Pair of Sooners included in ESPN’s top 100 college football players for 2023
The Big 12 may not get the respect that the SEC or the Big Ten do, but there’s a lot of talent in the conference that will be on display every Saturday in the fall.
The Oklahoma Sooners have a pair of players that are among the most talented in the league heading into 2023. Dillon Gabriel and Danny Stutsman will lead the way for their respective sides of the ball this season and were featured on ESPN’s top 100 players for the 2023 season.
Let’s take a look at where they landed in addition to the players Oklahoma will face this season that were also included in the top 100.
44. Jalon Daniels, QB, Kansas
What ESPN had to say:
In nine games in 2022, Daniels completed 66.1% of his passes for 2,014 yards, 18 touchdowns, and just four interceptions. He also had 425 yards rushing and seven touchdowns. After being a Heisman candidate the first five weeks of the season, he suffered an injury against TCU that halted those aspirations. But expect him to be one of the best in the nation again in 2023.
What Sooners Wire says:
As Jalon Daniels goes, so go the Kansas Jayhawks. In the first half of the season, Daniels was making a case to be in Heisman contention. An injury derailed his season, and he and the Jayhawks couldn’t find the same level of success.
Daniels was voted the Big 12 preseason offensive player of the year by the media this summer. He’s a dynamic player that is capable of taking over a game.
The Sooners will face Daniels and the Jayhawks in Lawrence on Saturday October 28.
51. Danny Stutsman, LB, Oklahoma
What ESPN had to say:
A player who will be integral on Brent Venables’ second-year defense, Stutsman led the Big 12 last season with 125 total tackles with an average of 9.6 tackles per game. Stutsman also totaled 10.5 tackles for loss, which was good for second on the team, as well as three sacks and two interceptions.
What Sooners Wire says:
If the Oklahoma Sooners defense were the Spartans from the movie “The 300,” Danny Stutsman would be King Leonidas. The guy at the front of the phalanx leading the charge. Stutsman’s the emotional and physical leader for this team.
He was arguably the best player on the defense last year, leading the Big 12 in tackles and Pro Football Focus’ stops metric. If he can take his game to another level, an All-American season isn’t out of the question.
59. Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas
What ESPN said:
Worthy comes into the 2023 season with 21 career touchdown receptions, good for third all-time in Texas Football history. In 13 games last season, he had 60 receptions for 760 yards and nine touchdowns. He was named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list, and will certainly compete for the award if Quinn Ewers and Texas take the leap many expect.
What Sooners Wire says:
Despite what many believe was a down year for Xavier Worthy, he’s one of the best wide receivers in the country. One reason for his inefficiency was the high degree of difficulty of his targets.
Worthy led the nation in average depth of target in 2023 at 17.6 yards per target. The player in second place, Marvin Mims, with an average depth of target of 17.
Worthy will likely get more favorable coverages this year with an ever-improving set of pass catchers. That should also help him be utilized more in the intermediate part of the passing game.
The Sooners will face Worthy and the Longhorns on Saturday, October 7, 2023.
60. Dillon Gabriel, QB, Oklahoma
What ESPN said:
The Big 12’s Offensive Newcomer of the Year started 12 games in 2022, completing 62.7% of his passes for 3,168 yards with 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions. He also had six rushing touchdowns, a career high. Per Oklahoma, his 95 touchdown passes are the second most in the country over the last four years despite missing 11 games due to injury.
What Sooners Wire has to say:
Dillon Gabriel is one of the best quarterbacks in the Big 12. And that will serve the Sooners well in their hopes to return to Big 12 title contention in 2023. He’s an accurate passer that has the poise to make the big time throws in Jeff Lebby’s offense.
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72. Josh Newton, CB, TCU
What ESPN said:
The Louisiana-Monroe transfer was named first-team All-Big 12 alongside Thorpe Award winner Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson. He had 35 tackles on the season with 15 pass breakups and added three interceptions, including one he returned 57 yards for a touchdown against Iowa State. He enters his final season with 27 career pass breakups.
What Sooners Wire says:
If the TCU Horned Frogs are going to stay a contender in the Big 12, the defense will have to be better than last year and Josh Newton will be a big part of it. The Frogs were an opportunistic defense last year and outplayed their No. 91 ranking in points allowed.
