The Sooners just experienced what may be their most consequential portal entry of the entire offseason.
Star wideout Nic Anderson, who enjoyed a banner campaign as a redshirt freshman in 2023 before missing almost all of 2024 due to injury, is transferring after three seasons in the crimson and cream.
The 6-foot-4, 216-pound wideout will likely have his pick of the litter in the transfer portal, as he's bound to be one of the more coveted commodities on the market. He'll have three years of eligibility remaining.
After battling injuries as a true freshman in 2022 and taking a redshirt, Anderson burst onto the scene with gusto in 2023. He racked up 38 catches for 798 yards and 10 touchdowns on the year, earning Freshman All-American distinction from the Athletic and an all-conference honorable mention nod.
Expectations were sky-high for Anderson heading into 2024, but he never got the opportunity to build off his breakout campaign. An injury cost him the first three games of the season, and when he returned to make his season debut against Tennessee on Sept. 21, he played just five snaps before aggravating the injury. He didn't return to the field for the remainder of the season.
Now, he'll look elsewhere to continue his college football career. And thus closes the book on an Oklahoma career defined by flashes of elite ability, but crippled by circumstances beyond Anderson's control.
As a recruit, Anderson was regarded as a three-star prospect by Rivals, but had most every top program in college football courting his pledge. Notre Dame was the favorite to land him at one point, but Anderson eventually committed to Oregon in the summer of 2021. However, Oklahoma flipped him several months later, due in large part to family ties. Anderson's older brother Rodney had starred in the crimson and cream as a running back from 2014-18.
Anderson's departure leaves a massive void in an OU receiver room that already struggled to replace his production in 2024. No Oklahoma wideout accumulated more than 400 receiving yards in the regular season with Anderson, Jayden Gibson, Jalil Farooq and Andrel Anthony on the shelf.
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