NORMAN — Things had been trending up for Dasan McCullough since the spring.

The coaching staff moved him from the cheetah position to WILL linebacker during the offseason, and McCullough had found a natural fit there. Before fall camp began, McCullough was largely projected to be the starter alongside Danny Stutsman.

Instead, he suffered a foot injury that held him out of fall camp and through the first five games of the season.

“It happened during a summer workout, like the end of July," McCullough said Monday. "We were just doing a team run and I was finishing through and my foot, literally (it) popped. So I ended up getting a stress fracture in my foot. So it was just a long process of doing nothing basically. A lot of healing. A lot of just doing nothing.

"So (I) spent time getting my upper body right, just kind of getting stronger. Keeping my mental straight. Getting a lot smarter in the football room, the film room and things of that nature. So I feel like I spent my time well.”

The Sooners made it through by leaning on Kip Lewis and Kobie McKinzie. But McCullough was finally cleared to return before the Texas game, and OU coach Brent Venables was definitive that McCullough would have a role.

They didn't ease McCullough into the game. He made his season debut on the second drive of the game and finished with 26 snaps, the 13th-most on the defense per Pro Football Focus. It wasn't McCullough's most productive day — he finished with one tackle — but it was a much-needed return for the junior linebacker.

“I felt like I could have did a lot better," McCullough said. "I felt like I definitely could have played a lot better. First game back, still was kind of timid towards some things. Not triggering when I should. So a bunch of little things like that. All fixable things though. All things that are going to be fixed immediately as of today. So this week you won't see it.”

Considering he played nearly half of the team's snaps, McCullough will likely be an important part of the defense moving forward.

McCullough wasn't the only important player who returned against Texas. Everett made his season debut against Texas and played 22 snaps, replacing Branson Hickman in the second quarter.

It was a big deal for Everett, who had been out since suffering a knee injury early in the spring. As OU's offense, and the offensive line, has struggled, Everett has taken a leadership role in the room.

Now that he's back, he's looking to help things on the field.

“You (are gonna) have to jell with everybody, but like I said, this is the closest offensive line group I’ve ever been around," Everett said. "This is my fourth year in college, and this is by far the closest group I’ve been around. One guy goes down, next man up. We hang out all the time outside in the summer. It’s just—there’s really no drop-off for us; we expect what we expect. You get in there, everybody knows what they’re doing, and we just have fun.

“It’s not going to be sunshine and rainbows right now, but everybody knows what we need to work on. It’s a lot of positivity. Guys are all coming together. It’s good. We’re going to get this thing figured out.”

Saturday's loss was a tough one for the OU offense and particularly for Hawkins, who had just 51 passing yards in the first half and completed just 19 of 33 passes in the game for 148 yards.

But Venables reiterated the team's commitment to Hawkins during his press conference on Tuesday. Hawkins' teammates are echoing the same message.

“It's making sure he still has that confidence and 100% he still has that," OU running back Jovantae Barnes said. "Not one time have I seen Mike with his head down or heard him say 'Dang, I should have did this.' He's a competitor. He's going to be hard on himself. But I think he's been doing a great job with the next play and just 'keep going.' We have a long season.

"We have so many games to play. He's a competitor. He wants to do better. I want to do better. Everyone wants to do better. We just have to make sure he keeps going and keeps that confidence.”