Will injuries hamper firepower expected from Oklahoma's talented, deep receiver group?

Over the last three years, the Oklahoma pass offense has gone from 32nd in 2021 among FBS teams to 42nd in 2022 and all the way up to No. 6 in the country last season.

Five of the top six pass receivers in both receptions and yardage are back again for the 2024 season, plus the recruiting class and transfer portal add several more players expected to be major contributors this season. Only Drake Stoops is gone this season from the Oklahoma receivers, who caught 310 passes for 4,223 yards and 34 touchdowns in the 2023 season.

This could easily be the deepest and most talented receiver group in the country. This position group stands out as the strength of the OU offense, which is under the direction and leadership of new co-offensive coordinators this season as well as a new starting quarterback throwing to the Sooner receivers this season.

Former five-star recruit and National Gatorade Player of the Year Jackson Arnold will be at the wheel for Oklahoma this season, and there is good reason to believe that the Oklahoma offense could be more difficult to contain than it has been the past several years. And we're talking about an offense that ranked No. 3 among FBS teams this past season.

Arnold has been looking confident and very impressive in fall practice so far. He arguably is a more talented player than Dillon Gabriel, who was the starting QB for the Sooners the last two season, but he does lack the experience of Gabriel, who is playing out his final year of eligibility as a member of the Oregon Ducks.

As Oklahoma heads into its final two and a half weeks before its season opener with Temple, however, there are injury concerns for several Sooner wide receivers who are expected to deliver major contributions in the 2024 season.

During the first week of fall camp, 6-foot, 5-inch junior Jayden Gibson suffered a knee injury. He was expected to undergo an MRI to determine the seriousness of the injury, but an update has not been provided. Gibson caught 14 passes a year ago for 375 yards and five touchdowns. Senior Jalil Farooq is still rehabbing from a broken foot suffered in the spring, and senior Andel Anthony is working his way back after tearing his ACL in the win over Texas last fall. Also, Nic Anderson was banged up a little in the opening week of practice. These four are OU's top four returning receivers.

What wide receivers coach Emmett Jones is really excited about heading into the new season is that perhaps the best wide receiver on the roster wasn't even here last season. The Sooner picked up Purdue transfer Deion Burks from the transfer portal. The speed and athleticism of 5-foot, 9-inch junior transfer make him a legitimate threat to take it the distance on every play. He caught everyone's attention in the spring game, catching five passes for 174 yards and two touchdowns.

A year ago at Purdue, Burks caught a team-high 47 passes for 629 receiving yards and seven touchdowns.

The Sooners definitely need Farooq, Anthony and Gibson to get healthy and return to the lineup, but in case any of the three might not be ready to go for the season opener, Oklahoma will be looking for speedster Brenen Thompson, the former transfer from Texas, and Jaquaize Pettaway, another speed demon to step up in their second full season in Norman as well as freshman newcomers Ivan Carreon and Zion Kearney

The competitive depth in this Sooner receiver group may be the best it has ever been at Oklahoma, but the Sooners will need all hands on deck and available to make a difference against the elite defense they are going to go up against this season in the SEC.