Why 'G-Baby' Gracen Halton's Oklahoma Coaches, Teammates are Happy but Not Surprised by His Sudden Success

The Sooners' big-play junior defensive tackle saved Saturday's win over Houston with a late safety, but there's nothing accidental or unexpected about his rise.

Oklahoma defensive lineman Gracen Halton (56) / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

NORMAN — When exactly did Gracen Halton become Oklahoma’s best defensive lineman?

It certainly didn't happen overnight. But it has come suddenly.

Through two games, it’s Halton — not a returning starter, not a big-name transfer, not a 5-star recruit or high school All-American — who has merged as the Sooners’ big-play presence on the interior.

“G-baby's came a long way — or Gracen, my bad,” cornerback Woodi Washington said with a laugh. “He's came a long way just from being like a little kid these last couple years. He's growing up fast.”

Saturday night against Houston, at the end of a game that was uncomfortably close, Halton made the Sooners’ play of the year so far when he burst through the offensive line and tackled Cougars running back Stacy Sneed in the end zone for a game-clinching safety.

“It was a huge moment in the game,” said safety Robert Spears-Jennings. “Without that, you never how the game could have turned.” 

Just about everyone in the stadium was getting nervous when Houston forced yet another stop against a struggling OU offense and took possession at its own 5-yard line needing just a field goal to take the lead.

But Halton’s first-down thunderbolt pushed OU’s lead to 16-12 and gave the Sooners the ball back with less than 100 seconds to play.

“We didn’t have a whole lot of tackles for loss, but man, that one was a huge one,” head coach Brent Venables said. “A game-changer right there.”

After a replay review, officials determined Sneed never got out of the end zone, doubling OU’s narrow lead.

“Just knew I had to get off the ball,” Halton said. “You know, it's a big play coming and I seen the ball in his hands, and I seen the (end zone), so I knew I had to make a play and a potential safety. And, you know, I got him in the end zone, and they called it. So I'm just grateful that they called it. 

“The ref tried to overturn it but I was like, ‘Come on, ref. You know that’s a safety.’ “

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In last week’s opening win over Temple, Halton had 1 1/2 quarterback sacks. On Saturday night, he delivered the big safety and added another QB sack.

Through two games, Halton has the OU defense’s second-best overall grade, according to Pro Football Focus — 87.2. That ranks just behind Spears-Jennings’ team-leading 91.5. Halton’s run-defense grade is 80.9, his pass rush grade is 79.8 and his tackling grade is 74.8.

Those are all winning grades.

He’s played 52 total snaps so far as he rotates in behind freshman Jayden Jackson, and he’s rushed the passer on 26 of his 27 snaps against the pass. He leads the team with 2 1/2 of OU’s eight sacks, and 3 1/2 of their 16 TFLs.

“Gracen did a great job, just doing the little things really well,” said defensive coordinator Zac Alley. “If you want the play, man, just getting with and beating the guard right up the field and, you know, nothing spectacular, per se. Just really good at doing his job. And then he’s a heck of a talented player, so when it came down to the moment to make the play, he could.” 

Senior Da’Jon Terry is a returning starter who transferred from Tennessee. Junior Damonic Williams earned All-Big 12 honors at TCU. Jackson was a high school All-American, and so was 5-star David Stone. And they’ve all been good so far this season.

But Halton has risen up and made the most his opportunity.

“Gracen has grown up right before our eyes … since January,” Venables said. “He’s made a decision. He wants to — he’s gonna do something. Really proud of him and all the work he’s put in.”

“I’ve seen a commitment,” Alley said. “Everybody wants just a ready-made product all the time. You know, a guy shows up, he’s got this, he’s supposed to do all these things. And the reality is it takes work. It takes work to be great. It takes work to consistently improve every day, and he’s a guy that’s bought into the work. Throughout the summer, man, he got stronger, he gained weight, he did every thing he needed to mentally to get prepared. And then you watch him in camp and you sit there and you’re like, ‘Yep, this is what we expected.’ “

“Just watching the older guys when I was here my freshman and sophomore year,” Halton said. “I didn't want to wait another year, so I knew I had to change some things that had to be better, and I just had to stack days. That's what I've been trying to focus on, is getting better every day. Coach (Todd) Bates, Coach Venables, Coach Alley, they've done a great job keeping me on the right path.”

A 6-foot-2, 285-pound junior from San Diego, Halton is big enough and strong enough, but he’s much more athletic than he looks, surprising blockers with a quick first step and then stunning them with intentional and precise hand movement — when they extend their arms to block him, Halton is exceptional at knocking their hands away and creating separation.

Halton was a consensus 4-star recruit out of St. Augustine, No. 246 overall in the ESPN 300 and the No. 19 defensive end in the 2022 class, according to Rivals. He chose OU over Miami, Oregon, USC and others after originally committing to the Ducks.

In his first two seasons in Norman, Halton played in 10 games and 11 games, respectively, and accumulated 21 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. But he wanted more, so he’s had an industrious offseason, working with purpose and patience as he studies, learns and picks up the finer points of hand-to-hand combat in a phone booth. 

“Just knowing what I've gotta do,” he said. “That's studying more than I did my sophomore and my freshman year, because I've been studying way more than my last two years. … So I'm gonna keep on going.”

Maybe people shouldn’t be surprised by Halton’s sudden arrival. Remember, in the OU spring game two years ago, he had two quarterback sacks. In last spring’s Red/White scrimmage, he had two more.

His natural athletic ability is no accident.

“I played quarterback in middle school, eighth grade. I was linebacker and had a little safety. Balboa Raiders. San Diego, California,” he said. “ … Oh yeah. I was an athlete ’til I got to high school. Yeah, I played quarterback, defensive end, linebacker. When I got to high school, I played tight end. I had nine touchdowns my senior year. So yeah, I’m an athlete.”

Opposing offensive linemen are learning that painful lesson each week. Halton won’t surprise them any more — not after his game-saving play Saturday night.

“It’s a moment I’ll never forget,” he said. “It’s a moment I’ll tell my kids about. I’m just glad I got to celebrate it with my guys, because it’s us that made that play — all the hard work.”

That feeling is mutual from his teammates. Spears-Jennings, who once roomed with Halton when they were freshmen, has profoundly enjoyed seeing his buddy’s success.

“We had those talks,” Spears-Jennings said. “That brought a big smile on my face because we know what we’ve both been through since we’ve been here.”

“Making me proud. Nothing more than proud,” said linebacker Sammy Omosigho. “G-Baby, love him like he’s my own brother. Seeing that, it made me so happy.”