Why Oklahoma OC Ben Arbuckle Describes Sooners' Backup QBs as 'Cerebral'

NORMAN — The hope for Oklahoma is that quarterback John Mateer will stay healthy for the entire 2026 season.

But if any unforeseen circumstances arise, OU offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle is confident that the two guys behind Mateer on the depth chart — Whitt Newbauer and Bowe Bentley — can play winning football.

“They’re both extremely cerebral, smart, see the field and understand what we’re trying to do from a front perspective and ultimately an out in-space perspective,” Arbuckle said. “(I) just can’t say enough about those two.”

Newbauer and Bentley are listed as co-backups on the Sooners’ Week 1 depth chart. Both of them could see playing time in OU’s season opener against UTEP on Friday considering the Sooners are 41.5-point favorites and they’ll likely want to rest Mateer in the second half.

The comfort Arbuckle feels around the backup quarterback situation is fairly new.

“In the spring there were some… I wouldn’t say dark days, but we’d be in the QB room and it’s like, ‘What are you looking at right here?’” Arbuckle said. “And it’s not just one of them.”

Newbauer is entering his third college football season and his second with the Sooners. He began his college career at Mercer before transferring to OU and making a handful of appearances in 2025.

Bentley, on the other hand, is a true freshman. He was a consensus 4-star prospect in the Class of 2026, but he struggled in Oklahoma’s spring game, completing only five of his 13 pass attempts for 35 yards and two interceptions.

For Bentley specifically, Arbuckle believes that his struggles were necessary for him to develop as a quarterback.

“I think there were a lot of learning curves in the spring,” Arbuckle said. “Just mentally, speed of the game, a whole new kind of offense that he’s not used to. But watching him in the summer and throughout fall camp just get it and get it and get it over and over and over again I thought was really exciting for the offense, for the future, for myself as a coach.”

Despite some of the growing pains that Arbuckle mentioned, Newbauer and Bentley’s coachability allowed the two to improve quickly, according to the offensive coordinator.

“They don’t take anything personal,” Arbuckle said. “They want to be coached, and that’s really cool because you get to coach them really hard. You get to hold them accountable to what the standard of the offense is, what the standard of playing quarterback is. And they don’t shy away from it.”

Arbuckle also believes that Newbauer and Bentley’s camaraderie helped both of them become more prepared for game action.

The two signal callers have spent the last several months battling for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart, and they’ll continue to do so in the early portion of the season.

But, per Arbuckle, the quarterbacks never let the competition become toxic. And he believes that sets OU’s offense up well for the future.

“One of them makes a good throw, they’re going crazy for each other,” Arbuckle said. “That’s awesome to me. I think that breeds excellence. That breeds competition. That breeds continuity and togetherness. And so those two guys are great kids.”

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