Oklahoma GM Jim Nagy's Offseason Decisions Now Under the Microscope

Column

NORMAN — The obvious must be acknowledged: Oklahoma’s opportunity for a major in-season reset has passed.

If the Sooners are going to develop an offense capable of scoring enough to complement an elite defense, it will require better coaching from Brent Venables and Ben Arbuckle — and better play from John Mateer.

But Oklahoma’s offensive issues also raise broader questions about how the roster was built — which strengths were emphasized, which needs were addressed and which risks were worth taking. Those questions lead directly to general manager Jim Nagy.

Two weeks ago, Nagy said that his job was "to make this the best roster I can make it." That statement came in the wake of Oklahoma adding defensive lineman Braxton Fely, linebacker Jaydon Southard, and defensive back D'Yoni Hill after bringing in defensive lineman Danny Saili back in Fall Camp.

Nagy, working in lockstep with Venables, added players at positions of need. On its face, that is a sensible formula for roster-building.

But after Oklahoma’s Venables-dubbed "ugly" win over New Mexico, the formula deserves scrutiny.

Owen Heinecke played all 62 snaps on defense. With Cole Sullivan sidelined by a minor injury and Kip Lewis still dealing with the injury he suffered against Michigan, Oklahoma had little choice but to lean heavily on Heinecke and James Nesta, who played all but one snap.

Heinecke’s missed tackle on third-and-21 did not decide the game — New Mexico was stopped on fourth down — but it highlighted the burden Oklahoma’s defense is carrying. It is a strong unit playing with little margin for error while the offense lets them down time and time again.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, former Sooner linebacker Sammy Omosigho racked up 12 tackles (11 solo), two sacks and a tackle for loss in UCLA's 52-38 win over Purdue. Omosigho, who wanted to start, was a transfer portal casualty while Nagy and Venables worked to convince Sullivan to leave Michigan.

Sullivan is a talented player, but Oklahoma’s recent injury situation has exposed the downside of the decision to bring one player in and let another talented one walk.

Omosigho would have provided an experienced option during the past two weeks. Retaining that experience could have allowed Oklahoma to devote more of its portal resources to other areas of need — or allowed Nagy to find other eligible players at other position groups in August.

Remember, the linebacker group was already thin during the transfer portal month. Heinecke was out of eligibility and Lewis was weighing his decision to stay or go pro. Omosigho played around 300 snaps in 2024 and 2025 at OU — the decision should have been to find him more snaps to help convince him to stay.

On offense, Oklahoma went from Venables declaring that there were "nine guys that can play winning football on the offensive line" to a Michael Fasusi injury that forced Ryan Fodje to move to left tackle in his absence.

With six guys (seven when Fasusi returns next week against Georgia), OU's offensive line was pushed around by New Mexico's defensive front and in turn could not open holes for the running game.

Nagy and his staff added E’Marion Harris from Arkansas, Peyton Joseph from Georgia Tech and Caleb Nitta from Western Kentucky. The returns have been uneven. Harris has struggled, particularly in the loss to Michigan, while Joseph saw limited action against UTEP and has not played a snap since.

Nitta’s situation may be the most telling. With Jake Maikkula sidelined by a Fall Camp injury, Oklahoma appeared to do everything they could to avoid starting Nitta at center. Noah Best got the nod in the season opener at center, before Maikkula returned against Michigan. Neither Best nor Nitta would likely have been in line to start at center had Fodje been healthy.

You're not going to hit on every addition, and some players will exit and thrive elsewhere. That's the business of football. But Nagy's moves have largely proven not to be helpful to Oklahoma's cause.

To make matters worse, OU's offensive struggles appear to be compounded by struggles at quarterback. Isn't a general manager tasked with making "the best roster" he can supposed to identify that perhaps a place like Oklahoma should dare to be better at quarterback rather than relying on old-fashioned belief?

Is that a realistic thought? Perhaps not, given Mateer's tie to Arbuckle and the cost of quarterbacks in the portal — which, for one reason or another, appears to be a game OU doesn't want to play. It doesn't help that Michael Hawkins Jr. is working well in Rich Rodriguez's West Virginia system.

Going back further, Nagy's first act as general manager in Norman saw him add Maikkula and Jaydn Ott. That move will not make Nagy's highlight reel.

In defense of Nagy, Trell Harris appeared to be a savvy pickup. His injury against the Wolverines is unfortunate and a consequence of football simply being a violent sport. The tight ends have been positive additions as well.

The positive additions have not outweighed the disappointments, and the roster’s lack of offensive answers has become impossible to ignore. For Nagy, the benefit of the doubt is beginning to fade.

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