Why Billy Bowman's Return 'Sooner Rather Than Later' Crucial in Oklahoma's Stretch Run

Oklahoma's defense is looking for a jump-start as their star safety hopes to return from a knee injury.

As the Sooners head to Ames to take on Iowa State this weekend, a 4-3 record is not what the team had in mind coming out of the bye week. There are many different reasons that factor into Oklahoma’s slow start on the field, but injuries definitely count as one.

After Dillon Gabriel went down, the quarterback position was obviously the easiest hole to point to on the team. In the same game that Gabriel went down with a concussion, though, the Sooners lost safety Billy Bowman too. Bowman is arguably just as important on the other side of the ball.

“We miss a really good player that makes plays, that communicates well, that’s one of our best players,” defensive coordinator Ted Roof said Monday. “That’s part of the game.”

When Gabriel returned, the offense immediately looked back in sync. The Sooners scored 52 points against Kansas behind a balanced attack. Even though he’s struggled with accuracy at times this season, it’s clear the impact he has on the offense.

The defense, however, hasn’t quite seemed to figure things out just yet without Bowman. 

Bowman hasn’t played a snap since the first quarter of the TCU game and has been nursing a nagging knee injury. The Sooners and Bowman avoided the worst, injury-wise, but Oklahoma’s defense has been hurting on the field without him. The unit has given up more than 40 points in each of the past four weeks, and the secondary has repeatedly been torched by the Big 12's talented wide receivers.

The good news, though, is that it looks like Bowman is expected on the field sometime soon. After Gabriel’s return jump-started the offense, Bowman’s return could tie things together and help the Sooners finish out the season respectably. There are still plenty of big games left on the schedule.

“We’re hopeful he will get back sooner rather than later,” Brent Venables said in his Tuesday press conference. “As of today, we don’t have an exact date for his return. He’s running around and trying to get in shape and have the kind of stability that he needs and the confidence that goes along with that too.”

It sounds like his status for the next few weeks is still up in the air, as Venables was cautious about Bowman's return. But the fact that Bowman is back at practice and running around should be a great sign for the Sooners.

To put things in perspective, the sophomore safety has played just three games and one quarter of football this season. He ranks third on the team in solo tackles at 22, tied for first on the team in passes deflected at four, and has recorded one of the Sooners' two fumble recoveries on the season. 

Adding him back into the lineup anytime soon would be a massive win for the Oklahoma defense. It also couldn't come at a better time.

“As you progress through that rehab, you continually push the limits, if you will, and start to do more and more things that are football-like,” Venables said. “He’s starting to get more comfortable with that.”