Sooner Football Profile: Getting to Know Tight End Mark Andrews

Just over three minutes remained before halftime in Game 3 of the 2015 Sooner football season as OU quarterback Baker Mayfield took the snap on a third-and-two play, spotted redshirt freshman Mark Andrews streaking down the center of the field and delivered the ball to him for a 61-yard touchdown strike and Andrews’ first touchdown as a collegian.

The 6-5, 245-pound Sooner tight end from Scottsdale, Ariz., has been on the receiving end of eight passes from Mayfield in four games, three of which have been for touchdowns.

Andrews caught two touchdown passes in OU’s 52-38 victory over Tulsa (he had a 17-yard scoring catch later in the game, in the third quarter, to go along with his 61-yard TD reception). Of his three pass receptions against Tulsa, two of them were for touchdowns.

Sep 19, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners tight end Mark Andrews (81) and Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Dede Westbrook (11) celebrate after a touchdown against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane during the second quarter at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

He recorded his third touchdown reception last weekend against West Virginia. The big tight end scored the Sooners first touchdown against the Mountaineers on a 17-yard pass from Mayfield.

Asked about his feeling after catching two touchdown passes in the Tulsa win, Andrews told reporters in the team’s postgame press conference: “It was an awesome feeling. I have not been in the back of the end zone in almost two years, so it was a great feeling being able to do that.”

Through the Sooners’ first four games of the 2015 season, all OU victories, Andrews has a total of eight receptions for 154 yards.

Andrews was a four-star recruit who came to Oklahoma as a member of the Sooners 2014 recruiting class after a sensational high school career as a receiver. He was highly recruited, one of the top overall players in the state of Arizona, and had offers from such high-profile programs as Alabama, Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State and USC in addition to OU.

He was redshirted for the 2014 season, so his first game in a Sooner jersey was the season opener this year with Akron. Sooner fans heard the sure-handed tight-end’s name several times that evening as the big target pulled in four passes from Mayfield, who was also making his OU debut, for 50 receiving yards.

Andrews is a warrior on the gridiron. All the more admirable when you realize that he suffers from Type 1 diabetes. He is determined not to let the condition overtake his life.

“That’s something that is big for me, not letting it (diabetes) define who you are,” Andrews told Tulsa World staff writer Eric Bailey for an article in the newspaper last week. “It’s definitely a part of who you are. That’s something I live by and I think strongly of.”

Something tells me we are hearing a lot more about this talented young tight end the rest of this season and in the years ahead.