After a stellar 2025 run, Brent Venables is building something special at Oklahoma. The Sooners now look equipped to challenge Georgia in the one area that usually gives Kirby Smart an SEC edge: line play. With experience, depth, and continuity up front, Oklahoma is no longer just improving, but is starting to threaten the league’s old order.
Brent Venables and offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh have officially turned the Sooners into the Great Wall of Norman in the SEC. For a long time, the “big men up front” were a bit of a bind for the Sooners. After ranking 120th in pass-blocking efficiency in 2024, the unit improved to 38th in 2025. But this year, it’s only going to get better, as they are one of the most experienced groups in the entire country.
If you look at the raw SEC rankings for returning production, Tennessee is leading the way at 75.5%, and Georgia holds down the second spot with a very solid 61%. Oklahoma technically starts in the third-place spot with 59.4% of their production coming back, which is already impressive, but it doesn’t tell the whole story.
Could OU have its best offensive line in the Brent Venables era?
The #Sooners rank third in the SEC in returning offensive line production at 59.4%. If you add E’Marion Harris’ snaps from last year, that number jumps to 74.4%
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https://t.co/X7eAiTGGrb pic.twitter.com/hqoAp9wujh
— George Stoia III (@GeorgeStoia) May 10, 2026
Georgia normally bullies teams with a heavy, punishing defense. But this year, Oklahoma is matching its power. By bringing in E’Marion Harris from Arkansas, the Sooners now have one of the most veteran offensive lines in the league. This exact kind of experience is what makes them a real problem for Smart.
And if you look at the projected starters, they have potential for days, maybe even better than the Vols. Coach Venables noted after the April 18 spring game that the unit’s depth is “better than what we thought,” with roughly eight players ready for meaningful snaps.
You have sophomore star Michael Fasusi at left tackle, who played 676 snaps as a true freshman last year and is already considered a 2028 or 2029 NFL draft first-rounder. Next to him is redshirt sophomore Eddy Pierre-Louis. At center, you have Jake Maikkula, the most experienced of the lot, with 1600 snaps. The sophomore Ryan Fodje will start beside E’Marion Harris.
Last year, Oklahoma struggled to run the ball, averaging a low 3.5 yards per carry. Now, they have added dynamic running backs from the transfer portal. With a stronger, older line blocking for them, the Sooners are ready to stand tall and trade blows with SEC giants like Georgia.
Oklahoma Sooners’ breakthrough year?
Coming off a 10-2 season and a trip to the College Football Playoff in 2025, anything less than last season would be unforgivable. The Sooners are projected as a top-12 team nationally in “way-too-early” rankings. However, some analysts predict a 7.5- to 8-win floor due to a brutal schedule. Oklahoma will face eight opponents from the top 25.
Even then, many in Norman expect this team to be a permanent fixture in the playoff conversation because they did it last season despite having one of the three most difficult schedules in the country.
One of the main reasons why they can easily make the playoffs is that Venables has finally built the “monsters in the middle” he’s been dreaming of. Even after losing stars to the NFL, the defense returns players who accounted for 52% of the team’s 45 sacks last year.
Keep an eye on Danny Okoye and Adepoju Adebawore on the edges; they have impressed the most during spring practice. The Sooners also return one of the best cornerback duos in the country with Eli Bowen and Courtland Guillory.
Many people might still overlook the Sooners this offseason. But with Venables finally building his dream monsters in the trenches, the narrative is shifting fast. If Oklahoma’s veteran line stays healthy, Kirby Smart and the rest of the SEC will have a massive fight on their hands in 2026.
