Oklahoma lands transfer defender Siolaa Lolohea in reunion move

New insider linebackers coach Nate Dreiling is already adding a little something to the Oklahoma football program.

Former Utah State and Oklahoma State defensive tackle Siolaa Lolohea announced via X on Tuesday evening that he committed to the Sooners out of the transfer portal. Lolohea entered the portal on Friday and OU offered him the same day, then he visited Norman on Monday before pledging the next day.

He will have three years of eligibility left.

Utah State DT Siolaa Lolohea commits to Sooners out of transfer portal to reunite with Nate Dreiling

Lolohea won't be a complete unknown in the building, though. He played under Dreiling at Utah State, where Dreiling was interim head coach and defensive coordinator last season. Dreiling then became Arkansas State's defensive coordinator in January, but was there less than a month before Brent Venables called in February and lured Dreiling to OU.

Dreiling will not directly coach Lolohea and the defensive tackles, but he's still on the defensive staff to be reunited with one of his former players.

OU is Lolohea's third destination already in his young career, however, it's been a shaky situation at Utah State that was worth leaving, especially for an SEC program like OU.

From Trinity High School in Euless, Texas, this will also be Lolohea's second stop in the state of Oklahoma. He started his career at Oklahoma State, where he redshirted and never saw the field in 2023.

Last season at Utah State with Dreiling in charge, Lolohea played in eight games as a redshirt freshman, recording 10 tackles and a tackle for loss. He had a season-high three tackles against then-No. 21 Boise State and star running back Ashton Jeanty.

Lolohea, listed at 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds, is the Sooners' third commitment from the transfer portal during this spring cycle and first on the defensive side of the ball. OU signed Stanford offensive lineman Jake Maikkula and Cal running back Jaydn Ott the day before the transfer portal even opened.

With former five-star recruit David Stone withdrawing from the portal and staying with what was already a stacked defensive tackle room at OU, Lolohea is a depth piece to help the Sooners endure a physical SEC slate in the trenches and also adds size as OU's seventh defensive tackle that weighs over 300 pounds.

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