Oklahoma will make the change to start quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. over former starter Jackson Arnold, as announced by Sooners head coach Brent Venables on Monday after the Tennessee game. Venables made the announcement on the Oklahoma Coaches Show.
The Sooners will travel to Auburn this weekend for their first road game in the SEC with Hawkins leading the charge.
Arnold started the first four games of the season against the Sooners but didn’t look all too impressive in any game, particularly the Tennessee game on Saturday night in Norman. Arnold was clearly affected by Tennessee’s pressure and physicality all night as Oklahoma’s offense mustered just 54 passing yards with Arnold at the helm.
Needing to provide a spark of offense, Venables opted to bench his five-star quarterback in favor of former three-star class of 2024 quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. from Frisco, TX, heading into halftime. Hawkins looked a bit raw in his early going but clearly gave Oklahoma more dynamic ability with his legs. The freshman quarterback also orchestrated the first touchdown drive that has been scored on the Vols’ defense in 19 straight quarters.
For all the optimism that Hawkins brought during his second-half performance on Saturday, though, Arnold struggled as much if not more. Arnold completed just 7-of-16 passes for 54 yards with one interception and two fumbles. Tennessee’s defensive line pushed Oklahoma’s offensive line around and swarmed the quarterback consistently throughout the game.
The first question of Venables’ postgame press conference on Saturday night revolved around his quarterback situation:
“Who is the most consistent, can execute the basics of our offense consistently,” Venables said about what he’s looking for out of the upcoming competition. “And that’s not real complicated. And then you got to get in the game and then you got to perform too. That’s part of it too.”
More from RTI: Josh Heupel Hoping That Tennessee Gets Offensive Tackles Back Against Arkansas
It’s not difficult to read between the lines and see where Venables was disappointed with Arnold’s performance, operating the offense with a lack of consistency or explosivity in the first four weeks.
Oklahoma does have their quarterback concerns, yes, and Jackson Arnold did play really poorly himself, yes. But at the same time, it was the Tennessee defense that fed off of the stadium lights and made life miserable for both Oklahoma quarterbacks and the Sooners front line. Oklahoma didn’t enter the game with world-beating offensive expectations by any stretch but that was still a statement performance from the Vols’ defense nonetheless.
Jackson Arnold was the No. 4 ranked quarterback in the class of 2023 rankings behind Texas’s Arch Manning, Tennessee’s Nico Iamaleava, and Oregon’s Dante Moore.
No. 21 Oklahoma will head to Alabama to take on Auburn this Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC with quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. leading the Sooners according to head coach Brent Venables on Monday.
