Which Oklahoma Freshmen Could Push for Playing Time in 2026?

In 2026, the Sooners saw Courtland Guillory, Michael Fasusi and Ryan Fodje take meaningful roles as true freshmen at Oklahoma.

Guillory, a cornerback who tied for a team-high seven pass breakups, earned On3 Freshman All-American honors. Fasusi and Fodje, both former blue-chip offensive line prospects, combined for over 1,000 offensive snaps.

OU signed 25 players as part of its 2026 recruiting class. It remains to be seen whether any of them will be as impactful as Guillory, Fasusi and Fodje were in Year 1 — but several of the newcomers have earned praise from their teammates and coaches leading up to the season.

Here are some of the Sooners’ freshmen who could thrive in 2026:

Could push for first or second-team reps

Jonathan Hatton Jr.’s potential to be a Year 1 star has been a major storyline throughout fall camp.

Hatton, a bulky running back listed at 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds, was a consensus 4-star prospect from the Class of 2026. Junior running back Xavier Robinson praised Hatton’s speed, while John Mateer said that the freshman tailback is already a “reliable” option in the run game.

With Robinson, Tory Blaylock and Lloyd Avant, OU’s running back room is deep. But Hatton’s skill and physical traits make him someone who will likely enjoy a massive Year 1 role.

Freshman offensive lineman Noah Best is in the mix to start at center early in the season, due to Jake Maikkula’s injury.

Even before Maikkula went down, OU coach Brent Venables raved about Best’s steady improvement since his arrival in January. Best stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 319 pounds, and he’s battling Fodje and Caleb Nitta for the starting center spot in Maikkula’s absence.

OU’s defensive end room doesn’t need a starter. The Sooners retained Taylor Wein, Adepoju Adebawore and Danny Okoye after the 2025 season.

But edge rusher Jake Kreul has all the makings of a freshman star.

Kreul was OU’s highest-ranked signee from the 2026 recruiting cycle. ESPN graded him as a 5-star prospect, while all of the other major outlets had him as a 4-star.

Adebawore previously said that Kreul was “far” ahead of the freshman-year learning curve, while freshman quarterback Bowe Bentley called him a “freak.”

Even though Wein, Adebawore and Okoye will dominate the reps on the edges, Kreul is someone that will likely get thrown into the mix in both conference and non-conference games.

Finally, freshman defensive lineman James “Tank” Carrington could work his way up to a notable role behind David Stone and Jayden Jackson.

Carrington is listed at 6-foot-2 and 295 pounds on OU’s roster. Stone, named a preseason All-American by almost every national publication, said that Carrington “is going to be special.”

Stone and Jackson will almost certainly keep their starting roles for the entire 2026 season, but Carrington could emerge as the next star on the defensive line in Year 1.

Likely special teams weapons

Senior safety Peyton Bowen previously highlighted three players as players who could see notable special teams roles in 2026: defensive backs Markel Ford and Lebron Bauer and defensive end Daniel Norman.

Ford and Bauer are both defensive backs who hail from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Norman is a 6-foot-3, 241-pound edge rusher from Hollywood, FL, who has been “popping up on special teams a lot,” per Bowen.

In addition to those three, OU’s freshman wide receivers could follow the footsteps of Elijah Thomas and Manny Choice, who both starred on special teams as true freshmen in 2025.

The Sooners signed four wideouts — Jayden Petit, Daniel Odom, Jahsiear Rogers and Xavier Okwufulueze — in December. Petit impressed in the spring game, catching five passes for 70 yards, so he’s someone who could be ready to take special teams snaps during his first college football season.

Five-for-five beneficiaries

The aforementioned Bentley has battled with Whitt Newbauer for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart at quarterback, but it seems like Newbauer is in the best position to serve as John Mateer’s backup.

Still, Bentley will likely make a handful of appearances in 2026.

The freshman signal caller looked rough in the spring game, completing only five of his 13 pass attempts for 35 yards and two interceptions. But Bentley will benefit from game action against UTEP and, possibly, some of the Sooners’ other lopsided games.

Hatton seems more likely to play in Year 1, but fellow freshman tailback DeZephen Walker could also make some appearances.

Standing 5-foot-10 and weighing 216 pounds, Walker is another tailback with impressive size. Oklahoma’s opener against UTEP should give the Sooners an opportunity to empty the bench, and this could be an opportunity for Walker to show that he’s worthy of more appearances later in the season.

Realistically, more freshmen could see meaningful snaps than in previous years.

The NCAA passed the “5-for-5 rule” during the summer, meaning that student-athletes have five years to play five seasons. This rule change essentially removes redshirts from the picture.

As a result, Venables and his staff won’t have to do any roster math to determine which players should or shouldn’t use a redshirt year.

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