Hopes were high when running back Eric Gray transferred from Tennessee to Oklahoma after the 2020 season. Things didn’t come together his first year at OU, but he exploded in 2022.

The word used was professional when describing Gray repeatedly, and that type of mindset helped him every step of the way as he showed why he could be a professional.

A no-brainer decision to leave early, Gray got to hear his name called by the New York Giants in the Fifth round with the No. 172 overall pick in the NFL Draft.

2022 stats: 213 rushes for 1,366 yards, 6.4 average, 11 TDs; 33 rec., 229 yards.

Career stats: 549 rushes for 3,089 yards, 5.6 average, 21 TDs; 99 rec., 827 yards, 5 TDs.

Gray put up quality numbers during his first two years at Tennessee and had people salivating about what he would do as a Sooner.

The transition period went longer than anybody thought, but it never discouraged Gray. He came in with a different mindset, a more mature outlook and took off during the 2022 season.

Everybody knows about his cutting ability, but he answered one question after another regarding the other facets of his game to where it became such an easy decision for him to leave the Sooners and get started on that professional career.

For as good as Gray was on the field, his OU legacy might be more about the way he led the room and will be paving the way for the guys coming up after him. He helped teach them about how to do things the right way, on and off the field.

Gray put a lot of pressure on himself to succeed at OU’s pro day, and he believed the numbers he put up would serve him well come the Draft process.

No more wondering, Gray did what he set out to do when he decided to become a Sooner.

Best game: 2022 at West Virginia: 23-20 loss. You could take your pick between this and the 2022 win vs. Kansas because Gray had plenty of outstanding performances. What last season showed more than anything is that Gray could be your workhorse. In Morgantown, Gray had 25 carries for 211 yards and two touchdowns, including a season-long 54-yard run.

He says…

“Everybody has something going on. You have to be able to produce every single day. The league is college on steroids. You have to provide results every single day or there’s another man coming in right behind. Definitely an every down back. I’ve been fortunate to play in a lot of different schemes and have been successful in a lot of different schemes as well as using my ability to catch out of the backfield. I converted to an every down back.” – Gray