Oklahoma’s facelift of their 2024 offense continues, as yet another Sooners wide receiver hit the transfer portal this week. This time it was Brenen Thompson who elected to portal away.
Once again, this departure isn’t a largely important one for the Sooners. If anyone tells you it was a surprise, it probably speaks to their inability to understand the roster.
This marks the sixth wide receiver to leave the Sooners’ offense. Along with Thompson, JJ Hester, Jaquaize Pettaway, Nic Anderson, Jalil Farooq, and Andrel Anthony have all portaled away. This was inevitably going to happen as Oklahoma processed out all of the injured or low-contributing players from their worst offense in a decade.
Thompson, a junior, transferred to the Sooners after his freshman season. He caught just 26 passes for 497 yards and four TDs over his two seasons at OU.
Thompson wasn’t to blame for most of the Sooners’ offensive struggles, but he wasn’t a problem solver either. I had high hopes for Thompson this season. His speed was certainly a difference-maker compared to some of the other receivers, but Thompson too suffered injuries in games for the Sooners as well throughout the season.
Oklahoma’s offense also apparently seems to have a type they are targeting in the portal, as all of their targets are well over 6’0. Thompson, at 5’9 and 168 pounds, doesn’t fit that mold.
Here is the list so far of every Sooner to enter the transfer portal this offseason, in no particular order:
So far, there’s not been any portal departure that I would be too broken up about, knowing the roster. Arnold actively cost the team games, Anderson, Anthony, and Farooq battled too many injuries, Walker was picked on often, Sharp was featured way too often for a lackluster playmaker, and Dasan McCullough simply got buried behind the other younger (and perhaps cheaper) linebackers Oklahoma already has.