Buy-in has 'never been higher' for Sooners heading into the Alamo Bowl
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — The increase in activity in the transfer portal has brought additional chaos to bowl season. Throw in the possibility of players opting out to prepare for the NFL Draft, and teams can often look a lot differently in December than they did during the regular season.
But for Oklahoma junior defensive end Ethan Downs, it didn't take long for him to decide he would return for his senior season, which includes sticking around for the Sooners' Alamo Bowl matchup with Arizona on Thursday (8:15 p.m. CT, ESPN). Downs has seen a lot of changes during his three years as a Sooner, but he knows he can help bring stability and leadership.
That's a point of pride for the Oklahoma native.
"We've seen a lot of different coaches, and we've been a lot of different places, and the expectation has always been the same, because that's what it's all about," Downs said Tuesday. "We know the standard. We know how to uphold it. We know what OU means because like (Billy Bowman) said, we picked it from the beginning, and we've been here, we've stayed through here through all the chaos and all the craziness of the last three years, and now we're able to build it up as chosen leaders by our peers.
"Man, this is my home. I've got to keep growing. I've got to get better, and OU is the place to do that."
That seems to be the general sentiment amongst the players in recent weeks.
While a few notable players have either entered the transfer portal or opted out — Dillon Gabriel, Cayden Green, Andrew Raym and Tyler Guyton, to name a few — most of the roster has stuck around for the bowl game. Key players like Danny Stutsman, Billy Bowman, Da'Jon Terry and Jacob Lacey have already announced their intentions to return next season.
Guyton and Raym are the only two players who've officially opted out of the bowl game. All 11 players who are graduating, and thus exhausting their eligibility, are officially on the Alamo Bowl roster. Even veteran running back Marcus Major, who announced he would enter the portal earlier this month, is available for the bowl game.
For right guard McKade Mettauer, finishing the season was a no-brainer.
“I want to play as many games as I can with this team," Mettauer said earlier this month. "It’s been my dream to play here and I’m not gonna cut it short on a personal decision. I’m not going to leave any guys out to dry. I’m not gonna let (Jackson Arnold) go out there without some guys with experience. I want to keep him safe. Just playing as many games as I can and this is another opportunity. I love football. It’s fun.”
With players like Mettauer committed to playing in the Alamo Bowl, and others deciding to return for next season, the Sooners have had more continuity compared to the last two bowl seasons. in 2021, the last time the Sooners played in the Alamo Bowl, the team had 19 players enter the portal before the game and had four defensive starters opt out (Perrion Winfrey, Nik Bonitto, Isaiah Thomas, Brian Asamoah).
Downs credited OU coach Brent Venables for building a culture that has helped keep players around.
"I think he has evolved our mindset and perspective on what it means to be college football players and to understand that another year of development, another year of growth with our teammates and aspirations to become a better person and what that means to becoming a future husband or father or leader or employee anywhere, it's becoming our very best," Downs said. "That's the challenge that's given (to) us."
The Sooners haven't been immune to the recent instability in college football. There will be some players who'll see much bigger roles in the bowl game. But Venables is confident that the culture is continuing to grow.
"I think every coach would sit up here and say the same thing, but the buy-in has never been higher," Venables said. "I think the results from the season would say that. This is a group of guys that are highly invested, several of them in the last two years. Obviously starting in January we had 97 players in their first or second year at Oklahoma. This is a group of guys, whether it's the new guys that just showed up, 63 newcomers in January last year, scholarship and preferred walk-ons, or it was guys in their second year or their third year in the program or fourth year in the program under a different staff. It's been fantastic.
"We've got great leadership. We've got guys that care deeply about their opportunity and care deeply about their teammates (and to) what this game means (and) the whole principle of finishing what you started. That's what you want to have, a life that embodies that."