Transfer Talk: What Oklahoma is Getting in Transfer WR Isaiah Sategna
Oklahoma is starting over on offense in 2025, and the Sooners have some holes to plug on defense and special teams as well.
So Brent Venables and the OU staff landed another impactful haul out of the NCAA Transfer Portal for 2025 — 14 players so far, with the possibility of more still to come.
This series continues Sooners On SI’s inside look at what OU is getting out of the portal for next season. Next up: wide receiver Isaiah Sategna.
An Oklahoma wide receiver room that needs reinforcements is getting an SEC-proven player that has improved in every season.
Isaiah Sategna, who played at Arkansas for three seasons, is one of 14 OU commits thus far in the 2024-25 transfer portal class.
In each of his years with the Razorbacks, Sategna got better.
Sategna logged just two receptions in four games as a true freshman, finishing the year with 12 receiving yards. In 2023, his redshirt freshman year, Sategna played in all 12 of Arkansas' games, ending the year with 129 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He also starred on the Razorbacks’ special teams unit, generating 680 return yards on kick and punt returns.
In 2024, Sategna served as the Razorbacks’ No. 3 receiver.
The redshirt sophomore wideout caught 37 passes for 491 yards and a touchdown. Sategna finished the year third in receiving yards and also returned three kickoffs and 10 punts.
“I think the coaching staff finally figured out how to use him properly his third year at Arkansas, mostly out of necessity,” Daniel Shi, a reporter for Arkansas Razorbacks on SI, said. “It was often a gripe among the fan base, especially during the 2023 season that he didn’t see the field enough given where the team’s trajectory was heading and where they ended up.”
At 5-foot-11 and 185 pounds, Sategna is undersized compared to most SEC receivers. But his speed and ability to make highlight-reel catches made up for that in Fayetteville.
Riley McFerran of Arkansas Rivals believes Sategna’s versatility, despite being smaller, will allow him to stand out in Norman.
“Speed is the obvious answer here, but Sategna can still make some spectacular catches every now and again despite his smaller stature,” McFerran said. “He can also be an excellent punt returner, which can be credited to his prowess in the open field.”
Jackson Fuller, the Razorbacks reporter for the Southwest Times Record (Fort Smith, AR), agrees with McFerran about Sategna’s versatility. But he also sees areas where Sategna can improve.
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“He's got good hands but will need to become a better route runner to have sustained success in the SEC,” Fuller said.
Sategna is a Fayetteville native, meaning he’ll leave his hometown to join the Sooners.
Fuller and Shi said that Sategna’s departure is somewhat surprising, as the wide receiver would have likely seen an increased role in 2025. McFerran, though, wasn’t surprised, citing that Sategna committed to Oregon and Texas A&M during his high school recruitment and “he love for the Hogs isn't really the same as it once was for in-state athletes.”
In three seasons in Fayetteville, Sategna played under three full-time offensive coordinators and one interim coordinator.
Kendal Briles, now TCU’s offensive coordinator, served the same role during Sategna’s true freshman year. Dan Enos was the guy to start 2023 but was fired after just eight games, with Kenny Guiton replacing him on an interim basis. And in 2024, the Razorbacks hired former head coach Bobby Petrino to be the Hogs’ OC.
“That's not exactly an ideal situation for a player looking to develop, and in his first year in a system better suited for receivers under Bobby Petrino, he put up career bests,” McFerran said. “Sategna has all the ability to make another jump if (OU offensive coordinator) Ben Arbuckle uses him correctly.”
Arbuckle takes over Oklahoma’s offense after great success in the passing game everywhere he’s gone.
He landed his first offensive coordinator job in 2022 at Western Kentucky. Arbuckle helped lead the nation’s No. 1 passing offense (433.7 passing yards per game) with eventual NFL quarterback Bailey Zappe.
After a stellar first year as a coordinator, Arbuckle went to Washington State, spending two seasons in Pullman.
In 2023, Arbuckle worked with Cam Ward — who later transferred to Miami (FL) and was a 2024 Heisman finalist — and produced a passing offense that was fourth nationally with 336.8 yards per game.
A year later, Arbuckle ran an offense with John Mateer, who recently transferred to Oklahoma. The Cougars finished 2024 with 30 passing touchdowns, which was sixth in the nation.
After seeing Sategna’s uptick in production under Petrino, Fuller believes the wide receiver will produce similarly — or better — under Arbuckle.
“Bobby Petrino found better ways to maximize Sategna, and he responded with the best season of his career as a junior (redshirt sophomore),” Fuller said.
Sategna joins an offense that could desperately use another weapon at wide receiver.
The Sooners ended the 2024 season 121st out of 134 FBS teams in passing offense, averaging 167.1 yards per game. Tight end Bauer Sharp, who recently transferred to LSU, led OU in receiving with 324 yards.
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Injuries forced wideouts Nic Anderson, Jalil Farooq, Andrel Anthony, J.J. Hester and Deion Burks to miss significant time throughout the year.
Anderson, Farooq, Anthony, Hester, Brenen Thompson and Jaquaize Pettaway all entered the transfer portal after the 2024 season. Each of them have already found new homes.
Sategna is one of four wideouts to sign with OU during the portal’s winter window, along with Josiah Martin (California), Keontez Lewis (Southern Illinois) and Javonnie Gibson (Arkansas-Pine Bluff). The Sooners also signed three tight ends: Carson Kent (Kennesaw State), Will Huggins (Pittsburg State) and John Locke (Louisiana Tech).
Returning wide receivers from the 2024 squad include Burks, Jacob Jordan, Zion Kearney and Ivan Carreon.
Even with Oklahoma’s revolving door at the wide receiver position, those that watched Sategna closely during 2024 believe that he can be a leader in the Sooners’ locker room — both athletically and culturally.
“What I'll remember most about Sategna is his ability to produce clutch plays in big moments for Arkansas,” Fuller said. “He can stretch defenses and make tacklers miss with the ball in his hands. Because of his athleticism, he plays bigger than 5-foot-11.”
McFerran added, “Sategna is older and has been there, done that, so he has a natural leadership quality to him that players can look up to.”