Newton allowed the second-lowest passer rating among Big 12 defenders a year ago, according to PFF.
74. Johnny Hodges, LB, TCU
What ESPN said:
After transferring from Navy, the linebacker showed why Sonny Dykes wanted him in Fort Worth. He led TCU with 87 tackles, the most by a Horned Frog since Garret Wallow had 90 in 2020, according to the school. It earned him Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year honors, as well as second-team All-Big 12.
What Sooners Wire says:
Hodges was a huge pickup a year ago and will be at the forefront of the Horned Frogs defense in 2023. He was ninth in the Big 12 in Pro Football Focus’ stops metric and had the ninth best defensive grade among linebackers in the conference in 2022.
Oklahoma closes the season with the TCU Horned Frogs in Norman on Friday November 24.
75. Collin Oliver, EDGE, Oklahoma State
What ESPN said:
A converted defensive end, Oliver led Oklahoma State in sacks in each of the past two seasons (11.5 and 5.5); led the team in quarterback hurries with 12 last season; led the Big 12 in sacks in 2021 and has earned second-team All-Big 12 honors in each of the past two seasons.
What Sooners Wire says:
With Felix Anudike-Uzomah and Will McDonald off to the NFL, Collin Oliver has a chance be the best EDGE player in the Big 12 in 2023. Though there was an exodus of talent from Stillwater, Oliver is a game-changing presence off the edge due to his pass rush ability. He was fifth in the conference in pressures among EDGE players, according to Pro Football Focus.
The Sooners travel to Stillwater for what is their final scheduled Bedlam on November 4.
78. Devin Neal, RB, Kansas
What ESPN said:
The Big 12’s only returning 1,000-yard rusher, Neal amassed 1,090 yards and nine touchdowns as a sophomore. He became the first KU player ever to have 200 yards rushing and 100 receiving against Oklahoma State when he ran for 224 yards and a TD on 6.1 yards per carry and added 110 yards on six receptions.
What Sooners Wire had to say:
While a lot of the focus with the Jayhawks is on Jalon Daniels, Devin Neal is a dynamic player in his own right. He was fifth in the Big 12 a year ago in rushing yards. Neal was second in the conference in percentage of runs that went for 15 yards or more among running backs with at least 87 carries last season.
83. Jalen Catalon, S, Texas
What ESPN said:
An Arkansas transfer, Catalon suffered a season-ending injury in the opener against Cincinnati last year after making eight tackles in the game. In 2021, he started the first six games, making 46 tackles, before suffering another season-ending injury. He was a breakout star and a freshman All-American in 2020 with 99 tackles, three interceptions and four passes broken up.
What Sooners Wire had to say:
In an attempt to add experience to their secondary, the Longhorns added one of the best defensive players in the transfer portal, Jalen Catalon. The former freshman All-American is coming off back-to-back years suffering a season-ending injury. Still, he’s a talented player that brings a lot of experience to the Texas secondary.
88. Jaylan Ford, LB, Texas
What ESPN said:
Last season, Ford finished with a career-high 119 tackles, which was also the most for a Texas linebacker in almost 10 years. In addition, he had 10 tackles for loss and is sure to vie for the Big 12 defensive player of the year title after falling just short of it in 2022.
What Sooners Wire says:
Jaylan Ford was named the preseason defensive player of the year in the Big 12 for good reason. He’s a really good player. He was second in the Big 12 to Danny Stutsman in tackles and is taking on an even bigger role with the departure of Demarvion Overshown to the Dallas Cowboys.
98. Cobee Bryant, CB, Kansas
What ESPN said:
Bryant was named All-Big 12 first team by the league’s coaches, finishing his sophomore year with 37 tackles, nine passes defensed and three interceptions in 10 starts. He sealed a Jayhawks win over West Virginia with an interception in overtime.
What Sooners Wire says:
The Jayhawks need more playmakers on defense. Enter Cobee Bryant, who allowed a completion on just 56.3% of pass attempts his direction. He allowed just two touchdowns and recorded three interceptions for Kansas a year ago.
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