David Pollack gives Oklahoma fans more reason to stand tall all offseason

College football analyst David Pollack is going to have Oklahoma football fans puffing out their chests all offseason.

Pollack, who used to be at ESPN, had some words during his podcast, "See Ball Get Ball," that should give the Sooners a jolt of confidence for the 2026 college football season, especially about OU's offensive line, where Bill Bedenbaugh's group returns four of five starters from down the stretch of last season.

Hype building for Sooners' offensive line with returning talent

"To me, it's always, 'They got so-and-so starters coming back.' Awesome, but are they any good?" Pollack said. "Just because they're returning doesn't make them take a giant leap unless they're really good. When I look at some of the guys up front, I think they have some talent. They have some guys. I think youth was a big part of the problem. I don't think it's talent.

"That's where I think if you're an Oklahoma fan, you better be jacked up. If you're an Oklahoma hater, good luck. Texas, if you want them to be bad again, if you want them to go back to where they were, they're not. They've taken that step forward."

The Sooners weren't spectacular up front last season, especially in run blocking, but they had three freshmen starting along the offensive line by the end of the season with Michael Fasusi at left tackle, Ryan Fodje at right tackle and redshirt freshman Eddy Pierre-Louis at guard. All three are back, along with redshirt senior Jake Maikkula at center.

Pollack specifically praised Fasusi and Maikkula when it came to seeing talent. Although Maikkula was already a veteran last year, it was his first season at OU and in the SEC after transferring from Stanford. Fasusi was the headliner of the Sooners' 2025 signing class as a five-star recruit and is destined for the NFL, but he definitely looked like a freshman trying to figure things out throughout the season. And so did Fodje, who was also part of that 2025 class as a four-star recruit and immediately thrown into the fire.

Despite the youth up front influencing offensive woes, the Sooners still went 10-3 and made the College Football Playoff. The offense should be at another level in 2026 with quarterback John Mateer returning healthy and with more weapons at receiver. That offensive front will also pave the way again for the breakout 1-2 punch of Xavier Robinson and Tory Blaylock at running back. Offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle has also already credited the offensive line for taking his unit up a notch this spring.

There will be a lot of hype surrounding the Sooners the next five months before the season kicks off, and there's really no reason fans shouldn't embrace it after head coach Brent Venables turned the corner in 2025 before most of his roster has even reached its full potential.