Oklahoma positional previews: Linebacker room ready to shine again

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Fall camp is underway in Norman, and the Oklahoma Sooners are less than two weeks away from kicking off the 2026 regular season. After a 10-win season in 2025 that resulted in a trip to the College Football Playoff, the focus has been on taking the team from good to great under head coach Brent Venables.

With the offseason drawing to a close, it's time to take a look at each position on OU's roster to see where things stand heading into the season. After players from last year's team left via the transfer portal or exhausted eligibility and the Sooners replenished the roster via the portal and high school recruiting, there are plenty of new faces looking to make an impact and returning names looking to take a step forward.

Today, we'll dive into the linebacker position, coached by inside linebackers coach Nate Dreiling and assistant linebackers coach/outside linebackers coach Wes Goodwin. This room is a mix of familiar faces and unknown potential, but the expectations are still very high.

The Players

  • Owen Heinecke: 6th-year
  • Kip Lewis: 5th-year
  • Taylor Heim: Senior
  • Cole Sullivan: Junior
  • James Nesta: Junior
  • Marcus James: Sophomore
  • Barrett Travis: Sophomore
  • Elgee Webster: Sophomore
  • Dane Bathurst: Freshman
  • Jacob Curry: Freshman
  • Beau Jandreau: Freshman
  • Kristan Moore: Freshman

At inside linebacker, the Sooners got a big boost when Lewis decided to come back to OU for another season. He'll once again man the weakside LB position, and he's the most-tenured starter on the entire roster. Then, he got his running mate back, as Heinecke won his eligibility case in April. Heinecke was granted an injunction by a local judge that allows him to suit up for the Sooners, and he'll play next to Lewis in the middle LB spot.

With the duo of Lewis and Heinecke intact, Oklahoma might have one of the best inside linebacker tandems in the nation. Behind them, there will be snaps up for grabs, as the depth pieces have been shuffled this offseason.

First up is Sullivan, a Michigan transfer who figures to play a lot in his first season with the Sooners. He was a big get for OU this offseason, and he'll likely be joined by Nesta on the two-deep portion of the depth chart at inside LB. Further down the depth chart, James is another player who the Sooners might be counting on in 2026, especially after the spring ball injury to Heim. It's still not known exactly how serious his injury is, but he likely won't be available for some time, leaving the inside linebacker depth a bit thinner heading into the season.

Change is coming to the Cheetah position as well. While the primary players at that spot more fit the mold of defensive backs than linebackers (Reggie Powers III and Jeremiah Newcombe), there will be some linebackers that will see plenty of time at that spot. Sullivan figures to take plenty of Cheetah snaps, as Venables will want to get him, Lewis, and Heinecke on the field at the same time a lot. Heim was also in the mix for a role at that position as well, but it now looks like Sullivan will be the main big-body, run-stopping threat in the Cheetah spot.

However, Venables will use every option at his disposal to get the most out of that position, so it wouldn't be shocking if a specific game plan required a different player to suddenly see a lot of Cheetah snaps during a given week. That could impact that game's linebacker rotation, but the Sooners are obviously in good hands with Venables at the controls.

Oklahoma is glad to have Lewis and Heinecke back to lead the way in the linebacker room, and they're two of the most trusted veteran voice on the entire team. Behind them though, Venables, Dreiling, and Goodwin will be trusting some new faces to step up in 2026. With this group also helping out to cover the Cheetah position as well, there's a lot of versatility and football IQ required to play linebacker for Venables. Fortunately, the Sooners feel good about where they stand at linebacker, and this group will serve as the heart of the defense once again in Norman.

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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma positional previews: Linebacker room ready to shine again

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