Possible Braxton Fely addition might just force Oklahoma fans to embrace the roster madness

It’s just over 24 hours until the Oklahoma Sooners begin their 2026 college football season, and apparently the roster still isn’t complete.

CBS Sports national college football senior reporter Matt Zenitz reported on Thursday afternoon that Boise State star defensive lineman Braxton Fely planned to enter the transfer portal, with OU as the most likely landing spot, then just a few hours later, SoonerScoop's George Stoia reported that Fely would be on the Sooners' roster by the end of the night before their season opener against UTEP on Friday. According to Stoia, OU didn't have to make any roster cuts to make this possible.

Sooners aren't finished with roster yet, just a day before the season opener

This is the type of news college football fans have come to hate, with offseason moves still happening after the college football season has already started, but it’s also an opportunity OU fans can’t help but love in a way for the Sooners. Oklahoma's defensive front is already poised to be one of the best in the country, so adding Fely to the mix should be something the rest of the SEC prays doesn’t happen.

Fely to this point had spent his entire career at Boise State, which is consistently one of the top Group of 6 programs in college football and should be again in 2026. Much of what the Broncos do is built on a stout defense, and Fely has been the centerpiece of the that the last few seasons.

He’s a two-time All-Mountain West Second-Team selection the past two years. He finished 2025 with 24 total tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks while starting all 14 games.

The only knock against Fely is that he’s never faced an SEC offensive line before, but he does have the size at 6-foot-1 and 296 pounds, plus invaluable experience in the College Football Playoff.

Fely got another year of eligibility because the NCAA’s new 5-in-5 ruling and the fallout that followed, but it’s still no guarantee he gets to play or if it would be in Norman.

There’s no doubt Fely would take the Sooners’ defensive front to another level that was unthought of just hours ago. He would add rare veteran depth behind starters David Stone and Jayden Jackson at defensive tackle.

The Sooners could also soon add even more depth at the same position through the same avenue with former Arkansas defensive tackle Danny Saili. After joining Oklahoma last month, Saili was eventually ruled ineligible and OU was expected to move on, but during Wednesday’s SEC coaches call, Brent Venables said Saili had been practicing with the Sooners. Oklahoma is just waiting for a court ruling before he can play in games, and on Thursday, he was given a TRO.

It’s all undeniably a mess that, at times, felt like the Sooners should avoid altogether, especially with the season starting the next day. Obviously neither of these possible additions could contribute Friday night and probably not even Week 2 against Michigan.

But if this is college football in 2026, then maybe the Sooners (and their fans) just embrace the chaos if it helps win a national title and welcome whoever Venables adds to the roster, whenever that might be.

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