Oklahoma Planning to Lean on Austin Stogner in 2023

After a solid final collegiate season from Brayden Willis, the Sooners are tasked with finding the veteran's replacement this year.
Oklahoma Planning to Lean on Austin Stogner in 2023
Oklahoma Planning to Lean on Austin Stogner in 2023 /
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NORMAN — Brayden Willis played a huge role on OU's offense in 2022.

As a fifth-year senior last season, Willis caught 39 passes for 514 yards and seven touchdowns. The Arlington, TX native was also a phenomenal blocker and even played wildcat quarterback for the Sooners in the Red River Rivalry. 

After a stellar final year in Norman, Willis was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2023 NFL Draft.  

Replacing Willis' statistical production and overall impact will be very difficult for Jeff Lebby and company. Additionally, Oklahoma's other skill position players are mostly unproven, meaning that Dillon Gabriel may not be able to count on the wide receiver room to shoulder as much of the load this season without experienced pass catchers like Marvin Mims and Theo Wease

Fortunately for Gabriel and OU,  fifth-year tight end Austin Stogner is back in Norman after a one year stint with former Sooners' quarterback Spencer Rattler and the South Carolina Gamecocks.

During his lone season in Columbia, SC, the Dallas-area native caught 20 passes for 210 yards and a touchdown. Stogner played in 12 of the team's 13 contests, the most of his four-year career.

Following Oklahoma's fall camp session on Monday, Stogner said that he was happy to be back where he begin his college football career.

"(The transition back has) been super smooth, like I never left," the 6-foot-6 tight end said. "Everyone’s been super supportive. It’s been really smooth. All the players have been great. They’re like, ‘It didn’t feel like you left,’ and it doesn’t feel like I left. So, it’s good to be back.”

In his first three seasons with the Sooners, Stogner played in a total of 23 games, catching 47 passes for 654 yards and eight touchdowns. Now, the former 4-star recruit will be in a new offensive scheme under a different coaching staff than his prior stretch in Norman. 

Stogner doesn't seem too worried about being in a new system, however, saying that he likes the style of offense that Lebby runs.

“It’s good to be back in the Air Raid offense and high-tempo offense," Stogner said. "I really enjoy that. Everyone runs the same sort of plays, they just call it something different, so it’s just learning new terminology and stuff. It’s been pretty good.”

Stogner was an important addition over the offseason, especially with redshirt freshman tight end Kaden Helms on crutches and likely to miss a large portion of the season. The Sooners have very little experience behind Stogner on the depth chart, and will have to hope the a second tight end emerges and separates himself from the rest of the group. 

In addition to spelling Stogner throughout the season, Oklahoma will likely look to run two tight end sets in specific situations, and will need to have trustworthy depth in the room to do so successfully. 

Currently, former Texas A&M tight end Blake Smith, former Cameron University basketball player Josh Fanuiel, former Michigan State quarterback Hampton Fay, redshirt freshman Jason Llewellyn and true freshman Kade McIntyre are all battling for playing time behind Stogner.

“We got a ton of good guys in that room," Stogner said. "Blake Smith and Josh Fanuiel and Hampton Fay and Kade (McIntyre) are all those guys that can really go. Jason Llewellyn. We have a ton of guys who are willing to work and willing to put in (the work) and are eager to go. They want to work, and that’s what you want from young guys. They’re coming along really well.”

Even with the progress Stogner is referring to, he will by far be the most heavily-featured tight end in Lebby's offense this season. Apparently, the Sooners' offensive coordinator is expecting the 6-foot-6, 251-pound pass catcher to play over 80 snaps per game.

“My conditioning’s good," Stogner said. "I’m a bigger body, so it takes a little bit, but my conditioning’s gotten a lot better, been pushing every day. Coach Finley tells us every day, ‘Just give us one more—then one more, one more, one more.’ I feel like my conditioning’s gotten a whole lot better. Once it starts cooling down, I can go all day.”

The veteran tight end isn't the only player on the team who has faith that he'll be a sufficient option this fall. At Big 12 Media Days in July, sixth-year wide receiver Drake Stoops praised Stogner's abilities.

"He's mature enough to pick (Lebby's offense) up very quickly," Stoops said in Arlington. "He honestly looks like just like when he left, you know, playing the same big-bodied, physical ball. Goes up and catches the ball well. Uses his length, uses his size. I'm excited to watch him and I'm just glad he's back on my team."

If Stogner is able to shoulder the load and be a solid receiving option at tight end, he will be a huge asset to Gabriel and OU's offense this season.



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Randall Sweet
RANDALL SWEET

Randall is a recruiting analyst and staff writer at AllSooners focusing primarily on OU Football and the recruiting trail. Working as a journalist, Randall has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, and high school sports across the state. A 2022 University of Oklahoma graduate, Randall hails from Lubbock, TX. While in college, Sweet wrote for the OU Daily in addition to working with Sooner Sports Pad and OU Nightly. Following his time at OU, Sweet served as the Communications Coordinator at Visit Oklahoma City before leaving to join the team at AllSooners. The West Texas native has bylines in the Norman Transcript and is a Staff Writer for Inside the Thunder. Randall holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma in Norman, OK.