Initial OU-Georgia injury report rules out 5 Sooners, but optimism remains for Kip Lewis and David Stone

Oklahoma’s first availability report of the 2026 college football season was an immediate reminder of why Sooner Nation dreads these so much.

Wednesday evening brought the initial availability report ahead of the Sooners’ trip to play No. 2 Georgia on Saturday, and it already made known that OU will be without at least five players for its SEC opener, which includes four starters.

Listed out already were linebacker Taylor Heim, wide receiver Trell Harris, linebacker Cole Sullivan, safety Michael Boganowski and left tackle Michael Fasusi.

Heim hasn’t appeared in a game yet in 2026, but the rest of the group are regulars in the starting lineup when healthy. All of them were also sidelined last week for OU's 14-6 win against New Mexico.

The only good news to come from the report was linebacker Kip Lewis being listed as probable, which means he has a 75% chance of playing against the Bulldogs. Lewis injured his knee during Michigan's first possession in the Sooners' 17-10 loss to the Wolverines in Week 2, then missed last week. He's the heartbeat of the Sooners' defense and was also their leading tackler last season.

Defensive tackle David Stone was listed as questionable, which wasn’t a surprise based on what head coach Brent Venables said during Tuesday’s weekly press conference and the most recent report. A questionable tag gives players a 50% chance to play.

News 9 reporter Toby Rowland, who is also the radio voice of OU football, reported on Tuesday night that Stone is “pushing to play this week.” Venables had said that X-Rays came back positive and Stone’s pain level was a two on a scale from one to 10. A reporter, during a question, also mentioned that it was unknown how long Stone would be out, and Venables added, "If at all."

Venables then noted that the availability report would be released for updates, and reporters could put that news on their "pay sites," so here we are putting it on our free site.

Stone has been the biggest concern for OU fans after dislocating his left kneecap during practice on Monday. The immediate news was that the injury could end Stone's season, so even if he is out this week, that's still much better than initially feared.

He's coming off his best game yet as a Sooner after tying for a team-high eight tackles against New Mexico and leading the way with two tackles for loss. He's a former five-star recruit who's emerged as a first-round prospect if he finally meets his potential this year.

Injuries make Oklahoma's Georgia matchup that much more daunting

That's where the good news ends, though. The Sooners have a dormant offense, so they are again fully reliant on stellar defensive performances. But now, the defense will face its toughest challenge yet in Georgia's offense, which has the best scoring offense in all of FBS while averaging 59.3 points through three games.

There can at least be comfort knowing that this will be the Bulldogs' first real challenge after blowouts against Tennessee State, Western Kentucky and Arkansas. Georgia star running back Nate Frazier was also listed as questionable. Teams always want to face an opponent at full-strength, but the Bulldogs being without Frazier could level the playing field a little bit against OU's depleted run defense.

There's still no denying these injuries are brutal, and there's no need to make excuses for an OU less yet, but these are no doubt absences that would contribute to one.

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