Walter Rouse becomes a sixth-round selection of the Vikings

Walter Rouse is headed to the NFL.

The former OU offensive lineman was drafted in the sixth round with the 177th overall pick by the Vikings on Saturday, joining Tyler Guyton as the second Sooner to hear their name called this weekend. Rouse becomes the 12th offensive lineman to be drafted since 2013, when Bill Bedenbaugh joined the Sooners' staff.

His selection follows a highly successful one-year stop at Oklahoma, as Rouse initially signed with Stanford as a four-star recruit in the 2019 cycle before grad-transferring to OU.

The Maryland native burst onto the scene early at Stanford, playing 731 snaps as a freshman in 2019, per Pro Football Focus. He was a four-year starter with the Cardinal before entering the transfer portal after the 2022 season. He flipped to Oklahoma after initially committing to Nebraska.

Rouse arrived in Norman and immediately became the starting left tackle, making a huge impact as a one-year rental. Rouse started all 13 games and logged 858 snaps, per PFF, the second-most of anyone on the team. He didn't allow a sack on 480 pass-blocking snaps.

His most memorable moment in the crimson and cream came in the Sooners' 34-31 win over Texas, when he blocked two defenders simultaneously and gave Dillon Gabriel just enough time to find Nic Anderson for the game-winning touchdown.

Rouse is the second Sooner off the draft board, following Tyler Guyton, who was a first-round selection of the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday evening. The Sooners are hoping to add several more draftees by the end of the day, as Drake Stoops, Andrew Raym, Jonah La'ulu and others are still waiting to hear their name called.

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