Is Oklahoma likely to mix it up at QB in Red River vs. Texas? Brent Venables evaluating John Mateer, options

Backups Bowe Bentley and Whitt Newbauer are getting extra bye-week reps as the Sooners rank last in the SEC in total offense ahead of a showdown with No. 1 Texas

Oct 5, 2026 at 1:53 pm ET • 3 min read

Oklahoma coach Brent Venables is evaluating all options at quarterback after John Mateer's slow start. Mateer remains the starter, but backups Bowe Bentley and Whitt Newbauer have gotten additional snaps during the bye week. 

Venables admitted the staff considered benching Mateer during a 41-13 loss to No. 2 Georgia, but they ultimately stuck with him. The Sooners are averaging 11.5 points per game against Power Four competition with Mateer at the helm. 

"I have no idea," Venables said. "We're not there right now … John's our starting quarterback." 

The former Washington State transfer was heralded as the No. 1 quarterback transfer two years ago, and was a game-changing commitment when he signed with Oklahoma. But since a fast start before hand surgery in 2025, Mateer -- and Oklahoma's offense -- have faltered. 

The senior is completing 66% of his passes for 883 yards but is averaging only 1.9 yards per carry with four interceptions in his last three games. The Sooners rank last in the SEC in total offense and 15th in scoring offense amidst a miserable 2-2 start. 

Oklahoma faces off against No. 1 Texas on Saturday in the annual Red River Rivalry at the State Fair of Texas. The Sooners have lost three of the last four games, averaging an astonishing 3.0 points per game in the losses. Three of the four worst Red River scoring outputs at Oklahoma of the past 50 years belong to Venables. 

Backup options

Because of the investment in Mateer, proven options in the QB room are limited. Former Mercer transfer Whitt Newbauer and freshman Bowe Bentley are both taking meaningful snaps in practice, but neither has many reps. 

Newbauer, listed at 6-feet-6 and 240 pounds, started seven games as a freshman at Mercer in 2024. He completed 56% of his passes for 1,398 yards, 12 touchdowns and four interceptions while leading the program to the FCS quarterfinals. However, Newbauer has thrown only five combined passes for 12 yards in two years as a backup at Oklahoma. 

Bentley is the higher-upside option, a four-star freshman who led Celina (Texas) to a state championship in high school. Rated the No. 109 player in the Class of 2026, he completed 77% of his passes and threw for 2,911 yards and 32 touchdowns as a senior. Bentley threw one incomplete pass against UTEP. 

"We've got great belief in them, trust in them," Venables said. "There's a body of work that both of those guys, both Bowe and Whitt, have put out there and for us to evaluate. They're doing a nice job, they're working hard, improving incrementally and doing all the things that we want our quarterback to do as a whole, as a group." 

Been here before

Two years ago, Oklahoma benched blue-chip quarterback Jackson Arnold after a slow start. Arnold was a prize recruit, the No. 10 player in the Class of 2023 and seemingly an indicator that the Sooners weren't going anywhere at the quarterback position after losing Lincoln Riley. 

Instead, Venables sent Arnold to the bench in his fourth start of the season in favor of true freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. Hawkins helped beat Auburn in his first start, but absolutely tanked against then-No. 1 Texas, a 34-3 decimation that sent the Sooners careening to 6-7 in their SEC debut season. 

Hawkins lasted just one more game before he was subsequently benched for Arnold in a 35-9 loss against South Carolina. Offensive coordinator Seth Littrell was fired too. Since losing Jeff Lebby to Mississippi State and Dillon Gabriel to Oregon, there have been essentially zero consistent answers for the Sooners. 

Venables can bench his $4 million quarterback Mateer or fire offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, but the offensive issues predate them. The Sooners have not ranked higher than 97th in yards per play offense over the past three seasons, and the rushing offense has regressed every season since Riley departed.