CFB insider Phil Steele joined The Herd on Wednesday to drop a few surprises along the way. The conversation turned to dark horses, the kind of teams that could crash the CFB Playoff party. Sure, the usual suspects are there: OSU, Texas, Penn State. But what about a sleeper? Cowherd went with Illinois. Steele’s choice? An SEC squad he believes is ready to finally break through. Who’s Steele’s sleeper team?

The answer lies with the Oklahoma Sooners. This SEC sleeper didn’t exactly light up 2024. They finished tied for 13th in the league at 2-6 and went 6-7 overall, capped by a loss to Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl. But change is in the air, and it starts on offense. The program hired Ben Arbuckle from Washington State to run the attack, and he brought a prized piece with him: QB John Mateer. Widely regarded as one of the top five QBs in the nation, Mateer could be the spark they’ve been missing. Still, their head coach enters 2025 squarely on the hot seat, making this season a high-stakes proving ground. But Phil Steele is sold on their upside.

“Yeah, I like your Illinois pick,” began Steele. “I think a lot of people are picking up on that, so I’m not going to go away from it.” Then he revealed his choice, stating, “I’m going to say Oklahoma. A team that was 6-7 last year. You take a look at Oklahoma last year. They had zero returning starters on the offensive line. They were down their top five receivers at one point due to injury.” But this year, they’ve taken a big step forward, and Steele put it best. “Well, this year, they’ve got a veteran offensive line, a veteran receiving corps, and they get their injured players back,” he said. “Much like Cade Klubnik at Clemson did two years ago, they’ve got in Jaydn Ott, who was the best running back in the Pac-12.” And we’ve already talked about the QB and OC from Washington State, but what about the defense?

Last season, Oklahoma’s offense struggled badly, ranking 113th in total offense at just 331 YPG and 97th in scoring with 24 points per contest. But with major upgrades on that side of the ball, there’s real hope the Sooners can finally match the level of their defense under Brent Venables. “Nothing was wrong with that defense last year. They held opponents to 87 yards per game below their average. Number six in the country,” mentioned Steele. So, “The defense is outstanding. Now they have an offense to go with it,” per the CFB insider. Here, Steele highlighted another wrinkle in the 2025 schedule that he believes will work in Oklahoma’s favor.

“Last year, they had three SEC home games. This year, they only have three SEC road games. They have the Texas game at a neutral site. Watch out for Oklahoma. they could be that fourth SEC team to make the playoffs,” concluded Steele. Well, the Sooners kick off 2025 on August 30 against Illinois State. Then comes an early gut check. A showdown with a Michigan squad many expect to be a serious B1G contender. But while Steele touts Oklahoma as a CFP contender, Venables will be busy hunting for answers in Saturday’s closed-door OU scrimmage.

Oklahoma head coach’s newest move

We already know the clock is ticking on Brent Venables. Because, four years in, he’s yet to hit the standard in Norman. His lone winning season is sandwiched between 6-7 campaigns in 2022 and 2024. He’s 0-3 in bowl games. Last year, Oklahoma stumbled to a 2-6 SEC record while rival Texas ruled the league. Now, in year two of SEC play, Venables needs a breakthrough. So, he’s searching for the answer.

Heading into the Sooners’ closed scrimmage, the 4th-year HC wants sharp execution, no mental lapses, and a team that talks its way into the right plays before the snap. “I want a clean scrimmage,” said Venables. “Procedural things, presnap, penalties, sloppiness, take care of the football, make good decisions. Defensively, no explosive plays… Get everybody on the same page. That’s when you give yourself a chance to have success.” And special teams are also high on his checklist.

Last year’s season finale at LSU still stings. The Sooners led 14-10 in the 2nd quarter, only to watch the Tigers take the final lead on a 100-yard kickoff return. “Four guys… all freshmen… kind of took the play off,” said Venables. That single lapse dropped OU from No. 2 to No. 6 in special teams efficiency in one game. “That’s as big of a deal as any,” he added. So, for Venables, eliminating those costly breakdowns is about proving Oklahoma can win the moments that define a season.