Ten Oklahoma Players Land on 2025 All-SEC Team

Few Oklahoma fans and almost no college football experts expected much out of the Sooners in 2025.

But this year’s All-Southeastern Conference team shows just how far OU has turned those expectations around.

Led by the best defense in the SEC — and maybe the nation — the Sooners landed 10 players on the All-SEC team, announced Tuesday by the league. That was the second-most of any team behind SEC champion Georgia, which had 11 players honored. Votes were cast by the SEC's 16 head coaches, who were not allowed to vote for their own players.

Kicker Tate Sandell, punter Grayson Miller and defensive end R Mason Thomas earned first-team All-SEC recognition this year. Wide receiver Isaiah Sategna, right guard Febechi Nwaiwu, defensive end Taylor Wein, safety Peyton Bowen and long snapper Ben Anderson earned second-team All-SEC nods while cornerback Eli Bowen and tight end Jaren Kanak landed on the third team, and there were a handful of other Sooners who probably deserved recognition. (Sategna was also named second-team All-SEC as a punt returner, giving OU 11 positions, still one behind Georgia's 12 as Zachariah Branch also earned a nod at wideout and all-purpose.)

Coming off their second 6-7 campaign in three years under Brent Venables, OU was bringing in a new offense, a new quarterback, new receiver corps, two new defensive coaches and an offensive line that had been called among the worst in recent memory in Norman.

And the loss of the team’s top two defenders — Danny Stutsman and Billy Bowman — would mean Venables’ improving defense would take a step back.

Instead, the defense was better than ever — the best in Norman a generation. Oklahoma leads the SEC in scoring defense (13.67 points per game) and total defense (273.58 yards per game), ranks second in rushing defense (81.42 yards per game) and fifth in passing defense (192.17 yards per game). The Sooners also lead in fewest first downs (15.2 per game) and rank second in third-down conversion defense (28.98 percent), among other statistics.

A 5-0 start was good, but the loss to Texas was another big setback. After another loss to Ole Miss two weeks later, the Sooners turned a daunting November in their favor, quickly coalescing into a mature team that learned how to make plays and how to win games — 10 in all, seven of which required them to make winning plays late in the fourth quarter.

The ultimate reward begins Dec. 19 when OU begins what Sooner Nation hopes is a long run in the College Football Playoff. No. 8-ranked Oklahoma (10-2) hosts No. 9 Alabama (10-3) in a CFP first-round game at Memorial Stadium.

Meanwhile, additional rewards, like all-conference accolades, have begun rolling in.

All-SEC First Team 🏆@thomss_r @_grayson_miller @TateSandell1 pic.twitter.com/Z667COdt57
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) December 9, 2025

Start with special teams and the Sooners’ team MVP, kicker Tate Sandell. Sandell earned first-team All-SEC in his first year after transferring from UTSA by making 23 consecutive field goals after missing his first kick of the year. That’s an all-time SEC record and an OU record. His 101 points scored ranks fourth among all SEC players — and it’s only part of Sandell's story.

Sandell needs one more 50-yarder to tie the NCAA record of eight field goals of 50 yards or more, which included a 55-yarder at South Carolina, two 55s and a 51 at Tennessee (that tied a single-game NCAA record), and a 52 against Alabama. His 15 kicks from 40 yards or more shatters the previous OU record of seven, and the average distance of his made field goals (41.8 yards) leads the nation by a large margin.

Sandell is also one of three finalists for the Lou Groza Award as the nation’s best kicker — which would be Oklahoma’s first. The recipient will be revealed on Friday night.

Punter Grayson Miller — another transfer, from Division II Central Oklahoma — also performed at a first-team All-SEC level this season, frequently setting up the Sooner defense on the goal line (OU scored two safeties) by dropping a league-leading 24 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

Miller also led the conference and owns the school record with 23 punts of 50 yards or more. He ranked fourth among SEC punters with a raw average of 46.9 yards per kick on 54 total punts — 4.91 per game, which ranked second in the league.

