Oklahoma defense gets richer after Sooners win Red River portal battle for budding star

If Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables believes he's good, then he must be.

Former UTSA defensive lineman Kenny Ozowalu committed to the Sooners out of the Transfer Portal with three years of eligibility left, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel on Tuesday. Ozowalu became the Sooners' ninth addition from the portal so far this cycle, but just the second on the defensive side of the ball.

Brent Venables gets another weapon with Kenny Ozowalu commitment

Ozowalu was one of the most in-demand defensive players in the portal after a stellar redshirt-freshman campaign at UTSA. This season, Ozowalu tallied 17 tackles, six tackles for loss, three sacks and 22 pressures in 12 games and 10 starts at defensive end. His sack total was second on the team.

Saturday Blitz ranked Ozowalu as the No. 10 edge rusher available in the portal this cycle.

Once Ozowalu decided to transfer, he had reported interest from multiple SEC programs thanks to the luxury of multiple years of eligibility. He visited Norman over the weekend and posted about how well it went, then he took a trip to Texas before making the correct Red River decision.

The Sooners had one of the best defensive lines in the country this season, but still needed some more depth along the front to continue that success after losing starters R Mason Thomas and Marvin Jones Jr. Taylor Wein will slot in easy at one of the edges next season, but the other side and depth pieces will now include Ozowalu, Danny Okoye, Adepoju Adebawore and possibly even incoming 2026 signee Jake Kreul.

Venables tends to heavily rotate his defensive front to stay fresh with almost constant pressure in one of the most aggressive defenses in college football. The Sooners pushing hard enough to beat out multiple big-time programs to get Ozowalu means they likely see a player who can make an immediate impact and also even develop into a star in the next three years.