Sooners' defensive secondary has gone from national joke to one of country's best
By Chip Rouse
It wasn't too many years ago that Oklahoma's pass defense ranked rock bottom, 130 out of 130 NCAA Division I teams. Brent Venables' first season as the Sooners' head coach wasn't much better, with OU finishing 119th nationally in defending the forward pass.
Pass defense is the primary responsibility of the cornerbacks and safeties, who largely patrol the back end, or the last line of defense on the football field.
In the past couple of years -- with Venables and the Sooner defensive coaches placing prime emphasis on improving the Oklahoma defense in preparation and readiness for the move to the Southeastern Conference, widely considered the best of the best in college football -- a major transformation has been taking place, and nowhere is that more evident than in the Sooner secondary, where talent, skill level and roster depth is becoming a competitive advantage.
Phil Steele's 2024 College Football Preview publication and Athlon Sports, in previewing the upcoming college football season, rank the Oklahoma defensive back as the second best group nationally at the Division I level.
Senior Billy Bowman Jr. is the anchor of the Oklahoma secondary at free safety. Bowman earned All-America honors last season and was an All-Big 12 First-Team selection. A three-year starter from Denton, Texas, Bowman ranked second nationally last season with six interceptions and lead all of Division I with three interceptions returned for touchdowns and 288 interception return yards. Along with All-American linebacker Danny Stutsman, Bowman elected to forgo the NFL Draft and return to OU for his senior season.
Robert Spears-Jennings and former five-star recruit Peyton Bowen will likely rotate at the strong safety position, and Bowen could also see action at free safety backing up Bowman. Spears-Jennings had an impressive outing in the spring game in April, making a couple of tackles, including a tackle for loss. Bowen did not play in the spring game nursing an injury, but played in all 13 games for the Sooners last season and did well as a freshman.
It is easy to pencil in four-year starter Woodi Washington at one of the cornerback positions, but the Sooners have shown an interest in moving him around in the secondary this coming season. This will be Washington's sixth season with the Sooners, the longest-tenured player on the roster. He is the career leader with 19 pass breakups and is second with five interceptions. When
When Washington isn't manning one of the corner spots, it probably will be San Diego State transfer Dez Malone, In 12 games for the Aztecs last season, Malone recorded 47 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, 1.0 sack, 7.0 pass breakups and an interception. Malone has two years of eligibility remaining.
The other cornerback starter will be junior Gentry Williams. The home-grown, consensus four-star recruit from Tulsa had labrum surgery this offseason, but Brent Venables said this week that he has been fully cleared for the start of fall practice. Sophomore Makari Vickers is No. 2 on the depth chart behind Williams. Vickers, himself a consensus four-star and top-125 national recruit, missed four games last season due to injury, but did see action in eight games at defensive back and totaled 8.0 tackles and one pass breakup.
One of the main reasons for the high national recognition the Sooner defensive back is receiving ahead of the 2024 season is the competitive depth and versatility in the position group, something that didn't exist in recent years and that Venables and defensive coaches Brandon Hall and Jay Valai have been working hard to correct. And the fruits of their labor is beginning to show up by virtue of higher-rated defensive talent wouldn't give a second look at Oklahoma previously plus selective transfer additions for experience and to fill areas of need.
Two other defensive backs on the roster that will probably also see plenty of action during the coming season are senior Kendel Dolby, who will probably also see some time at the "Cheetah" position, and sophomore Jacobe Johnson, who provides length at 6-foot, 2 inches and hails from nearby Mustang, Oklahoma, 32 miles northwest of Norman.
With seven defensive backs -- four safeties and three cornerbacks and five of the seven rated as four-star prospects -- as part of the incoming 2024 recruiting class and two more four-star safety commits in the 2025 class -- it is patently apparent that Oklahoma intends to continue to build and improve the back end of the defense by bringing in and developing elite talent that fit the OU culture and Venables' vision for a championship-level defense.