And keying the success for both Sandell and Miller was junior long snapper Ben Anderson, who was named second-team All-SEC after landing third-team honors last season. He has handled long-snapping duties for each of the last three years and has been perfect. He was twice named a semifinalst for the Patrick Mannelly Award as the nation's top collegiate long snapper.

All-SEC Second Team 🏆@isaiahsategna1 @officialfeb_54 @TaylorWein @PeytonBowen10 @62BenAnderson pic.twitter.com/vI2adyiBzm
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) December 9, 2025

As good as OU’s special teams were, it was the defense that ultimately powered the Sooners back to the CFP. From that nightmarish defense alone, a total of four Sooners were accorded All-SEC honors, though they may feel it should have been more.

Senior defensive end R Mason Thomas, who missed the final three games with a quad injury after saving the Sooners in Knoxville with a 71-yard fumble return for a touchdown (the longest in program history), still earned first-team All-SEC. Thomas finished with just 23 tackles but led the Sooners and ranked fifth in the SEC with 6 1/2 quarterback sacks and was third with 9 1/2 tackles for loss.

Thomas also has the Sooners' highest overall defensive grade this season, according to Pro Football Focus, with an 83.9 on 342 snaps. He even sacked former teammate Jackson Arnold for a safety to clinch the win over Auburn.

Sophomore defensive end Taylor Wein, who stepped up immediately and led the Sooners with 14 tackles for loss — a figure that ranks fourth in the whole SEC — was tabbed for the All-SEC second team.

Wein finished with just 37 tackles but was second on the team and 10th in the SEC with six quarterback sacks and six QB hurries. He also intercepted a pass, blocked a field goal and forced a fumble — all of which helped the Sooners win games this year.

Junior safety Peyton Bowen has OU’s No. 2 overall defensive PFF grade with an 83.2, which is reflected by his second-team All-SEC accolade after landing on the third team last season.

Bowen played a team-high (by far) 627 defensive snaps this season and was always productive: seventh on the team with 43 tackles, one TFL, two interceptions (37 yards), a team-leading seven passes defensed, one QB hurry and one blocked kick that sparked the Sooners’ win over Missouri.

Bowen’s little brother, sophomore cornerback Eli Bowen, returned from an offseason injury in the fifth game, immediately regained his starting spot and delivered both consistency and big plays — the biggest coming at Alabama, when he raced 87 yards with an interception. In just eight games, he had 19 tackles, two interceptions and three passes defensed and was named third-team All-SEC.

All-SEC Third Team 🏆@EliBowen12 @KanakJaren pic.twitter.com/f5cERswSkD
— Oklahoma Football (@OU_Football) December 9, 2025

Oklahoma’s offense this season wasn’t up to the defense’s standards, but a total of three Sooners from the offense did earn All-SEC honors.

Wide receiver Isaiah Sategna was OU’s best offensive player and showed it repeatedly with timely big plays. He ranks second in the league with 65 catches, and is tied for second with 948 receiving yards (14.6 yards per catch). With 52 more yards, he would be OU's first 1,000-yard receiver since Marvin Mims in 2022.

Sategna’s Pro Football Focus overall offensive grade of 73.6 on 662 snaps ranked second among OU’s regulars (behind running back Xavier Robinson’s 74.4 on 323 snaps). Sategna also added 301 yards on punt returns on an average of 13.09 yards per return, which ranked fourth in the SEC (minimum 1.0 returns per game). He was named second-team both as a receiver and as a punt returner. His 1,273 all-purpose yards and 106.1 all-purpose yards per game lead the team and rank sixth in the SEC.

Other than left tackle Michael Fasusi, who will be on the SEC All-Freshman team later this week, right guard Febechi Nwaiwu was the lone anchor on a Sooner offensive line that used three different starters at every other position this season. Nwaiwu, who got second-team All-SEC, would have been the only player up front to start all 12 games at the same position, but had to shift over to center in the finale against LSU because of an injury there.

