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Senior Defensive Tackle Could Return to Oklahoma in 2025

After beginning his college career in junior college, Davon Sears has received an additional year of NCAA eligibility.

John E. Hoover

Oklahoma defensive tackle Davon Sears
Oklahoma defensive tackle Davon Sears / NATHAN J. FISH/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK
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News about Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and the NCAA’s latest legal defeat could be good news for Oklahoma football fans.

The ruling, which applies to outgoing seniors in 2024-25 who formerly played at a junior college, grants them an additional year of eligibility via a blanket waiver, and is the product of Pavia's lawsuit against the NCAA seeking another year of college football.

In OU’s case, that applies to defensive tackle Davon Sears.

After announcing on social media on Dec. 8 that he’ll be entering the NFL Draft, Sears on Monday night announced that he’s withdrawing his name from the draft, indicating he intends to return to college for the 2025 season.

Davon Sears
Davon Sears via Twitter/X

The 6-foot-2, 297-pound Sears played two years at OU (2023-24) after playing two at Texas State (2021-22). He redshirted in 2021, played in three games in 2023 and four games in 2024.

However, he also played two years at Ellsworth College in Iowa (2019-20), meaning the NCAA’s waiver Monday grants him an additional year of eligibility.

That does not guarantee his return to OU, however.

SEC schools are required to reduce their total roster size next season to 105 — Oklahoma rostered 125 total players this season — and Brent Venables and his coaching staff remain active in the process of reaching that limit. Sears could also opt to leave via the transfer portal. It's unclear if he'll be available to play in the Armed Forces Bowl on Friday against Navy.

With senior Da’Jon Terry graduated and redshirt freshman Ashton Sanders in the transfer portal, Oklahoma's defensive tackle rotation next year is expected to include at least four regulars from this season: freshman Jayden Jackson, junior Damonic Williams, junior Gracen Halton and freshman David Stone. OU also added incoming freshman Trent Wilson in this year’s recruiting class.

Sears has played in just seven games as a reserve in his two seasons in Norman, combining for four tackles and a half a quarterback sack.

His 2022 season at Texas State was productive, as he played in 12 games and recorded 15 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack, two passes defensed and one QB hurry.

Sears played at Center Line High School in Detroit.

The Sooners have had 25 players leave via the NCAA Transfer Portal so far (and more could be on the way), while only eight newcomers have signed with Oklahoma.

The portal is open from Dec. 9-28. The spring portal is open April 16-25.

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John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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