What does ESPN think the biggest weakness is for the Sooners in 2026?

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The Oklahoma Sooners enter the 2026 season with high expectations after a run to the College Football Playoff last year. With a strong high school recruiting class and a strong transfer portal class joining some key returners in Norman, there’s plenty of optimism that OU can made it back to the playoff this season.

However, the Sooners, and every other team in college football, have their strengths and their weaknesses heading into the summer. ESPN outlined the strengths and weaknesses for each of their Way-Too-Early Top 25 teams, and they had a surprising strength for the 13th-ranked Sooners, highlighting the pass-catchers that should be much-improved this year for Oklahoma.

“After struggling for a consistent passing game in 2025, the Sooners invested in surrounding quarterback John Mateer with pass-catching talent this offseason. Texas transfer Parker Livingstone crossed the Red River after logging 29 catches for 516 yards and six scores last fall, and fellow portal receiver Trell Harris (59 catches, 847 yards at Virginia in 2025) gives Oklahoma playmaking talent alongside the returning Isaiah Sategna III. In tight end transfers Hayden Hansen (Florida), Rocky Beers and Jack Van Dorselaer (Tennessee), the Sooners are stronger at the position than they’ve been in years.” – Eli Lederman, ESPN.

OU is used to having elite wide receiver rooms, but that hasn’t typically been true for the last few years. The last truly elite WR group in Norman was in 2018, with Marquise Brown and CeeDee Lamb leading the way. Since then, Oklahoma has usually had one top dog at wideout, but not an elite core in the passing game. That could change this season, as the return of Isaiah Sategna III, combined with the additions of Trell Harris and Parker Livingstone, should make OU better at wide receiver.

Tight end will almost certainly be improved in 2026, with Hayden Hansen, Rocky Beers, and Jack Van Dorselaer leading the way under new coach Jason Witten. The focus has been put on run-blocking in the TE room, but they’ll be asked to contribute through the air as well.

When it came to weaknesses, ESPN outlined the lack of proven depth on defense, where OU has talented, but young, players who will be asked to step up in 2026.

“As long as Brent Venables is calling plays, Oklahoma should be plenty suffocating on defense. However, the departures of stars such as R Mason Thomas, Gracen Halton and Kobie McKinzie leave the Sooners’ defense light on veteran experience, especially after Oklahoma pulled just one FBS defensive starter — UTSA’s Kenny Ozowalu — out of the portal. Those moves place pressure on returners such as Eli and Peyton Bowen, Kip Lewis and Jayden Jackson not only to produce, but also to lead in 2026. The addition of veteran Michigan linebacker Cole Sullivan will help too.” – Lederman, ESPN.

Oklahoma did lose a lot defensively. Up front, the exits of Damonic Williams, Gracen Halton, Markus Strong, R Mason Thomas, and Marvin Jones Jr. leave the Sooners thin in the trenches. At the second level, Sammy Omosigho, Kobie McKinzie, and Kendal Daniels are all gone, meaning linebacker will look a little different in 2026. In the secondary, Gentry Williams, Devon Jordan, Kendel Dolby, Robert Spears-Jennings, and Jaydan Hardy leaving have eaten away at the depth OU had built in the back end.

However, the Sooners believe in their ability to develop talent, especially on the defensive side of the ball. After all, players like Halton, Thomas, and Spears-Jennings were developed into stars by the defensive position coaches that still reside in Norman. With a number of key starters returning, this season will be critical to find out what OU has behind those more established players, and whether or not the staff can develop them.

In the NIL and transfer portal era of college football, the days of keeping every single player on your roster for 3-5 years are long gone. However, Oklahoma has decided to bank on their ability to evaluate and develop players, while plugging holes in the portal. It’s a strategy that paid off in 2025 with a trip to the CFP, and it’s a strategy that the Sooners will be relying upon again this season.

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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: The strength and weakness of the Oklahoma Sooners, according to ESPN

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