Oklahoma football: Tide starting to turn on transfer portal plus side for 2024 Sooners

Just a few days after what head coach Brent Venables calls Oklahoma football Team 129 completed its final regular-season game as a member of the Big 12 Conference, the names started surfacing of OU players who are entering college football free agency via the transfer portal.

Most of the announcements were not all that surprising, but one name did catch a lot of fans off guard. Not because the player was moving on but because of how and where he was headed.

Quarterback Dillon Gabriel was expected by many to declare for the NFL Draft after this season. He did still, however, have another season of eligibility remaining because of the shortened Covid 19 season, and after learning what his NFL Draft predetermination was he has elected to exercise his eligibility waiver and play one more college season. As most every Sooner fan knows, Gabriel entered the transfer portal and has committed to play next season for the Oregon Ducks.

Gabriel, of course, is the headliner among the Sooners who have entered the portal. As of Dec. 11, a total of 13 Oklahoma players have declared their transfer plans. Two other former Sooners (O-linemen Andrew Raym and Tyler Guyton) have declared for the NFL Draft. Early on, it was believed All-American linebacker Danny Stutsman was also going to leave for the NFL, but he has changed his mind and elected to return for another season.

Among those we know of so far who are leaving Norman via the transfer highway are three running backs (Marcus Major, Tawee Walker and Daylan Smothers), two defensive linemen (Kelvin Gilliam Jr. and Marcus Hicks), three offensive linemen (Cayden Green, Savion Byrd and Nate Anderson) as well as QB Gabriel, DE Reggie Grimes, DB Key Lawrence, TE Jason Llewellyn and WR D.J. Graham.

The negative side of the transfer portal ledger always runs ahead of incoming transfer side because it takes some time before the transfer candidates find a new landing place.

The plus side of the OU transfer ledger has started to gain some steam. We know of three incoming transfers so far and will certainly learn of others in the coming weeks as the two-way vetting process plays out.

Offensive tackle Spencer Brown from Michigan State committed to the Sooners on Dec. 6, two days after the transfer portal opened for 2024. Brown comes to Norman as a graduate transfer. He has one more season of eligibility and is expected to take the place of Walter Rouse, whose eligibility ends with the 2023 season. The 6-foot, 6-inch, 315-pound O-lineman made 24 starts for Michigan State.

This past weekend, defensive back Dezjohn Malone committed to Oklahoma on Dec. 10. Malone appeared in 25 games over four seasons for the San Diego State Aztecs. He will have two years of eligibility remaining.

The third incoming transfer to pick the Sooners is Deion Burks, a coveted wide receiver who comes to OU by way of Purdue. Burks had a standout redshirt-sophomore season in 2023 for the Boilermakers. He caught 47 passes for 629 yards and seven touchdowns and was a second-team All-Big Ten selection. He was scheduled to visit Texas, one of several suitors for his services, this week but cancelled that visit after meeting with Brent Venables this week.

“For the next month it’s kind of like Christmas every day,” Venables said last week at the Alamo Bowl press conference in talking about working the transfer portal along with the traditional high school recruiting process.

"“It’s all hard,” the Sooner head coach said. “It does present many challenges, but whatever challenges it presents Oklahoma, it presents the same for everyone else in college football.”"

With the early signing period coming up on Dec. 20 for the 2024 recruiting class and the transfer portal open until Jan. 1, plus an Alamo Bowl game on Dec. 28 to prepare for, it goes without saying, but here goes anyway: Venables and his staff have their work cut out for them this month.

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