Oklahoma adds former star QB as fifth kicker on roster

Collin Kennedy of 247Sports pointed out on Wednesday that the Oklahoma Sooners quietly added a former dynamic high school athlete to their roster ahead of fall camp, but in an unusual spot.

Preston Tarpley is now listed as a freshman kicker on the Sooners' 2025 football roster. He used to do it all for Texas Class 3A Division II powerhouse Gunter High School, though. His former high school also announced the news of Tarpley joining the Sooners on Wednesday.

Former high school star QB Preston Tarpley added to Sooners' roster as kicker

Tarpley played quarterback, kicker and punter for Gunter High School, which has won three state championships in a row. As a kicker, Tarpley made 10 of 11 field-goal attempts and was 81-for-83 on point-after attempts. He also had kickoff duties with a 75% touchback rate.

His kicking probably went unnoticed for the most part, though, as the team's starting quarterback. Tarpley threw for 2,445 yards and scored 28 total touchdowns while leading Gunter High School to another championship.

Adding Tarpley was not only a quiet move by the Sooners, but also odd. Tarpley became the fifth kicker on OU's roster after the Sooners had already added three kickers from the Transfer Portal over the offseason. The Sooners also had Liam Evans, a redshirt freshman from Moore, Oklahoma, already on the team.

UTSA transfer Tate Sandell appeared to be the frontrunner to be the Sooners' starting kicker this season. He got to OU this spring after OU's kicking game struggled during the Crimson Combine.

In the winter, Austin Welch transferred from Kennesaw State and Grayson Miller came from Division-II Central Oklahoma. OU also brought in punter Jacob Ulrich from Kennesaw State. Ulrich is the only punter listed on the Sooners' roster.

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