Newcomer Profile: Oklahoma WR Zion Kearney 'Amped' to Make an Impact in the SEC

The Sooners' freshman quickly took to Brent Venables' culture and is enjoying working with wide receivers coach Emmett Jones.

Zion Kearney via Twitter/X

NORMAN — Oklahoma wasn’t on the radar for freshman wide receiver Zion Kearney. 

Growing up close to Houston, he usually watched another SEC program — the LSU Tigers. 

“I watched football a lot but it was really just LSU,” Kearney said last month. 

He loved watching Biletnikoff Award winner and current Cincinnati star Ja’Marr Chase torch defenses with his blend of speed and physicality, but another receiver caught Kearney’s eye and turned his attention to the Sooners. 

“CeeDee Lamb is like maybe 30 minutes to an hour from where I live at,” he said, “and that’s when I really kind of first found out about OU. … That really just kind of attracted to me here.”

Like Lamb, Kearney made a name for himself around Houston. 

The 6-foot-1, 207-pound pass catcher from Fresno, TX, often put on a show at Hightower High School.

WATCH: Zion Kearney interview

Kearney earned unanimous All-District plaudits as a junior when he caught 39 passes for 765 yards and eight scores. 

He was only able to play six games his senior year due to an injury, but he still added 393 yards and six touchdowns on 26 receptions, as well as a kickoff return for a touchdown. 

Fluid in space, Kearney knows what he’ll hang his hat on as he develops in Oklahoma’s offense. 

“The speed,” he said. “Have to have speed being a receiver, especially here at OU. That’s my main thing that I really stand on.”

Kearney was attracted to every aspect of the Oklahoma program. 

He quickly connected with wide receivers coach Emmett Jones, and connected with the culture head coach Brent Venables established in Norman. 

As a result, Kearney committed to the Sooners on April 27, 2023, and helped piece together the recruiting class. 

“Coach Jones, he’s really a standout person,” Kearney said. “He really knows how to get stuff out of us. How to make us the best player that we can be just teaching us different stuff in the wide receiver room. … Just learn to be a better receiver.”

It didn’t take long for Kearney to see results with Jones, either. 

7️⃣. pic.twitter.com/3tKtkPBx7U

— Zion Kearney (@ZionKearney2024) February 14, 2024

The freshman said he saw immediate growth in his game from the moment he stepped on campus, kickstarting his development path through spring football. 

“It’s been great. I’ve been able to learn a lot of different things from (Jones),” Kearney said. “He’s taught me a lot of different things in only the few months I’ve been here. He’s a really cool person to be around, too.”

While he continues to improve, 2024 may require some patience from Kearney. 

Oklahoma made a splash in the transfer portal by adding Purdue star Deion Burks, and if last week’s spring game is any indication, Burks will add a dynamic threat to a stacked receiver room, and might not leave the field much.

Burks isn’t the only talented receiver with experience Kearney will have to learn behind, either. 

Jalil Farooq and Jaquaize Pettaway bring plenty of speed to the table while Nic Anderson and Jayden Gibson both look to build on larger roles in 2023 and Andrel Anthony returns from a knee injury. 

The Sooners also beefed up the tight end room in hopes of Joe Jon Finley’s position group carving out a much bigger piece of the offense. 

Kearney didn’t seem too concerned, however, as he’s happy to do whatever the coaches ask of him while building strong relationships with his teammates. 

“Jalil and Jayden Gibson, both of them have really helped me out just learning different things,” Kearney said. “Being able to learn how to do different drills, able to learn how to do different things that a receiver has to do to be the best I can be.”

Taking the field in the SEC will fulfill a lifelong dream for Kearney, as he, like many others in Norman, can’t wait for the season to kick off in full. 

“I’m very amped,” Kearney said. “That’s the best conference in the nation. I’m very amped.”

In the meantime, he’s content to keep his head down and work to improve, embodying the traits Venables looks for in Norman. 

“I can see the culture, now that I’m here, a lot better,” Kearney said. “Even in the recruiting process, I saw the culture a lot and it really means something to be a Sooner. 

“…  It really means something to me that I’m able to be a Sooner.”

---

More Newcomer Profiles

QB Casey Thompson

DB Jocelyn Malaska

DL Jayden Jackson

OL Geirean Hatchett

WR Deion Burks

TE Jake Roberts

DB Dez Malone

LB James Nesta

DE Nigel Smith

RB Xavier Robinson

TE Bauer Sharp

DB Jaydan Hardy

DE Danny Okoye

WR Ivan Carreon

QB Michael Hawkins

DB Eli Bowen

OL Febechi Nwaiwu

OL Isaiah Autry

DB Michael Boganowski

RB Samuel Franklin

K Tyler Keltner

OL Eugene Brooks

OL Daniel Akinkunmi

TE Davon Mitchell

DE Wyatt Gilmore

OL Josh Aisosa

WR Jacob Jordan

DB Reggie Powers