Top 5 Oklahoma Sooners fall camp storylines

Oklahoma Sooners will open fall camp on Wednesday, July 30, and will have a media availability following their first practice of fall camp. It's a team that will enter the season with a lot of buzz despite several questions on the roster. Though they were picked to finish 10th by the SEC media, head coach Brent Venables has faith the Sooners can be a contender in 2025.

Though there's a lot of talent on the roster, it's still a team that has a lot to prove after what happened in 2025. But they were aggressive in the offseason to remedy areas where they may have fallen short. Whether it was an upgrade in talent that needed to happen or better depth to combat injuries, the Sooners made a number of additions that could help them climb to the top of the SEC this season.

But with fall camp set to kick off, what are the top five storylines we'll be following over the next month?

5. John Mateer is the Man

If he pulled back his blue practice jersey, you probably wouldn't see an "S" on his chest. But it feels like the weight of the OU Football world is on his shoulders heading into 2025. Of course, that's what comes with being the No. 1 transfer portal quarterback and the quarterback of the Oklahoma Sooners.

Based on all reports, he's a confident young man, and he pushed the Oklahoma defense in practices during spring ball. And if you can push the Oklahoma Sooners defense, one that's expected to be among the best in the SEC in 2025, success is likely right around the corner.

Football is a team game but if Mateer lives up to all of the preseason hype, Oklahoma has a great one leading the way for this team in 2025.

4. What does Oklahoma do at wide receiver?

Deion Burks feels like a sure thing at wide receiver, but he missed most of the 2024 season, along with the rest of the veteran wide receiver group. The Sooners like what they have in Javonnie Gibson and Jayden Gibson, but will they be ready for the start of the season?

Isaiah Sategna has made a strong impression on the coaching staff and will have an opportunity to make a big impact. Younger players like Zion Kearney and Elijah Thomas have also stood out during offseason practice.

There are a lot of guys the Sooners like, but there are answers as to how the wide receiver snaps will be distributed right now.

3. Which Sooners step up at cornerback?

The defense is locked and loaded with stars at every level of the defense. The one question is who starts and plays a lot of the season at cornerback. The Sooners tried the transfer portal to fill their cornerback needs over the last few years with guys like Kani Walker, Dez Malone, and C.J. Coldon with mixed results.

It's a group with a number of blue-chip players on the depth chart. Gentry Williams, Jacobe Johnson, Jeremiah Newcombe, Courtland Guillory, and Devon Jordan were four-star prospects in the 247Sports composite rankings coming out of high school. Eli Bowen proved more than capable of playing at the collegiate level last season.

Injuries limited Williams over the last couple of seasons, but he sounds like he'll be ready to roll in 2025. He's a veteran of the Brent Venables defense

2. Can the Sooners find a consistent group along the offensive line?

The Oklahoma Sooners had 10 different offensive line combinations in 2024 due to injuries. They had to rely on a couple of redshirt freshmen in Logan Howland and Heath Ozaeta to play starter's snaps in the second half of the season.

Yes, the offensive line is a concern heading into the season, but it's a group with better experience and better depth heading into 2025. There are returning starters in Jacob Sexton, Troy Everett, Febechi Nwaiwu, Logan Howland, and Heath Ozaeta. Oklahoma added transfer portal players with starting experience in Derek Simmons, Jake Maikkula, and Luke Baklenko. 2024 signees Eddy Pierre-Louis and Daniel Akinkunmi have impressed this offseason and could be in line for an expanded role. And then there are the blue-chippers that impressed during their first fall camp in Michael Fasusi and Ryan Fodje.

But consistency will be important. Oklahoma doesn't want to be forced to go deep into their depth chart like they had to last year when they played four different centers throughout the season. Competition is important. Finding the best five is huge. But they also need to have the answer to the question coming out of fall camp. They'll face a really good Michigan defense in week two. Not a lot of time to ease into the season.

1. Can Oklahoma be reasonably healthy?

It can't get much worse than last year, right?

What was going on in the trainer's room became a bigger story than what was happening on the field for most if not all of the 2024 season. You can't really tell the story of Oklahoma's first season in the SEC without talking about the inordinate amount of injuries OU suffered.

As much as people are excited about this team and their potential in 2025, any injury, even a minor one will have people thinking, "here we go again." The Sooners have a lot of talent on both sides of the ball and, on paper, better depth than what they had last year. But nobody wants to see that depth put to the test.

Heading into fall camp, the only issues from the spring are the recoveries of wide receivers Jayden Gibson and Javonnie Gibson. Eli Bowen is coming back from the ankle sprain that had him in a boot in spring ball. Jayden Jackson, Logan Howland, and Heath Ozaeta had clean-up procedures in the winter and missed spring ball. Jovantae Barnes was held out of spring ball but should be ready to go for fall camp. Darius Afalava, Andy Bass, K.J. Daniels, and Seth Freeman were also held out of spring ball, but they aren't expected to be a part of the two-deep. We'll see what their fall camp availability is like when the Sooners begin practice on Wednesday.

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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Top 5 storylines to follow during Oklahoma Sooners fall camp