Lincoln Riley: It's Rattler

Redshirt freshman Spencer Rattler wins the Sooners' QB job over Tanner Mordecai, who missed most of the preseason with an injury

The expectations already feel impossibly heavy. But ready or not, the Spencer Rattler era is officially underway at Oklahoma.

Rattler, a redshirt freshman from Phoenix, was announced as the Sooners' starting quarterback by head coach Lincoln Riley on a video press conference Tuesday morning.

He beat out Tanner Mordecai, a third-year sophomore from Waco, and Chandler Morris, a true freshman from Dallas.

"You can tell Spencer’s grown up some," Riley said. "That’s not anything earth shattering. Guys are supposed to come here and grow up. That’s part of the deal. But I think he has. I think his preparation has continued to improve. And I think he’s mentally in a good place as far as progression in our offense. 

"So, you know, the physical skills have been there, the playmaking ability’s been there. He’s just really cleaned a lot of things up. As with any player, especially one that young, there’s still gonna be a ton of growth that’s gonna happen, but I think he’s on a good trajectory right now."

Riley said he felt bad for Mordecai, who missed 70-75 percent of the preseason work with what has been reported to be a hamstring injury. 

Even though he’s appeared in only three games, Rattler spent most of the summer as one of a handful of favorites to win this year’s Heisman Trophy, according to oddsmakers in Las Vegas. His odds improved when it was announced that Ohio State and Justin Fields were not playing this fall.

Rattler has an electrifying arm and good accuracy, though he’s still learning the intricacies of reading converges and understanding blitzes. But Riley said he had a lot of work to do to step into the role at Oklahoma. And Riley said he's happy with the progress Rattler made in the offseason.

"I would say his knowledge of our offense and what we want to do and why we’re doing things, and just kind of understanding the whole picture there has probably been the biggest areas of improvement," Riley said. "That’s just taking his preparation. And I don’t know that it was much different than most young quarterbacks that come in. 

"But it’s the level of preparation at this level to play that position the way we expect is, you know, I don’t care what high school you came out of, this is a different deal. It’s a big step up for everybody. So I think it was a positive for him to see the way Jalen prepared, to be able to know especially Kyler a little bit and the way those guys worked I think set a good example for all the guys in our room."

Still, even if Rattler is armed with the kind of skill and ability that jumps out, this quarterback competition would have undoubtedly been closer than the last three over which Riley has presided — if Mordecai hadn't missed 70-75 percent of the preseason snaps.

Baker Mayfield looked like the Sooners’ starter from his first Red/White Game — he completed 11-of-11 passes in the spring scrimmage after transferring from Texas Tech in 2014 — even though he wasn’t eligible to play in a game for another 16 months. Then, when placed head-to-head with incumbent Trevor Knight in the 2015 preseason competition, Mayfield was named the starter 12 days before the season opener against Akron.

Three years later, Mayfield had a Heisman under one arm and a fat NFL contract under the other when the competition between Kyler Murray and Austin Kendall began to unfold.

There was even less suspense with that one. Murray had only a year as Mayfield’s backup, plus an uneven freshman season at Texas A&M and a perfect 43-0 record in high school on his shelf, but it was more than Kendall. Murray’s prodigious talents were simply impossible to miss. Murray officially got the job 10 days before the opener against Florida Atlantic.

Then last season, with the arrival of Jalen Hurts as a graduate transfer from Alabama, there was no suspense at all. After Kendall transferred to West Virginia in the spring, the competition, such as it was, was between a two-year starter at college football’s premier program and a veteran of national championship games on one side and, a redshirt freshman and a true freshman with no college experience on the other.

Hurts was named the starter 13 days before the opener against Houston, and his experience and talent saved what might have been a 9-3 or 8-4 season.

It’s now 12 days before the 2020 season opener against Missouri State, so Riley is within his usual window, even though he said recently there was nothing usual about this year. The 2020 offseason was like no other.

“From a leadership standpoint, no, you’re right, it’s an interesting time for any leader,” Riley said. “Especially all of these guys who are young quarterbacks and young leaders in our program.

“I think it’s also provided, though, opportunities for them to kind of step up and become leaders. And I do, I see strong leadership characteristics with all those guys.”

Riley said this year’s competition was different from others in that this time, while neither guy had much game experience, both had at least been around the program.

Mordecai’s only action was mopping up for Murray and Hurts. Rattler’s only games were as a third-stringer and in last year’s relief of Hurts in the playoff loss to LSU.

In August, Riley described each player’s demeanor and leadership characteristics.

“They do it a little bit differently,” Riley said. “They have different personalities. You know, Spencer is a little bit more laid back. Tanner is a little bit more kind of locked in — not locked in, but maybe a little bit more of a serious personality. Chandler, maybe somewhere in between.

“But the thing you see is they’re willing. They’re not scared to lead. They’re not scared to step up to the front of the line and assert themselves. Which, I think, the courage do do it and the willingness to do it are important, and they all three have that.”

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