John Mateer, one of the top quarterbacks available in the transfer portal after an impressive redshirt sophomore season at Washington State, has committed to play at Oklahoma. He follows former Cougars offense coordinator offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, who took the same job at OU on Dec. 2.
The news comes hours after Washington State lost its coach, Jake Dickert, to Wake Forest. Mateer and Dickert helped lead the Cougars to an 8–4 record in their first year in the two-team Pac-12.
Mateer is a dynamic dual-threat player, putting up 3,139 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions through the air, and 826 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground in 2024. He is expected to step in as the starting quarterback for a Sooners offense that struggled mightily to put points on the board this fall. He was ranked the No. 1 player in the transfer portal by 247Sports.
OU finished just 6–6 in its first year in the SEC, with an offense that ranked No. 74 in ESPN's SP+ efficiency metric and just No. 94 in scoring offense (24.3 points per game).
The Sooners bounced between former five-star recruit Jackson Arnold and true freshman Michael Hawkins at quarterback. Arnold, who entered the season with lofty expectations but was benched at midseason, transferred to Auburn on Saturday. Hawkins is expected to return to Oklahoma next season.
Mateer's departure cements what has been a brutal offseason for the Cougars. The team will now be without its head coach, both of its coordinators (DC Jeff Schmedding was fired earlier this month) and its starting quarterback when it faces Syracuse in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 27. The team has more than 20 players in the transfer portal, a number that could swell even more with Dickert gone.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Oklahoma Lands Top Transfer Portal Quarterback John Mateer.
