Oklahoma star quarterback John Mateer will undergo surgery to address a right-hand injury he sustained in his team’s 24-17 win over Auburn last weekend, the school announced on Tuesday. Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said in the release that Mateer is expected to return at some point this season.
“After consulting with medical experts, it became clear that surgery is the best option for John and his short- and long-term future,” Venables said. “He’s extremely disappointed he will miss some game action but is eager to correct the issue and move forward. As he is with everything, we know he will be aggressive with his rehabilitation and work to return to the field as quickly as possible.”
Sources tell CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz that Mateer is expected to miss about a month and that Oklahoma is hopeful to have him back before the end of October. That timeline would cast doubt on Mateer’s availability for Oct. 11 vs. Texas, Oct. 18 at South Carolina and Oct. 25 vs. Ole Miss — while making a return for a Nov. 1 test at Tennessee a (hopefully) worst-case scenario.
The injury occurred in the first quarter of OU’s win. He stayed in the game despite the injury and finished with 271 passing yards and scored a 9-yard touchdown run with 4:54 remaining to put his team ahead for good.
Mateer had the second-best odds to win the Heisman Trophy behind Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, per FanDuel, before the injury announcement saw Mateer’s odds get pulled. Mateer ranked second nationally with 351.3 yards of total offense per game and rushed for at least one touchdown and passed for one touchdown in each of his last 10 games dating back to his time at Washington State.
Mateer ranked as the No. 6 overall player in the 247Sports transfer rankings and was the third-ranked quarterback available. Mateer followed his old offensive coordinator, Ben Arbuckle, from Washington State to Oklahoma this past offseason.
In Mike Renner’s latest mock draft, he had the New York Jets selecting Mateer with the No. 7 overall pick.
Who will OU turn to with Mateer out?
Oklahoma will start Michael Hawkins Jr. in its next game against Kent State on Oct. 4. The Sooners have a bye this weekend and play Texas on Oct. 11.
“We have all the confidence in the world in Michael and are excited for his opportunity to lead our offense while John recovers,” Venables said. “He had some big moments for us last season as a true freshman and has just gotten better and better. I’m proud of the work Michael’s put in and the progress he’s made, and know he will attack this opportunity to help lead our football team.”
Hawkins, a former three-star recruit in the 2024 recruiting cycle by 247Sports, appeared in seven games during last season and finished with 783 yards passing and three touchdowns to two interceptions. He also ran the ball 69 times for 204 yards and another score.
The Dallas, Texas, native was inserted into OU’s lineup during a 25-15 loss to Tennessee last season after Venables benched quarterback Jackson Arnold. Hawkins went on to start the next three games for the Sooners before Arnold was inserted back into the starting lineup.
— Brad Crawford
Financial advisors would suggest the selling of futures on Oklahoma’s playoff chances given what lies ahead in October and beyond for the Sooners, but the path remains clear for a team and coaching staff — currently +125 to make the CFP field, according to DraftKings — uncertain on how long Mateer will be sidelined.
Oklahoma was tabbed as the first team out at No. 13 in CBS Sports’ updated playoff projection on Tuesday ahead of the program’s injury announcement for Mateer. The predicted finish pointed to the Sooners ending the year at 9-3 overall with five wins over nationally ranked teams but skipped over by the selection committee in favor of a two-loss, ACC runner-up Georgia Tech.
Ten wins is the magic number in the SEC to all but guarantee playoff inclusion considering how many ranked teams are within the league at this very moment. However, if there’s a Power Four team capable of reaching the playoff as a three-loss at-large, the Sooners fit the bill given the strength of schedule edge they’re going to have against other competitors in the mix.
No team currently ranked inside this week’s AP poll squares off with as many top 25 opponents as the Sooners the rest of the way. That’s both a gift and a potential curse for Brent Venables, who’s now facing the arduous task of taking the field without his front-running Heisman candidate for the next several weeks.
— Shehan Jeyarajah
Non-Mateer players at Oklahoma have mustered only 80 yards per game as running backs have combined for only 280 yards rushing in four games. That includes the disappointing first month for ballyhooed transfer running back Jaydn Ott, who has nine carries all season. Plenty will be put on the shoulders of Hawkins to save an OU offense that ranked only No. 50 nationally even with Mateer in the lineup.
