How Jackson Arnold is learning from the Alamo Bowl, embracing starting role

NORMAN — Jackson Arnold knew what to expect heading into last season.

With then-fifth-year senior Dillon Gabriel returning as the Sooners' starting quarterback, the then-true freshman quarterback was tasked with learning from the sidelines as the backup. Outside of the second half against BYU, when Gabriel exited with a head injury, Arnold's only time on the field during the regular season came in non-competitive minutes.

While Arnold learned a lot, and he knew what to expect, he acknowledged it was a tough transition.

"I love DG (Gabriel) to death. That’s my guy," Arnold said after practice last month. "But it sucks being a backup. It really does. As much as I love this game and love to play the game, it sucks to be on the sideline and watch somebody else play. So last year, it was more (about learning) the offense and just kind of understanding my role and how to best fill my role last year, while DG was the guy."

Arnold finally got his opportunity in last year's Alamo Bowl. With Gabriel entering the transfer portal, Arnold went through bowl prep as the no-doubt starter.

Arnold had several standout moments and finished with 361 passing yards and two touchdowns while completing 57% of his passes. But he also threw three interceptions as the Sooners lost 38-24.

Since that game, Arnold has largely been away from social media.

"I try to stay away from it all," Arnold said. "Just kind of putting it past me, using it as a learning opportunity. My freshman year in high school, almost the exact same thing happened. I was thrown into our state championship game my freshman year in high school. Wasn’t ready. I was ready for this game, I didn’t play good at all, but that freshman year, from then, I just kind of learned how to battle adversity. Now looking at it, just kind of put it behind me and using it to learn from my mistakes and push myself going forward."

Heading into his second spring as a Sooner, it's been a new mindset and a new environment for Arnold. Last year, Arnold started the spring as the third-string quarterback before gradually working his way as the backup. Now, with Gabriel at Oregon, Arnold has been the day-one starter in spring practices.

The biggest change for Arnold? His focus on leadership. While the quarterback room has veterans like General Booty and Casey Thompson, the Sooners added a pair of true freshman in Michael Hawkins and Brendan Zurbrugg. Combine that with the new skill players and offensive line, and Arnold has seized an opportunity.

"I think for me, it was more of me being vocal and speaking out to these guys and kind of showing that I am gonna be their quarterback, I am gonna be their guy, they've gotta trust on me and lean on me this spring," Arnold said. "And it was more of the offseason workouts and stuff is kind of establishing that voice, and not only that but just showing 'em how I play on the field, too, to get those guys to trust me and connect with me."

This is also the first full spring for Arnold to learn the offense under new offensive coordinator Seth Littrell. The bowl game offered the initial set of practices for the new leaders of the offense, but the Sooners mostly kept Jeff Lebby's playbook intact.

Now, it's about installing the new offense.

"There's not too much of a difference," Arnold said. "Littrell ran pretty much the same system back at (North Texas). That's why he took this job (as an analyst) at OU come last year. But, I mean, I think I'll see when we get into more spring game and scrimmages this spring of how he calls stuff and what he likes to call and his tendencies and stuff. 'Cause overall, the scheme is much different, but I'm sure his tendencies in the way he calls things are different, for sure."

The main focus for Arnold on the field has been making quicker decisions. That was the main thing that hurt him against Arizona in the bowl game, and he's been working with Littrell to improve that facet of his game.

"Just not holding the ball too long," Arnold said about his main focus. "Just being quicker with my decision process. The same thing Coach Littrell has been challenging me with this off-season. Just making my decisions. My decision-making, that whole process a lot faster. Just speeding things up."

For OU coach Brent Venables, the goal is for Arnold not to put too much pressure on himself.

"The growth has to happen everywhere," Venables said. "Small sample size from where he was a year ago. Some good, some not so good. Having good self-awareness, taking ownership and all the things I need to get better at. Getting comfortable, leading, decision making, timing aspect of it. The mechanics, footwork, eyes, the trust in the guys around him, all those kinds of things. He’ll have to get better at all those things. There’s no one particular area that he needs to improve over the other. Certainly in the 2024 season, he hasn’t taken any snaps. But he’ll be the first one to tell you he’s going to go right down that checklist.

"You feel really good about the type of leader, type of athlete and type of quarterback he’s capable of being. At the end of the day, your real judgment is on the type of teammate and leader and worker he’s been. He’s been fantastic in those areas since he’s been here. He’s a bright guy, great instincts. He’s very skilled and becoming a great college quarterback is what’s in front of him right now. If he’s going to be successful, it’s going to be because of everybody around him. It’s going to be because of a really good defense, be because of the great complement of players around."

Arnold knows that he and the Sooners both face a ton of pressure and responsibilities heading into 2024. But as the Sooners finish the spring and head into the summer, he's committed to building on the good and bad from last year.

"I think for me, to step into the leadership role, I had to admit my mistakes and where I went wrong to further connect with the dudes on the team and kind of tell these guys, hey, I messed up," Arnold said. "But going forward, this year’s over. That was 2023, it’s 2024 now. It's time to go. We’re going to the SEC. Collectively pushing that game behind us and growing together as a team has been huge."