Why Oklahoma's Spring Roster Reflects an Offseason of Change

With spring practice officially underway as of Thursday afternoon, Oklahoma finally revealed its official spring roster — and the Sooners have undergone some significant changes.

Foremost, senior linebacker Jaren Kanak is now playing tight end. It has been speculated and teased that Kanak’s best position might be on offense — coach Brent Venables often explained away any shortcomings as a linebacker on the fact he had played mostly offense as a youth and high school player — and so Kanak will transition to a spot where the Sooners have a dearth of playmaking and experience.

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Kanak — who will also switch from jersey No. 7 to No. 12 — steps into a position where the most experienced players are oft-injured Kaden Helms and Kade McIntyre, who have played through various ailments the last two years and in 2024 combined for 140 offensive snaps. The Sooners graduated Jake Roberts and lost Bauer Sharp to the portal, and replenished their vacancies with three portal arrivals from Kennesaw State, Pitt State and Louisiana Tech.

Also, former 5-star recruit Davon Mitchell is back after not playing at all as a true freshman last season.

Mitchell, who checked in at 6-foot-3 and 259 pounds for last year’s season opener, is now listed at 6-4 and 275 pounds.

Another big leap comes from former 5-star defensive tackle recruit David Stone, who went from 295 pounds last August to 313 this spring, a jump of 18 pounds — most of anyone on the team.

Noseguard Damonic Williams experience a major addition, from 312 pounds last year to 320 this spring.

Defensive end Nigel Smith is up even more, from 269 pounds last year to 279 now.

Freshman defensive tackle Jayden Jackson is up five pounds from 312 to 317.

More growth on the d-line comes from defensive end P.J. Adebawore, who was 6-4, 253 last season and now weighs 261.

D-end R Mason Thomas also added some bulk, going from 243 to 249.

OU linebackers got bigger. Kip Lewis has gone from an undersized 215 pounds to a substantial 226, and cheetah Sammy Omosigho climbed from 229 to 234. And James Nesta went from 220 to 226 despite spending most of the last two months with the baseball team.

Defensive back Devon Jordan jumped 10 pounds, from 177 to 187.

Players on offense have undergone similar transformation, including three at running back.

The running backs bulked up. Xavier Robinson went from 226 pounds to 235, running back Gavin Sawchuk powered up from 197 to 205, and Jovantae Barnes grew from 207 to 216.

Offensive tackle Isaiah Autry-Dent played at 304 pounds last season, but now checks in at 317 pounds — the offense's biggest overall gain.

Versatile offensive lineman Jacob Sexton, perhaps anticipating more work at guard this season, jumped 11 pounds from 322 to 333.

Center Josh Aisosa also jumped 11 pounds, from 320 as a true freshman to 331 this spring.

Quarterback Michael Hawkins added five pounds, from 196 to 201, and transfer QB John Mateer played at 219 pounds last year at Washington State but is now up 224.

Wide receiver Ivan Carreon was a 223-pound freshman; now he’s a 229-pound sophomore.

It wasn’t all about gaining weight. Several Sooners also experienced some major weight loss this spring.

Right guard Febechi Nwaiwu had the biggest drop, from 339 pounds last year in his first season coming out of North Texas to 323 this season. That will help OU’s offense, as Nwaiwu sometimes had trouble reaching his defender on pulling blocks.

Offensive lineman Daniel Akinkunmi, who also played guard last year, was 323 as a freshman in 2024, but now tips the scales at 313 pounds.

Heath Ozaeta, who took over at left guard midway through the season, also shed significant poundage, from 316 to 305. Designated losses from those three might be and indicator that more movement will be required of Oklahoma's guards this season in new coordinator Ben Arbuckle's offense.

Wide receiver Deion Burks dropped from 194 pounds last season to 181.

Tight end Kade McIntyre went down from 227 to 220.

Safety Michael Boganowski dropped from 214 pounds in 2024 to 208 this year, and safety Robert Spears-Jennings trimmed five pounds from 219 to 214.

OU’s heaviest player is freshman enter Owen Hollenbeck and 348 pounds, while the lightest Sooner is 152-pound wideout Zion Ragins.

Nine players — Isaiah Autry-Dent, Daniel Akinkunmi, Luke Baklenko, Ivan Carron, Taylor Heim, Logan Howland, Will Huggins, Jacob Sexton and Jake Taylor — are the tallest Sooners 6-6. Kicker Liam Evans — all 5-7 of him — is the shortest.