FORT WORTH, Texas — OU football coach Brent Venables and Navy coach Brian Newberry participated in the pregame press conference on Thursday ahead of the Armed Forces Bowl.
The Sooners and Midshipmen will square off at 11 a.m. Friday at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
Here are five takeaways from the press conference:
More:What college football bowl games are on today? Full schedule, Oklahomans in the bowls
OU football coach Brent Venables said Thursday the Sooners would have 56 scholarship players available for Friday’s Armed Forces Bowl against Navy, with linebacker Danny Stutsman and safety Billy Bowman being the only two players who have opted out of the bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft.
The others not participating include the players who have entered the transfer portal and 11 players that are injured.
Venables said Stutsman and Bowman have remained with the team, and are on the trip, but would not participate in the game.
“Obviously, where we’re at today is different from where we started the season,” Venables said.
Those available scholarship players include defensive end R Mason Thomas. OU’s NIL collective announced Thomas was returning for next season on Tuesday, but the post was soon deleted.
Venables did not give an update on the status of wide receiver Deion Burks, who would be the only non-freshman scholarship wide receiver available if he was able to play.
Burks missed all but one of the last eight games due to injury.
“When healthy, he’s a fantastic player,” Venables said of Burks. “He’s one of the best competitors that we have on the team. He’s got a very dynamic skillset to play on both the outside and inside alike.”
More:OU football vs Navy: Inside the matchups for Sooners-Midshipmen in Armed Forces Bowl
Incoming offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle has been working with quarterbacks during the bowl prep and will serve as the quarterbacks coach in the bowl, though Joe Jon Finley will remain the playcaller.
The move occurred after interim quarterbacks coach Kevin Johns accepted a job on Oklahoma State’s staff.
“I think probably the most important important piece of this transition is he’s been able to build those relationships,” Venables said of Arbuckle.
More:OU football vs Navy score predictions for Armed Forces Bowl: Can Sooners pull off victory?
Most of OU’s transfer portal activity so far has come from the offensive side, with eight of the nine portal commits being offensive players.
The only other addition came on special teams.
Venables said there wouldn’t be a rush of defensive additions.
“We’ll have a few more on offense,” Venables said. “We don’t have many needs. We have tremendous retention on the defensive side of the ball.”
More:How OU football punter Luke Elzinga is thriving in a role he never thought he’d have
Venables didn’t say much when asked about one of those transfer portal additions, Washington State quarterback John Mateer, saying he preferred to keep the attention on Friday’s game.
But Venables was asked multiple questions about the portal addition.
“Excited about John,” Venables said. “… John’s a leader. He’s experienced. He’s got great arm talent. Really good instincts. He’ll make us better.”
More:For Navy coach Brian Newberry, facing OU football in bowl game is full-circle moment
There has been some buzz that the opening weekend of the College Football Playoff could be moved up a week.
That would mean the annual Army-Navy clash would go from being the lone game of the day to sharing the spotlight.
That’s not something Navy coach Brian Newberry, an Oklahoma City native and Westmoore graduate, is in favor of.
“I think it’s incredibly important to continue the integrity of that date and when it’s played,” Newberry said. “I’d hate to take away from that. I love that they preserved the integrity of that game this year and hopefully we’ll be able to do that moving forward.”
—Ryan Aber, Staff writer
More:Why OU football will be challenged by Navy triple option: ‘Scratch everything you learned’
Ryan Aber covers OU athletics for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Ryan? He can be reached at raber@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at@RyAber. Sign up forthe OU Sooners newsletter to access more OU coverage. Support Ryan’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasinga digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
KICKOFF: 11 a.m. Friday at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas (ESPN)