Nwaiwu posted the most pass-blocking snaps (430) of any guard in the nation without allowing a quick pressure, according to PFF, and ranked first among all right guards nationally with a 91.5 pass blocking grade. His overall offensive grade of 67.9 ranks second on the OU offensive line among season-long starters.

Nwaiwu is also one of three finalists for the Brandon Burlsworth Trophy as the nation’s top player who began his career as a walk-on.

Senior tight end Jaren Kanak had played linebacker his first three years at OU but switched sides this year. He was on fire early but cooled off in SEC play. Still, he had a catch in every game, and at least two in 11 of the 12 and landed a spot on the All-SEC third team. He finished the regular season with 40 receptions for 511 yards (12.7 yards per catch) but never reached the end zone.

Among SEC tight ends, Kanak’s totals rank second in catches and third in yards. His PFF grade of 67.3 ranks sixth among OU’s regulars. Kanak ranks second on the team with a 73.7 PFF grade as a receiver.

Other Sooners had standout seasons but didn’t draw enough votes to land All-SEC honors.

Even though OU's defensive front was widely hailed as the best in all of college football — the Sooners lead the nation in both quarterback sacks and tackles for loss — zero Oklahoma defensive tackles earned their All-SEC stripes.

Sophomore David Stone, a local 5-star prospect via IMG Academy, spent three days in the transfer portal in the offseason, was hoping forf a spot on the team despite starting just two games this year after playing a reserve role last year.

Stone ranked sixth on the team with 43 tackles, including eight tackles for loss, 1 1/2 quarterback sacks, four QB hurries and a pass batted down. Stone’s PFF grade of 74.7 on 425 defensive snaps ranks 10th-best among the regulars, and his 81.3 on run plays ranks third.

Senior Gracen Halton started only five games but remained arguably the biggest big-play specialist among the group but was not recognized with All-SEC honors. Halton had 31 tackles during the regular season to go with seven TFLs, 3 1/2 sacks, six hurries, two passes defensed and a fumble he returned 4 yards for a touchdown — the Sooners’ first takeaway of the season.

Halton has the team’s third-highest overall defensive grade this season, according to PFF, with an 83.1 on 392 snaps, including an 85.1 grade on run plays, which ranks second.

Senior Damonic Williams and sophomore Jayden Jackson also consistently delivered big plays up front for Venables' defense, combining for 8 1/2 tackles for loss and 4 1/2 sacks.

Linebacker Kip Lewis could have lobbied for a spot as well but was left off. He led the Sooners with 72 total tackles, including 8 1/2 TFLs, three sacks, four QB hurries and four passes defensed. Lewis played 503 defensive snaps and posted a 77.0 overall defensive grade, which ranks tied for fifth on the team. Among SEC linebackers, Lewis’ total ranks 12th.

Junior center Jake Maikkula, a transfer from Stanford, replaced captain Troy Everett in the opening game and not only held onto the job for the next 10 games but excelled, posting the team’s second-best PFF pass-blocking grade behind Nwaiwu (81.7) as well as the Sooners’ highest overall blocking grade among linemen (68.6).

Senior linebacker Kendall Daniels, a transfer from Oklahoma State, stepped into Venables’ hybrid “cheetah” position and produced all season. He ranks fourth on the team with 49 total tackles and fourth with nine TFLs. He also broke up two passes, hurried the QB twice and recovered a fumble at Alabama that set up Sandell for the go-ahead field goal.

Senior safety Robert Spears-Jennings finished third on the team with 57 tackles, 1 1/2 TFLs, one huge interception at Tennessee, plus two passes defensed and will leave a reputation as one of the SEC's hardest hitting defensive backs.

Last year’s OU squad, after going just 2-6 in SEC play, landed only four players on the All-SEC squad: Stutsman on first team, Thomas on second team and Bowman and Anderson on third team.