The Oklahoma Sooners have been hard at work, building an identity of tenacity, intensity, and physicality under head coach Brent Venables. There were plenty of growing pains as Venables strived to instill his culture, but the fruits of his labor began to show last year, as OU made it to the College Football Playoff for the first time in his tenure.
Perhaps no position group on the roster is a better example of that than the defensive line. That unit has become OU’s backbone and the strength of the entire team over the last couple of seasons.
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Athlon Sports’ Steve Lassan ranked all 16 defensive lines in the SEC for this upcoming season, and he placed the Sooners at the very top, citing his trust in Venables.
At defensive tackle, the Sooners will look different this year. The losses of Damonic Williams, Gracen Halton, Markus Strong, Siolaa Lolohea, and David Rowaiye have left this group thin on depth. Williams and Halton, in particular, were battle-tested seniors who led the way during OU’s first two SEC seasons.
However, the Sooners do return both Jayden Jackson and David Stone, two players who are already established standouts for the defense. That duo will get the bulk of the snaps this year, especially early while OU figures out how to replace that depth behind them.
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Oklahoma is looking to both Nigel Smith II and Trent Wilson, young homegrown players, to step into contributing roles in 2026. Veteran transfer Bishop Thomas, who arrives from Georgia State, gives OU another experienced presence behind Jackson and Stone.
On the edge, Oklahoma loses both R Mason Thomas and Marvin Jones Jr., who were starters for much of the season in 2025. Replacing Thomas, in particular, is no easy task. He developed into OU’s closer, a speedy pass-rusher who could end games when the Sooners had the lead.
Oklahoma does get Taylor Wein back, one of the defense’s breakout stars a season ago. He played his way into a starting role down the stretch and picked up the slack when Thomas was injured during the run to the CFP. He’ll be OU’s most-highlighted edge rusher, and someone Oklahoma hopes opponents will have to account for.
The Sooners still need someone to claim the starting role opposite him, and it looks like Danny Okoye and Adepoju Adebawore are the leading contenders to do so. These homegrown pass-rushers are joined by UTSA transfer Kenny Ozowalu, as OU looks to find the best combination on the outside. True freshman Jake Kreul was one of the gems of Oklahoma’s 2026 recruiting haul, and he could push for time early with his impressive pass-rushing abilities.
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The Sooners relied heavily upon their defensive front last year, and they delivered time and time again, shutting down the run and getting after the quarterback to the tune of 45 sacks, including a program record-tying nine sacks against former Sooners QB Jackson Arnold and Auburn in a seven-point win.
The plan this year is the same, though some of the faces will be different. Oklahoma is still going to need everything it can get from its d-line, and luckily for them, Venables has been stacking strong recruiting classes on top of each other at that position in order for his front to deliver for him again in 2026.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Where does OU’s defensive line rank among the other SEC teams?
