Transfer Talk: What Oklahoma is Getting in WR Javonnie Gibson

Oklahoma is starting over on offense in 2025, and the Sooners have some holes to plug on defense and special teams as well.

So Brent Venables and the OU staff landed another impactful haul out of the NCAA Transfer Portal for 2025 — 14 players so far, with the possibility of more still to come.

This series continues Sooners On SI’s inside look at what OU is getting out of the portal for next season. Next up: wide receiver Javonnie Gibson.

Leaping from the FCS level to the SEC isn’t an easy transition, but those most familiar with Javonnie Gibson’s game believe he’ll have no problem doing so.

Gibson, a wide receiver who spent the 2024 season at Arkansas-Pine Bluff, announced his portal commitment to Oklahoma on Dec. 18. He is one of four wideouts to transfer to OU thus far during the 2024-25 transfer portal season, along with Keontez Lewis (Southern Illinois), Isaiah Satenga (Arkansas) and Josiah Martin (California).

Gibson came to UAPB as a great unknown.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound wide receiver out of Louisiana was not rated by any recruiting platforms out of high school, and he spent his first two seasons of college at University of Arkansas at Monticello, which competes at the NCAA Division II level.

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But it didn’t take long for Gibson to become a star in Pine Bluff.

After Gibson notched just 32 receiving yards in UAPB’s season-opening 70-0 loss to Arkansas, the wideout surpassed 140 receiving yards in each of his next two games.

Though UAPB struggled throughout the year, finishing 3-9, Gibson’s production never dipped.

Tanner Spearman, a sports reporter for the Pine Bluff Commercial, noted that defenses focused heavily on guarding Gibson by the midpoint of the 2024 season. But the wideout still found various ways to torch opposing defensive backs.

“Every opposing coach would be asked about him during the week,” Spearman said. “He still found ways to make 6-7 catches a game most of the time.”

He ended his lone season in Pine Bluff with 70 receptions for 1,215 yards and nine touchdowns. Both his reception and yard totals are second all-time in UAPB’s single-season record books.

Cameo Stokes, UAPB’s Associate Director of Athletics for Strategic Communications, believes Gibson’s versatility made him such a star for the Golden Lions.

“He can gain yards after the catch, is a skilled blocking receiver, has great hands, runs precise routes, and showcases breakaway speed,” Stokes said. “Off the field, he is a very soft-spoken player, but once the pads are on, it's showtime.”

Gibson joins an Oklahoma squad that desperately can use wideout reinforcements.

The Sooners finished 121st out of 134 FBS football teams in passing yards per game in 2024, averaging 167.1. Tight end Bauer Sharp, now at LSU, finished as the team’s leading target with just 324 receiving yards.

OU frequently dealt with injuries at the position, seeing Nic Anderson, Jalil Farooq, Andrel Anthony and Deion Burks all miss extended time.

Anderson, Farooq, Anthony, J.J. Hester, Brenen Thompson and Jaquaize Pettaway all entered the transfer portal in the winter window, which ran from Dec. 9 to Dec. 28.

2024-25 Oklahoma Transfer Portal Tracker

“Javonnie will undoubtedly fit into the rotation of Oklahoma’s wide receiver unit,” Stokes said.

Playing in the SWAC (Southwestern Athletic Conference) is far different from playing in the SEC.

The SWAC is one of 13 conferences whose members compete for the FCS national title. FCS programs compete in a 24-team playoff, opposed to the 12-team College Football Playoff used at the FBS level.

Though it’s a lower level, Gibson showed throughout the 2024 season what he’s capable of, consistently producing for a UAPB team that struggled.

“It'll certainly be tough to replicate these numbers against better secondaries, but I think he can be a solid option,” Spearman said. “Keep in mind the numbers he had came despite every team keying on him and his QB often not having time to throw thanks to an (offensive line) that struggled in pass protection. Surround him with the right pieces and I think he can produce.”

Of Gibson’s 70 catches, 15 were targeted 20 yards downfield or more, per Pro Football Focus. On those plays, Gibson averaged a target depth of 31.4 yards.

Per PFF, he graded out at 96.0 on deep balls and 96.1 on intermediate routes. He also compiled 430 yards after the catch.

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“The most memorable plays were the deep shots where he burnt the defense, but he had plenty of underneath stuff, too,” Spearman said. “I think when you're bringing a guy up from a lower level, you want him to have been dominant, and Gibson was one of the best (wide receivers) in all of FCS. He certainly led with his play on the field.”

FCS wideouts have a long history of success playing in the NFL.

Hall of Fame wide receivers Terrell Owens (Chattanooga), Jerry Rice (Mississippi Valley State) and Randy Moss (Marshall) all thrived for FCS schools before doing so on Sundays. (Marshall is now FBS; the Thundering Herd competed as an FCS school until 1997).

More recently, Cooper Kupp (Eastern Washington), Andre Iosivas (Princeton), Rashid Shaheed (Weber State) and Christian Watson (North Dakota State) have been standout NFL wide receivers after FCS college careers.

The jump from FCS to FBS — or any higher level — isn’t easy. But it has been done and still can be done.

Stokes believes Gibson’s character, in addition to his breakaway speed and blocking skills, will allow him to be another FCS success story.

“OU is gaining an outstanding student-athlete who is always positive and maintains a smile on his face,” Stokes said. “He is a leader on the field, leading by example with his hard work both on and off the field.”

The Sooners need a spark to revamp their passing game. Gibson is someone that stood out in an offense that otherwise struggled.

Everything will be different at this stop — the stadium, the uniforms, the state, the campus — but Spearman and Stokes both expect Gibson’s production and leadership to be very similar.

“I've seen a lot of people doubting him because he comes from UAPB,” Spearman said. “There are talented skill players at every level; the SEC just has a lot more of them. I see no reason why a guy who had the second-best wide receiver season in UAPB history can't do well at a higher level.”

Stokes added, “He will be a remarkable addition to the legacy of great receivers who have played in Norman.”