Oklahoma football: 2023 Spring Game preview

Team 129 will give Sooner Nation its first look at the new Oklahoma football squad on Saturday, April 22, at 2:30 p.m., at the annual Spring Game.

With OU entering its second year under head coach Brent Venables as well as its last year in the Big 12 Conference, the Sooners are expected to start the 2023 season off on the right foot.

Following a 6-7 season, including a loss to Florida State in the Cheez-It Bowl, the Sooners have been busy reloading and rebuilding their prestigious program in the offseason. Immediately following the return from Orlando, Coach Venables and his staff began to reconstruct their program by recruiting the country’s No. 4-ranked 2023 recruiting class, according to 247Sports. The 2nd-year head coach also got busy diving into the transfer portal to fix immediate needs by bringing in 12 transfer players (six on defense, five on offense, and one punter).

Before we get to our list, let’s put this spring game in perspective. Entering his second year in 2000, Coach Bob Stoops was coming off a close loss in a bowl game. He recruited the No. 24-ranked recruiting class in the offseason. Stoops’s offense was led by second-year transfer quarterback Josh Heupel. Both of the coordinators on the 2000 squad were also entering their second year in the program. These are all factors in place with this year’s Sooner football team. If the similarities continue to add up, this season should end well at NRG Stadium in Houston on January 8, 2024.

These are the five things to watch at the Oklahoma Sooners 2023 Spring game.