out and make the plays that come my way.”

Through four games, Kanak has 18 catches for a team-high 307 yards.

He’s just 17 yards shy of the yardage tight end Bauer Sharp posted on 42 catches to lead the team last season.

“He’s always where he needs to be,” Sooners quarterback John Mateer said.

Kanak has had at least four catches in each of OU’s four games.

“Being in a position to be able to contribute to this team having success and winning is huge to me,” Kanak said. “That’s all I care about is just being a person that can help this team win. And that fact that I’ve been blessed enough to be able to do that — I couldn’t ask for anything else.”

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Ryan Aber
RYAN ABER

Ryan Aber has been covering Oklahoma football for more than a decade continuously and since 1999 overall. Ryan was the OU beat writer for The Oklahoman from 2013-2025, covering the transition from Bob Stoops to Lincoln Riley to Brent Venables. He covered OU men's basketball's run to the Final Four in 2016 and numerous national championships for the Sooners' women's gymnastics and softball programs. Prior to taking on the Sooners beat, Ryan covered high schools, the Oklahoma City RedHawks and Oklahoma City Barons for the newspaper from 2006-13. He spent two seasons covering Arkansas football for the Morning News of Northwest Arkansas before returning to his hometown of Oklahoma City. Ryan also worked at the Southwest Times Record in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and the Muskogee Phoenix. At the Phoenix, he covered OU's national championship run in 2000. Ryan is a graduate of Putnam City North High School in Oklahoma City and Northeastern State University in Tahlequah.

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