It certainly shouldn't be assumed the Oklahoma Sooners do not want the 2026 quarterback they already have committed.
Despite Jaden O'Neal being committed to OU since last summer, the Sooners in January offered a second up-and-coming QB from the class in Bowe Bentley. The attention has been on Bentley as he closes in on a decision, but OU is also still prioritizing O'Neal and reportedly visited his home on Monday night.
It was a whole host of coaches who visited O'Neal in nearby Mustang, Oklahoma, including new offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, defensive tackles coach Todd Bates, tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley and wide receivers coach Emmett Jones, according to Brandon Drumm of Rivals.
Oklahoma coaching staff visits Jaden O'Neal
O'Neal committed to the Sooners last June when Seth Littrell was OU's offensive coordinator, but a lot has happened since. Littrell was fired only six games into last season and was eventually replaced by Arbuckle, who came from Washington State. During that time, starting sophomore quarterback Jackson Arnold transferred to Auburn, and John Mateer followed Arbuckle to OU as the No. 1 player available in the transfer portal. Sophomore quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. is still with the Sooners after starting four games last year.
Then, shortly after Arbuckle arrived, he offered Bentley, who was barely on recruiting services' radar at the time. Since, Bentley has risen as a consensus four-star recruit and top-10 quarterback in the 2026 class. He recently surpassed O'Neal in all recruiting rankings. With official visit season here, Bentley has narrowed his choices down to OU and LSU.
Through all that movement, though, O'Neal still stayed committed to the Sooners and publicly affirmed it multiple times. He even moved closer from California to Mustang, Oklahoma, where he'll play his senior season during the recruiting drama.
It's evident O'Neal wants to be a Sooner, but his hand was also forced to at least entertain other options since OU was too. Bentley visited OU twice during February and March, and just days after Bentley was in Norman in March, O'Neal made a trip to Georgia, which was also pursuing Bentley but recently locked in a quarterback. The Bulldogs had offered O'Neal just three days after OU offered Bentley.
O'Neal has also visited Florida State and Auburn since. He has an official visit to FSU scheduled for June 13 and will be in Norman on June 20 during OU's ChampU recruiting weekend. Bentley has official visits planned to LSU on May 30 and to OU on June 6. That means the Sooners should know Bentley's decision before O'Neal's official visit. 247Sports recently predicted Bentley to choose LSU, so this could also be the writing on the wall.
The Sooners are juggling two stellar quarterback prospects, but last year, they lost their 2025 QB commit just days before signing day. Now, OU is doing all it can to not fumble two quarterbacks away and have to start all over this summer.
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