Oklahoma Coach Lincoln Riley Clarifies Obi Obialo's Status

The former Marshall transfer could never get fully healthy and, Riley said, decided to leave the program and "hang up the cleats."

John E. Hoover|

Oklahoma Coach Lincoln Riley Clarifies Obi Obialo's Status

Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley on Thursday clarified the absence of former Marshall transfer wide receiver Obi Obialo from the Sooners’ 2021 roster.

“Yeah, Obi came to us kind of midway into the spring semester and, you know, told us that he thought that his career may be coming to a close,” Riley said during a video press conference Thursday. “And, he made the decision to leave the program.

“And my understanding at that point, and I don't believe anything's changed, is that he was ready to hang up the cleats and move on to the next phases of his life.”

It was reported on April 19 by 247 Sports' Parker Thune that Obialo was no longer on the Sooners' online roster.

Obialo, originally from Coppell, TX, has battled injuries since high school. He first walked on at Oklahoma State, the transferred to Marshall, where in 2018 he caught 42 passes for 505 yards and four touchdowns.

He spent just over a year with the Sooners but played in just two games in 2020 and didn’t catch a pass.

“Hate that things didn't work out better for him here,” Riley said. “If they had just — it’s one of those things, especially with the injuries, it just never really timed out. But he was a really good kid here and, you know, wish him the best as he jumps into his next chapter in life.”

Published May 6, 2021

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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