Ranking the top seven linebackers in school history

Oklahoma football: Ranking the top seven linebackers in school history

NORMAN, OK - NOVEMBER 20: The Oklahoma Sooners flag is waved from the field after a touchdown against the Iowa State Cyclones in the first quarter at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on November 20, 2021 in Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners won 28-21. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images) /

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Unknown Date; Norman, OK; USA; FILE PHOTO; Oklahoma Sooners linebacker Brian Bosworth (44) in action against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 1 — Brian Bosworth

“The Boz” had to be No. 1 on this list. What can be written that hasn’t already been written about Bosworth? He was flashy, cocky, arrogant and had a mean streak that served him well on the football field. He was simply unblockable and the perfect superstar for the Barry Switzer era in Norman.

He was a three-year starter from 1984 to 1986, and he was given the Butkus Award in his final two seasons. He finished fourth in Heisman voting in his final year, and wreaked havoc on the Big 8 and the country. Bosworth is one of the most colorful characters in college football lore, and played on raw instinct and ability. His athleticism at the position was almost unheard of at the time.

The Boz embodied what the Sooners were about in the mid-’80s under Switzer, and he backed up all his talk on his way to becoming one of the greatest linebackers in the history of college football and the greatest linebacker in OU history.

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