Since the infamous 49-0 loss at the hands of Texas in October 2022, Brent Venables and his staff have gone to great lengths to ensure that quarterback depth is never again an issue at the University of Oklahoma. To that end, the Sooners have bolstered their QB room with another homegrown walk-on. As previously reported to OUInsider.com members by Brandon Drumm, erstwhile Akron quarterback Steele Wasel will join the program this summer.
A former three-star recruit in the class of 2023, Wasel signed with the Zips out of Choctaw (Okla.) High, where he was a three-year starter. Despite holding offers from Virginia Tech, Memphis and others, Wasel committed early in the recruiting cycle to Akron and head coach Joe Moorhead, largely because of the strength of their relationship. Moorhead had recruited Wasel while on staff at Oregon, and quickly prioritized the young signal-caller upon taking the job at Akron.
However, Wasel chose to enter the transfer portal after one season with the Zips; he didn't see the field as a true freshman and took a redshirt. Akron stumbled to a 2-10 record as Jeff Undercuffler, DJ Irons and Tahj Bullock all saw time at quarterback. That trio combined for 10 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. The Zips are 4-20 in Moorhead's two-year tenure as head coach.
Wasel gives Oklahoma another capable and valuable arm, and he doesn't come at the expense of a scholarship. In that regard, his addition is not unlike the Sooners' successful pursuit of Casey Thompson, who chose to walk on at OU with his seventh year of collegiate eligibility after scholarship stops at Texas and Nebraska and FAU. The Sooners lost both of their walk-on quarterbacks to the transfer portal this spring, as both Jacob Switzer and General Booty decided to seek out opportunities elsewhere. Behind Jackson Arnold and primary backup Michael Hawkins, the only other quarterbacks on the roster are Thompson (who's recovering from a torn ACL) and true freshman Brendan Zurbrugg. Upon his arrival in Norman, Wasel is likely to compete for third-team reps behind Arnold and Hawkins.
He'll have all four years of eligibility remaining.
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