How Oklahoma's QBs are Embracing Their 'Fun' Quarterback Room

NORMAN — All four of Oklahoma’s quarterbacks are fairly new to the program.

John Mateer, Whitt Newbauer and Jett Niu all played their first seasons with the Sooners in 2025, while true freshman Bowe Bentley enrolled in January.

Even so, the four signal callers have worked together to build a competitive-but-constructive quarterback room.

“It's been a fun room,” Mateer said. “We're all good humans, they're great humans.”

Mateer transferred to Oklahoma from Washington State ahead of the 2025 season. Though his first year in Norman had its ups and downs, he will be the starter again in 2026.

Behind Mateer, Newbauer and Bentley will compete for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart. Newbauer appeared in three games last year after transferring from Mercer, while Bentley was a consensus 4-star prospect from the Class of 2026.

Niu will likely be the fourth-string quarterback. A native of Lehi, UT, Niu signed with Oklahoma as part of its 2025 recruiting class.

Mateer, Newbauer and Niu built rapport with one another in 2025, and according to Mateer, Bentley’s addition hasn’t disrupted the relaxed feel in the position group.

“I love being around it, but it's a group thing and we're all trying to be the best quarterback we can be, and we can help each other and share our thoughts,” Mateer said. “We've got a spike ball in the locker room… It's just fun to be around.”

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.

Even though the four quarterbacks are competing against each other for reps, the competition never becomes unhealthy, according to Mateer.

Instead, the four of them analyze each other’s strengths and weaknesses so they can steadily improve.

“We're all taking reps and we're learning from each other's reps, and that's super important,” Mateer said. “You don't get that in every room, but you talk through why you messed up so that they don't make the same mistake you do. We've seen that over and over, and it's been really fun in that room, but we know how to lock it in, too, so it's been good."

Oklahoma had one of its best seasons in recent memory last year, as the Sooners finished 10-3 and reached the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2019.

Mateer believes that the Sooners’ team-wide bond helped them fight through adversity and ultimately make it to the CFP.

The Sooners still have over five months until they begin the 2026 season against UTEP on Sept. 5.

Mateer said that he and his teammates will use the upcoming down time to further build camaraderie — and that starts with the quarterbacks.

“We’re going to get even tighter,” Mateer said. “The summer is huge in that — there’s nothing to do except hang out with each other, which I love. It’s been really good so far, just hanging out in the locker room before meetings. Everyone is in there playing, hanging out, laughing, music is super loud, probably need to turn it down sometimes… but it’s a lot of fun.”

Add us as a preferred source on Google