Oklahoma Expecting to Have a Healthier Offensive Line Week 2 against Houston

The Sooners were without a pair of starters and a backup for most of their first game against Temple, but Brent Venables says they will be returning some pieces soon.

Oklahoma center Branson Hickman / John E. Hoover / Sooners On SI

At a time it’s still trying to get cohesive with a new-look offensive line, Oklahoma could be fully healthy for Week 2 after limping through its first game.

The Sooners were without a pair of starters and a backup on the offensive line for most of their season-opening win against Temple on Friday night. Right tackle Jake Taylor and center Branson Hickman were both listed as starters on the Sooners’ initial depth chart ahead of their season opener. Taylor never saw the field, while Hickman played only 10 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus, after exiting in the first quarter with what Venables said after the game was an ankle sprain. To add insult to injuries, guard Troy Everett also missed the first game because a spring knee injury.

OU head coach Brent Venables on Monday during his coaches show annouced that Taylor will be back from injury and should make his season debut against Houston at 6:45 p.m. Saturday. He also mentioned Hickman but did not update his status.

"(Hickman) looked good today, but I don't know if he'll be back this week or not, but he actually looked remarkably good today," Venables said Monday.

Venables said Tuesday during his weekly press conference that Everett is "close" to returning.

The Sooners, replacing nearly their entire starting offensive line from last year, had to shuffle guys around when Hickman went down early Friday night. And the line was shaken up a bit already with Taylor out.  

Geirean Hatchett, batting an injury of his own, moved from left guard to replace Hickman at center. That caused Jacob Sexton to move inside from tackle to left guard, then Michael Tarquin swapped sides from right tackle to left. Spencer Brown entered to play right tackle. Right guard Febechi Nwaiwu was the only offensive lineman to stay in his spot on the depth chart after the first quarter. 

Unlike most of the big guys on OU’s roster, Taylor has been with the Sooners his entire career. A redshirt sophomore, he has come in as a backup the past two seasons. He redshirted last year after appearing in only four games, compared to eight as a freshman in 2022. 

Hickman transferred from SMU this past offseason with expectations of taking over at center for the Sooners. Hickman was a three-year starter for SMU and was named to the All-AAC Second Team in 2023 after his redshirt-junior season. 

"The ball goes through him every snap," Venables said of the center position. "They're all important positions, but getting that position where it needs to be, having somebody available there, is really important. We're working through that. I like where we're at from that standpoint and expect somebody to get better there."

Hatchett, listed as Nwaiwu’s backup at right guard on the Week 1 depth chart, stepped up in new spots because of Hickman and Taylor’s injuries, even while dealing with one of his own.

"I practice snapping every single day, so I'm pretty used to the snapping aspect of center," Hatchett said. "Definitely caught me off guard. No one's expecting anybody to go down that early like it happened. But I was able to adjust and the only thing I felt like I needed to get under control were my snaps — I had a couple of bad snaps — but then after that felt fine, felt natural being back at center."

Hatchett is a transfer from Washington, where he started four games last season as a redshirt junior but was also sidelined for three because of an ankle injury. He played in every game as backup in 2022.

Hatchett admitted Monday night after practice that he didn't think OU's offensive line played well Week 1. But he didn't use injuries and him switching to center as an excuse, even with a brace on his arm.

"We just need to play better, play more physical," Hatchett said. "We all felt down that we didn't play our best game and we didn't live up to the standard that's held so high here for offensive line play at Oklahoma. It starts with me, being center. After Branson went down, I gotta step up and play a whole lot better and just overall as a group we want to play more physical, play better — we're playing a great opponent this week, so we just have to step it up this week, just play physical and fast."