Oklahoma No. 4 in final ESPN SP+ projections ahead of 2022 season
Week 0 is upon us! The start of the 2022 college football season is here. Though the Oklahoma Sooners will not kick off against the UTEP Miners for another 13 days (and counting), we get football this week.
Week 0 provides a fantastic opportunity to check out two of Oklahoma’s first three opponents. On Aug. 27, the Nebraska Cornhuskers take on Big Ten foe Northwestern, and UTEP will face North Texas.
With the season getting underway this week, Bill Connelly of ESPN updated his SP+ ratings (ESPN+) for a final look ahead of the 2022 season.
The Oklahoma Sooners come in at No. 4 behind Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State, the top three teams in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25. However, Georgia and Ohio State are flipped in the polls compared to the SP+ ratings.
Oklahoma moved up a spot from the last update in May.
The Sooners have the highest projected win total in the Big 12 at 9.8. The next closest is Oklahoma State with a projected win total of 8.3.
As always: SP+ is a tempo- and opponent-adjusted measure of college football efficiency. It is a predictive measure of the most sustainable and predictable aspects of football, not a résumé ranking, and, along those same lines, these projections aren’t intended to be a guess at what the AP Top 25 will look like at the end of the year. These are simply early offseason power rankings based on the information we have been able to gather to date. – Connelly, ESPN
Here’s a look at where each team on Oklahoma’s 2022 schedule ranks in the ESPN SP+ rating and their projected win total for the season.
Sept. 3: UTEP Miners (Norman)
Nov. 20, 2021; El Paso, Texas; UTEP Miners offensive lineman Bobby DeHaro (73) speaks to his teammates before facing the Rice Owls at Sun Bowl Stadium. Ivan Pierre Aguirre-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: -9.5
Projected Win Total: 6
Overall: 102
Difference from May: None
Sept. 10: Kent State Golden Flashes (Norman)
Sept. 4, 2021; College Station, Texas; Kent State Golden Flashes wide receiver Dante Cephas (14) receives the pass from Kent State Golden Flashes quarterback Dustin Crum (not shown) during the second quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: -11.1
Projected Win Total: 5
Overall: 107
Difference from May: Down 4
Sept. 17: Nebraska Cornhuskers (Lincoln)
Oklahoma’s Eric Gray (0) carries the ball during a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. © BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN via Imagn Content Services, LLC
SP+ Rating: 8.3
Projected Win Total: 6.9
Overall: 44
Difference from May: Down 15
Sept. 24: Kansas State Wildcats (Norman)
Oct. 2, 2021; Manhattan; Kansas State Wildcats running back Deuce Vaughn (22) tries to run past Oklahoma Sooners cornerback Jaden Davis (4) during the second quarter at Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium. Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 10
Projected Win Total: 7
Overall: 33
Difference from May: Up 5
Oct. 1: TCU Horned Frogs (Fort Worth)
Dec. 12, 2020; Fort Worth, Texas; TCU Horned Frogs wide receiver Quentin Johnston (1) catches a pass for a touchdown against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs during the first half at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 8.4
Projected Win Total: 6.6
Overall: 41
Difference from May: Up 4
Oct. 8: Texas Longhorns (Dallas)
April 23, 2022; Austin; Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) throws a pass during Texas’s annual spring football game at Royal Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas on April 23, 2022. Aaron E. Martinez-USA TODAY NETWORK
SP+ Rating: 14.4
Projected Win Total: 7.5
Overall: 22
Difference from May: Up 9
Oct. 15: Kansas Jayhawks (Norman)
Kansas junior quarterback Jalon Daniels (6) works on drills during practice Tuesday morning in Lawrence. Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
SP+ Rating: -10.4
Win Projection: 2.8
Overall: 103
Difference from May: Up 6
Oct. 22: BYE WEEK
Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables during an NCAA college football practice, Monday, Aug. 8, 2022, in Norman, Okla. AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki
If the Oklahoma Sooners can make it to the bye week with one or fewer losses, they’ll be in great shape to land a spot in the Big 12 title game and put themselves in the College Football Playoff conversation.
Oct. 29: Iowa State Cyclones (Ames, Iowa)
Iowa State Cyclones quarterback Hunter Dekkers (12) runs the ball for a touchdown as Iowa State hosts Kansas at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021. Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK
SP+ Rating: 6.9
Projected Win Total: 6.3
Overall: 48
Difference from May: Up 8
Nov. 5: Baylor Bears (Norman)
Dec. 4, 2021; Arlington, Texas; Baylor Bears quarterback Blake Shapen (12) passes against the Oklahoma State Cowboys during the second quarter in the Big 12 Conference championship game at AT&T Stadium. Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 12.9
Projected Win Total: 7.6
Overall: 30
Difference from May: Up 10
Nov. 12: West Virginia Mountaineers (Morgantown)
Sept. 18, 2021; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers defensive lineman Dante Stills (55) celebrates with the Black Diamond Trophy after defeating the Virginia Tech Hokies at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 3.3
Projected Win Total: 5
Overall: 58
Difference from May: Up 17
Nov. 19: Oklahoma State Cowboys (Norman)
Jan. 1, 2022; Glendale, Arizona; Detailed view of an Oklahoma State Cowboys helmet during the 2022 Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 14.3
Projected Win Total: 8.3
Overall: 19
Difference from May: Up 13
Nov. 26: Texas Tech Red Raiders (Lubbock)
Dec 28, 2021; Memphis, Tennessee; Texas Tech Red Raiders quarterback Donovan Smith (7) runs for a touchdown during the second half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Liberty Bowl Stadium. Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 6.3
Projected Win Total: 5.6
Overall: 49
Difference from May: Down 1
Oklahoma Sooners
April 23, 2022; Norman; Oklahoma Sooners head coach Brent Venables poses with former players and family during the spring game at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
SP+ Rating: 22.5
Projected Win Total: 9.8
Overall: 4
Difference from May: Up 1
