Where Does Oklahoma's Tight End Room Stand with Transfer Portal Closed?

The Sooners added three tight ends from the transfer portal in addition to their noteworthy hire of Jason Witten to coach the position group.

Nov 16, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators tight end Hayden Hansen (89) gestures towards the crowd after a game against the LSU Tigers at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

NORMAN — Oklahoma’s tight end room will be far and away the Sooners’ most different position group in 2026.

Of course, the Sooners hired future Hall of Fame tight end and former NFL star Jason Witten as their new tight ends coach. Witten will replace Joe Jon Finley, who the Sooners parted ways with after the 2025 season.

Witten’s hire has certainly been the most newsworthy move since OU’s season ended on Dec. 19. But Oklahoma has also completely reloaded the tight end room that Witten will inherit.

Who is gone and who will return?

Oklahoma tight end Jaren Kanak | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

Jaren Kanak easily saw the most game action for the Sooners in 2025.

Kanak, a converted linebacker, caught 44 passes for 533 yards in his first season as an offensive player. He was particularly valuable early in the year, as he eclipsed 60 yards in each of OU’s first four contests.

Aside from Kanak, OU’s tight end production was sparse.

Kaden Helms had the second-most receiving yards from the tight end room, as he caught five passes for 35 yards and a touchdown. Carson Kent and Will Huggins were the only other tight ends to catch passes in 2025, and they finished with 26 and 21 yards, respectively.

Kanak and Huggins are both out of eligibility, while Kent and Helms entered the transfer portal after the season.

The only returners to the position group will be Trynae Washington, Kade McIntyre and John Locke Jr. Washington and McIntyre both saw their lone game action against Kent State, while Locke didn’t appear in any games in 2025.

Who did Oklahoma add?

Oct 3, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; Colorado State Rams tight end Rocky Beers (81) makes a reception during the second half against the San Diego State Aztecs at Snapdragon Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images | David Frerker-Imagn Images

The Sooners got to work in the portal to reinforce their tight end room.

Oklahoma added three tight ends to the roster from the transfer portal: Rocky Beers (Colorado State), Hayden Hansen (Florida) and Jack Van Dorselaer (Tennessee).

Beers and Hansen are both proven pass-catching tight ends. In his final season at CSU, Beers caught 31 passes for 388 yards and seven touchdowns. Hansen logged 254 yards and two touchdowns on 30 receptions for the Gators in 2025.

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Van Dorselaer played in all 13 of Tennessee’s games as a true freshman in 2025. Despite holding a backup role to Volunteers star Miles Kitselman, Van Dorselaer caught five passes for 23 yards and a touchdown. The 6-5 tight end was a 4-star prospect in the Class of 2025.

Oklahoma also signed two tight ends as part of its 2026 recruiting class: Ryder Mix and Tyler Ruxer.

Will the TE room be more productive in 2026?

Jason Witten, an Elizabethton alum and former Tennessee Volunteer and Dallas Cowboy, watches from the sidelines during the TSSAA Class 4A BlueCross Bowl football game between Tullahoma and Elizabethton held at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Saturday, Dec. 4, 2021. | Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

There are so many variables that make it hard to predict how well OU’s tight ends will perform in 2026.

Witten spent five seasons as the head coach at Liberty Christian School in Texas, but he has never been a position coach. It’s hard to know how his coaching style differs from Finley’s and how he and Arbuckle will work together.

But the Sooners’ portal haul is promising.

Hansen is someone with proven production against strong SEC defenses. He caught passes of 20 yards or longer against Texas A&M and Texas in 2025, and he logged a season-high 50 yards against LSU.

Beers, despite playing for a 2-10 squad, caught a touchdown pass in each of the Rams’ last four games.

Van Dorselaer’s role was more of a blocking one in his first college football season, but getting a full season of SEC football under his belt in Knoxville should make him an instant contributor.

Proven big targets could be the lifeline for an OU offense that limped through the back half of the 2025 season.

Hansen, Beers and Van Dorselaer are players that should be able to come down with 50-50 balls in the red zone when players like Isaiah Sategna, Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone are covered. Even in open-field situations, those three tight ends are guys that OU quarterback John Mateer should be able to find for short-yardage pickups to keep the offense moving.

Ultimately, putting numbers-based predictions on OU’s new tight ends is near impossible. But from the outside, it’s easy to assume that the position group will be better in 2026.