The Oklahoma Sooners’ 2024 season started with a promise but quickly revealed underlying cracks, as the year went on. It began with a dominant 51-3 win over Temple, but there were early warning signs that things might not hold. Their offense looked a bit flat, and then the disaster struck as their starting center, Branson Hickman, sustained a leg injury on just the second drive. Well, it was the first of many blows to come.

Things began to unravel in Week 3 against Tennessee. Their starting QB, Jackson Arnold, was benched after an interception and two fumbles. Michael Hawkins Jr. was called in place of Arnold in the second quarter, but it wasn’t of much help. Injuries started hitting the offensive line hard, and it became really hard for them to recover. The Sooners tried eight different O-line combinations in their first nine games but never found stability.

Coach Bill Bedenbaugh is widely known to be one of the top offensive line coaches, but the OU squad failed to live up to his standards in the 2024 season. Protection issues and lack of continuity up front were a persistent drag on the offense as the Sooners limped to a 6-7 finish. As ESPN’s Mark Schlabach rightly said, “The Sooners didn’t have much to cheer about in their first season in the SEC, finishing 6-7 for the second time in three years.”

After a struggling season, a lot of the blame landed on a player’s shoulders. It was Arnold whose name kept getting tossed into the fire. But was it really fair to blame him? According to CBS analyst Tom Fornelli, not at all. “I feel like Jackson Arnold was a bit scapegoated last season for the struggles that Oklahoma had on offense,” Fornelli said on CBS Sports. “I felt like the offensive line was a far bigger problem, as was the fact that most of that wide receiver core spent the entire season injured. They were very one-dimensional because of it, and Arnold struggled in his first year as a starter.”

Arnold wasn’t perfect, but he wasn’t the root cause either. He completed 154 of 246 passes for 1,421 yards, 12 touchdowns, and three interceptions in 10 games. He was often working under heavy pressure with little help from the ground game. However, for the upcoming season, the Sooners have roped in Washington State transfer John Mateer, while Arnold transferred to the Auburn Tigers in search of a fresh start.

Fornelli also analysed Mateer’s last season’s performance. “I think he [Mateer] has familiarity with the offense obviously, as he’s coming with his offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle. But if you go back and watch how he performed last year, he played two games against Power Four competition. And they weren’t exactly his best games. He finished them with a completion percentage of 49%. Had two touchdowns to two interceptions. Most of his damage came against another group of five teams in the Mountain West. As the opponents got tougher, his numbers went down,” he said. Most quarterbacks have to adjust to a new offensive system when they transfer, but John Mateer has the advantage of continuity. He arrives at OU alongside offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, bringing the same scheme they ran at Washington State.

This might help ease his transition, but it doesn’t guarantee immediate success. OU enters the season still searching for stability, especially behind a reworked offensive line. Mateer will need to prove he can elevate his play against top-tier defenses.

As for Arnold, he will have a clean slate and a chance to change the unfair narrative about him. But things don’t look too smooth for him even at Hugh Freeze’s program.

Will Jackson Arnold be the starting QB at the Auburn Tigers?

After a horrible last season with the Sooners, Arnold is hoping for a great upcoming season with the Tigers. But the question is, changing the program would bring a change in luck for the star QB? Well, according to CFB analyst Lindsay Crosby, there’s another quarterback in the program who is eyeing an opportunity.

“If I say there legitimately could be like a legit quarterback competition in spring and in fall, like obviously Jackson Arnold’s the favorite, but there is a world where Deuce Knight just looks fantastic and gets into the conversation,” Lindsay said. The upcoming season will be Deuce Knight’s first season as a college football player. Standing at 6 ft 5 inches tall and weighing 195 pounds, Knight can provide a much-needed strength to the Tigers compared to Arnold, according to Lindsay.

But the question is, will Freeze prefer Deuce over Arnold, despite knowing how experienced the former Sooners QB is? Well, Cole Cubelic placed the Tigers at No. 3 in the top five offensive lines rankings in the SEC because of Arnold’s addition. “Watch out for Jackson Arnold. Very talented guy at Auburn. They’ve got a very good young receiving core and they are probably and there is some pressure to produce offensively and win there. So he would be my sleeper.”

Despite the stiff competition, the two QBs do share an adorable bond. Knight states, “It’s [Jackson Arnold is] like another coach on the field. Then, he’s just a cool guy, you know? Jackson plays around a lot, something similar like me.” He also praises Arnold for his assistance. “Jackson, he’s super smart. I feel like he’s another coach on the field for me. I call Jackson late at night. If we just looking over a script or something, ask him a question, he’ll have an answer for me.”

Whether Arnold takes full control of Auburn’s offense or finds himself in a heated battle with Deuce, one thing’s for sure: the pressure is back on him, but so is the opportunity. Now, it’s up to him what he does with this golden chance to be with one of the strongest-looking rosters in the SEC. So, who are you betting on? The battle-tested QB or the rising star?