In most cases, a team losing four highly touted wide receivers in one offseason would be cause for panic.
But the 2022 Oklahoma Sooners aren’t like most cases.
Despite the second leading receiver Mike Woods left for the NFL and a former 5-star Mario Williams and Jayden Hasselud together with the former 4-zv Cody Jackson all the transfers outside of Norman since the end of last season, there isn’t much to worry about for OU in the depth of their receiving room.
The Sooners, even with all the losses, still return plenty of talent in their receiving corps and made several additions at the new quarterback position Dylan Gabriel to work with
2022 Oklahoma Position Overview
Receiver No. 1 Marvin Mims came back again after having a slight disturbance he may seek transfer elsewhere. Instead, he chose to return to Norman to play with Gabriel and under a new offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby.
Mims caught 32 passes for 705 yards and five touchdowns last year in what most would consider an underutilized season. Considering the goals he has to achieve with his talent, a big year is likely ahead for the Texas native.
Also returning is the former 5-star Theo Wiesewho is looking to make a huge impact after missing all but one game of the 2021 season due to injury.
When on the field, Wease is dynamic and productive. In 11 games in 2020, he caught 37 passes for 530 yards and four touchdowns as a true sophomore.
Paired with Mims, Wease looks to create an explosive duo that could wreak havoc on Big 12 secondary in 2022.
The Sooners also return the production of Drake Stoops and Jalil Farooqwith both expecting to see an uptick in usage this season.
Stoops has proven a reliability that quarterbacks and coaches dream of, and Farooq’s upside could be as high as any receiver on the team.
Not to be overlooked are the budding returning talents Brian Darby and Trayvon West, who have both shown the ability, when given the opportunity, to be playmakers.
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With the receiver room having tremendous depth, it may be difficult for Darby and West to take many snaps in 2022. But the Sooners should be confident they can get the job done, as both have made things happen before.
But even though he has all this returning talent, wide receivers coach Cale Gundy and Oklahoma weren’t ready to make the team one of the deepest on the team.
The Sooners once again raided the transfer portal for key additions, with a transfer from Missouri Havian Hester and transfer to Arizona State LV Bunkley-Shelton.
At 6-foot-3 and 202 pounds, Hester looks like a classic Lebby wide receiver with his long frame and athleticism.
While not the same size as Hester, Bunkley-Shelton’s capabilities will certainly come in handy as he brings some production with him to Norman.
As a redshirt freshman with the Sun Devils in 2021, Bunkley-Shelton caught 33 passes for 418 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
LV Bunkley-Shelton
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Rounding out the new crop of wideouts is a dynamic duo of freshmen who look poised to become stars sooner rather than later.
The 4-star recruit, 6-5 Jaden Gibson and 6-2 Nick Anderson both have the size and natural ability you just can’t teach.
Although they don’t have to be necessary to be a big part of the offense in 2022, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if they work the bullpen themselves.
Overall, the wide receiver room looks to be an area of great strength for the Sooners, despite losing three of their top four receiving yards leaders from a year ago in Woods (400), Haselwood (399) and Williams (380) and a rookie star in Jackson .
With Mims back and a healthy Weese to lead the offense, Oklahoma looks to have a group that can give opposing defenses nightmares.
In Lebby’s up-tempo offense, the ability to go deep on the bench to keep guys fresh will be very helpful as they hope to play several games continuously without reserves and allow the defense to breathe.
If all goes according to plan in 2022, Oklahoma should be ready for its receiving corps as Gabriel, Lebby and a new-look OU offense hope to make waves in the Big 12 and college football.