Brent Venables might have cracked the code to bring the long-awaited turnaround season in Norman, and he might have done it better than other programs in equally desperate need of a turnaround season.
The answer lies in Venables' off-season mastermind move in bringing in QB John Mateer alongside an offense he is already familiar with and comfortable with.
While all the other superstar transfer QBs would be busy decoding their new offenses, Mateer would already be kicking the bucket.
"People are completely misevaluating how much John Mateer means to this football team. The situation John Mateer is in at Oklahoma, I think, cannot be overstated in terms of importance in Oklahoma's success in 2025," On3's JD Pickell stated.
"Because you're not just getting a guy at Oklahoma in John Mateer, who accounted for 44 touchdowns. But you're getting that plus the actual offensive system that he played in a year ago under Ben Arbuckle and with John Kuceyeski as his QB coach at Washington State. Both those guys are now with him in Norman.
"So we think Carson Beck is going to be great at Miami. Jackson Arnold, I think, can have success at Auburn. But both those individuals are now trying to figure out new offences at new places. That's not John Mateer's story."
The move has been a widely-discussed one ever since Venables brought in the Washington State trio.
But perhaps it is just now that everyone is realizing the massive impact it could have.
That said, Mateer would be saving Venables' job if he delivers to the expectations, given how badly the Sooners' head coach has been on the hot seat.
The good thing is Oklahoma's schedule looks easy enough that they could tackle it, apart from a few conference games.
The pressure has been on for Mateer.
Now, he has to do it; expectations and all.