Why Jeff Lebby Believes Oklahoma QB Jackson Arnold Will Play at a 'Really High Level' in 2024

Oklahoma's former offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby backed the new OU quarterback to put up big numbers for the Sooners at SEC Media Days.

Jul 16, 2024; Dallas, TX, USA; Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold speaking at Omni Dallas Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports

DALLAS — Jeff Lebby may no longer be at the helm of Oklahoma’s offense, but he has full faith the unit will still score plenty of points in 2024. 

These days, Lebby is worried about fielding his first team at Mississippi State. 

But he did spend a few moments backing the next generation of the offense he built in Norman. 

Dillon Gabriel is expecting a huge season for the Oregon Ducks, leaving 5-star quarterback Jackson Arnold to take over for Brent Venables and co-offensive coordinators Seth Littrell and Joe Jon Finley. 

Lebby identified Arnold as his quarterback early in the recruiting cycle, and the former OU offensive coordinator is excited to see how the new signal-caller performs in his first year as the full time starter — especially since Mississippi State and Oklahoma won’t meet in 2024. 

“I think everybody understands who knows that scenario and relationship knows how I feel about him,” Lebby said of his former quarterback on Wednesday at SEC Media Days. 

Arnold played six meaningful quarters of football last year.

He was inserted into the second half of OU’s trip to Provo after Gabriel was knocked out of the contest with BYU. 

Lebby asked Arnold to take care of the football in the second half against the Cougars, and the freshman delivered. 

He completed 5-of-9 passed for 33 yards, including a pair of clutch completions on third-and-long, and ensured the Sooners didn’t turn the ball over in the second half to ride out a 31-24 victory. 

In the bowl game, Arnold was given license to air the ball out under Littrell. 

The results were mixed.

Arnold connected on 26-of-45 passes for 361 yards and two touchdowns, but he threw three interceptions and fumbled once as OU fell to Arizona 38-24 in the Alamo Bowl. 

With Oklahoma on the verge of reconvening for fall camp at the end of the month, Arnold has worked hard to make mental leaps in his game and put the bowl performance behind him. 

For Lebby’s money, he’s confident Arnold will show his full potential in the SEC. 

“This is a guy that, again, was as good as there was in America coming out,” Lebby said. “He got better every single day for the calendar year that we had and will play at a really high level.”

The work Arnold will be asked to do won’t be drastically different under Littrell than it was under Lebby, either. 

Before getting elevated to call the plays for the Sooners, Littrell spent the year on staff working as an offensive analyst with Lebby. 

Throughout his coaching career as both a successful offensive mind at Arizona, Indiana and North Carolina and as the head coach at North Texas, Littrell built a reputation for fitting his system to the strengths of his roster. 

As a result, his offense in 2024 isn’t expected to look drastically different than Lebby’s high-powered units. 

“I think there's a ton of similarities from a run-the-ball-first mentality, that toughness and the lines of scrimmage,” Lebby said. “There's great familiarity from a system standpoint, some guys that he had hired at North Texas were guys that were inside the tree for a long time. So he had kind of made that change. He had made that change into much more our style. 

“He brings a ton of experience. He brings experience as a head football coach. He brings great experience as a coordinator and as a play caller and a guy that's done it at a really high level. He does right by the people, does right by the kids, and he's going to fight his butt off for his university. “