Winners and Losers From Oklahoma's Transfer Portal Efforts

Oklahoma struck fast in the transfer portal.

The Sooners worked efficiently over the first weekend after the portal officially opened, landing a host of their top targets to build the roster ahead of the 2026 season.

General manager Jim Nagy’s first full portal cycle on paper looks like a major success, as he worked with the coaching staff to upgrade the Sooners’ offense.

Here are the biggest winners and losers from Oklahoma’s work in the transfer portal.

Winner: John Mateer

Oklahoma Sooners, John Mateer — Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer arrives before facing Alabama in the CFP. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

There wasn’t much drama in quarterback John Mateer’s future plans.

After battling through injury in his first season both at OU and in the SEC, the signal caller will be back in Norman in 2026.

And he’ll have a lot more help.

Mateer’s arsenal was upgraded across the board. Nagy landed All-ACC Third Team receiver Trell Harris after he caught 59 passes for 847 yards and five scores last year.

Former Texas Longhorn Parker Livingstone will give Mateer a bona fide red zone target, and his favorite receiver, Isaiah Sategna, returns.

OU also added a handful of experienced tight ends in Florida transfer Hayden Hansen, Colorado State transfer Rocky Beers and Tennessee transfer Jack Van Dorselaer to fill the void left after Jaren Kanak’s graduation.

The Sooners also retained running backs Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock, meaning Mateer should have much more support from the offense around him as he looks to improve on his 2025 body of work.

Loser: Linebacker Depth

Oklahoma Sooners, Sammy Omosigho — Oklahoma linebacker Sammy Omosigho entered the transfer portal after the Sooners landed former Michigan linebacker Cole Sullivan. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

The depth Oklahoma had at linebacker in 2025 was a luxury that few teams will enjoy in the transfer portal era.

Kip Lewis will return, and the Sooners landed Michigan transfer Cole Sullivan, but OU lost capable hands in Kobie McKinzie and Sammy Omosigho to the portal.

If Owen Heinecke is able to win his appeal to the NCAA for an additional year of eligibility, the Sooners will have three experienced hands at inside linebacker that will buy more time for the younger members of Nate Dreiling’s unit to develop.

There’s nothing preventing underclassmen from growing into roles as key contributors, either, but as far as game-proven depth goes, OU’s linebacking corps took a hit.

Winner: Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock

Oklahoma Sooners, Xavier Robinson — Oklahoma running back Xavier Robinson rushes for a touchdown against Ole Miss. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

Mateer won’t be the only one to benefit from Oklahoma’s tight end additions.

Robinson and Blaylock should enjoy improved blocking on the perimeter thanks to Hansen, Beers and Van Dorselaer.

Add in another year of development for young offensive linemen Michael Fasusi, Eddy Pierre-Louis and Ryan Fodje, and there is plenty of reasonable optimism that OU’s rushing attack can improve over the offseason.

Robinson and Blaylock themselves will improve as they get fully healthy again, and the arrival of freshman Jonathan Hatton Jr. could take some of the workload off the shoulders of Oklahoma’s running backs.

Loser: Todd Bates

Oklahoma Sooners Todd Bates — Oklahoma coach Todd Bates coaches his group during one of OU's fall camp practices. | John E. Hoover / Sooners On SI

Todd Bates’ abilities as OU’s defensive tackles coach are unquestioned.

He helped develop Gracen Halton into one of the SEC’s most impactful interior defensive linemen, as well as building a rotation of difference-makers with Damonic Williams, David Stone and Jayden Jackson battling alongside Halton.

Though Williams and Halton are moving on, the returns of Stone and Jackson will give Bates a pair of top-end starters.

But he was ready for Markus Strong to break into the rotation while bringing along youngsters like Trent Wilson.

Strong opted to head to the portal for more playing time, however, and his value was on full display when Clemson swooped in to sign him.

Oklahoma was also unable to land Michigan State transfer Alex Van Sumeran, and while OU did add Georgia State’s Bishop Thomas, the Sooners would have loved to be able to see more of Bates’ handiwork come to fruition with Strong as a piece of the 2026 defensive line.

Winner: Jim Nagy

Oklahoma Sooners, Jim Nagy — Oklahoma general manager Jim Nagy at the CFP game against Alabama. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

Though the Sooners were unable to land Van Sumeran, the misses were few and far between for Nagy in his first winter transfer portal window.

His effectiveness was limited last year, as he only had the post-spring portal window to work with.

Nagy took big swings on running back Jaydn Ott and center Jake Maikkula, and while Ott didn’t pan out, Maikkula quickly won the starting center job after Troy Everett went down with an injury.

Now, with the entire pool of transfer portal players available to him, Nagy and his staff quickly identified OU’s wants and needs and got those players on campus and signed.

The addition of Harris seemed to go off without a hitch or a major bidding war, and Nagy, with the help of Brent Venables and the rest of the coaching staff, won the battles for Sullivan and Livingstone.

He brought in established Power 4 talent for OU’s biggest positions of need, and relied on evaluations for a handful of players taking a step up in competition from their last stops in college football.

Nagy’s work can only truly be graded once the Sooners hit the field next fall, but on paper, his front office looked like a well-oiled machine in January.

Winner: John Mateer

Loser: Linebacker Depth

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Winner: Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock

Loser: Todd Bates

Winner: Jim Nagy