Position Preview: Quarterbacks

NORMAN — Oklahoma finished fourth in the nation in scoring offense a year ago under then-first-year offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley. The Sooners' 43.5 points-per-game clip helped push OU to its ninth Big 12 championship and its first appearance in the two-year College Football Playoff.

Perhaps the biggest factor in that offensive success was the emergence of quarterback Baker Mayfield. After sitting out due to conference transfer rules in 2014, Mayfield was a revelation in 2015. He piled up 3,700 yards through the air on 269-of-395 (.681) passing with 36 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. The 6-1, 212-pound gunslinger from Austin, Texas, also added 405 yards rushing and seven scores on the ground.

Mayfield electrified the Sooner faithful with his play-extending, never-say-die style. He quickly became a fan favorite and finished the year ranked third nationally in passing efficiency rating (173.3), third in yards per passing attempt (9.37), sixth in touchdown passes, sixth in points responsible for (258) and 13th in total offense (315.8 yards per game).

For his efforts, Mayfield finished fourth in the Heisman voting and was named a finalist for the Davey O'Brien Award, Manning Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, and a semifinalist for the Maxwell Award before being named Sporting News Player of the Year. He was named a first-team All-American by the Associated Press and Football Writers Association of America.

The former walk-on and Texas Tech transfer, who had his year of lost eligibility restored two months ago in a vote of Big 12 faculty athletics representatives, enters 2016 as a redshirt junior and firmly entrenched as the team's starting QB. OU's offense should once again ride Mayfield as far as he will take it.

Behind Mayfield the quarterback picture looks quite different than it did a year ago. With the departures of Trevor Knight (graduate transfer now at Texas A&M) and Cody Thomas (signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers), the back-up duties fall to true freshman Austin Kendall. Hailing from Waxhaw, N.C., Kendall was one of the highest rated prep QBs of the Bob Stoops era (fourth-best nationally at his position and No. 77 overall by Rivals). Kendall enrolled a semester early and was with the team all throughout spring practice. That extra experience will be invaluable to a true freshman who could see action right away.

Standing 6-2 and weighing 206 pounds, Kendall passed for 2,627 yards as a senior, adding 29 total touchdowns despite missing time due to injury. As a junior, Kendall racked up 4,461 yards through the air on 310-for-513 passing (60.4 percent) and recorded 49 touchdowns. Should Kendall find himself taking snaps for Oklahoma this fall, he certainly boasts the talent and pedigree to excel in Riley's offense.

Joining Mayfield and Kendall in the QB room is Texas A&M transfer Kyler Murray. Ineligible in 2016 due to NCAA transfer policy, Murray was rated as a five-star prospect out of high school and earned Gatorade National Player of the Year accolades as a senior at Allen (Texas) High School, where he led the Eagles to three state championships. He played nine games for Texas A&M as a freshman (made three starts) and totaled 1,021 yards of offense (686 passing, 335 rushing) with five touchdowns.

Also on the roster and getting some snaps during training camp are walk-ons Reece Clark (redshirt freshman), Connor McGinnis (redshirt freshman) and Tanner Schafer (freshman).

Players Mentioned

Reece Clark

Austin Kendall

Trevor Knight

Baker Mayfield

Connor McGinnis

Kyler Murray

Tanner Schafer

Cody Thomas

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics