John Mateer Is Getting Some Preseason Recognition
The 2026 season is right around the corner and that means that preseason awards are rolling in. And for the Oklahoma Sooners, quarterback John Mateer appeared on the Maxwell Award list. Barring injury Mateer should be one of the top quarterbacks in college football and a big year for the Sooners could mean Brent Venables and his team are poised to compete for a championship.
Video Transcript
The 2026 season is almost here, and what does that mean?
Well, preseason award watch lists are starting to be dropped, and the Sooners have somebody on their list.
Might be that guy right there.
I'm Justin Churchill of ATC Sports Oklahoma, and we're no strangers to this.
The Sooners always have really good players, which means they're always going to have somebody on a preseason watch list.
And this time it's Jommetier.
And why wouldn't it be?
He's got all the talent in the world, and we've said it a million times.
But he's on the Maxwell Award watch list, and if you don't know what the Maxwell Award is, it's pretty much the best college football player in the country, a step down from the Heisman.
And so basically there are people out there that think Jommetier could be the best college football player in the country, and I don't think that's a stretch now.
Would I put money on it?
No.
Based on what we've seen last year, Jommetier was pretty bad at times, and obviously the hand was an issue, but it wasn't all the hand, and w- I think we know that.
A lot of it was up here, too.
But based on what we do also know about him and his capabilities and what he can do, I wouldn't be surprised if he's a finalist for this award because the Sooners have put a lot of players around him, like new receivers through transfer portal, new tight ends.
The run game should be better.
The defense should always be good.
They've put guys around him, and he is healthy, and it's his second year, at OU, third year under Ben Arbuckle.
There's no reason why he shouldn't be one of the better quarterbacks in college football unless he gets injured or unless he's just not cut out for it, and that's also possible.
But being on the Maxwell Award watch list means, it means something.
It, it's This guy, he can do big things, and I think everybody knows that, and if he ends up as a finalist, I would say that's a pretty successful season for him.
