2023 Position Review and Recruiting Outlook: Defensive backs battle through injuries
The Oklahoma Sooners’ defensive back room had one of the strangest seasons among the position groups. When they were healthy, they were really pretty good, but when they weren’t healthy, they really struggled.
They also would show games where they were dominant but had several games where they struggled in coverage. The inconsistency in availability created an inconsistent performance.
The other part was the come-and-go nature of the pass rush. There were games where the pass rush created a lot of pressure and games where they applied very little.
The defensive back group struggled in zone coverage often throughout the season.
But let’s take a look at how the position did this season and what’s to come in the future at the position.
Overall, the defensive backs were good in 2023. They weren’t great, and they weren’t bad.
Coming into the season, there was a lot of hype about the safety room, which played pretty well. But there were a lot of unknowns at the cornerback position specifically opposite of Woodi Washington.
Gentry Williams solidified that spot earlier in the year but missed most of the second half of the season due to an injury. Still, the defensive back group, which was second in the nation in interceptions, played a good season.