Being the starting quarterback of the Oklahoma Sooners comes with a great deal of pressure. The blinding hot spotlight is always on you, and there's perhaps the greatest standard of quarterbacking in college football history to uphold every Saturday. Some players have thrived under that pressure, and some have cracked underneath the weight of it. For John Mateer, it's still undecided which side of that line that he'll fall on. Public opinion this offseason has tended to be split on Mateer heading into the 2026 season. Some believe that he buckled under the weight of the SEC grind in October and November last year. The other camp points to how effective he was in September before his thumb surgery, and to the work he's put in to improve as a QB since last season ended. Josh Pate, the host of "Josh Pate's College Football Show" seems like he's trending toward the latter group. He ranked his top ten quarterbacks in the SEC heading into this season, placing OU's signal-caller at No. 3 on the list. "He had 270-plus passing every game pre-injury last year," Pate said. "I just believe in my heart of hearts that a more balanced offense in Norman, Oklahoma, not to mention the fact that he doesn’t be have have to be a superhero because of the defense they have, will all come together to spell a really big year for him. Now, I don’t think I have to explain too much more thoroughly that if John Mateer is the No. 3 quarterback in this league, Oklahoma’s a playoff team this year." To put it simply, if Mateer thrives, Oklahoma thrives. While the Sooners are no longer built to just outscore everyone each week, the QB position still holds extreme significance in Norman and everywhere else in college football. A healthy Mateer who is excelling on Saturdays spells a more effective and dangerous OU team overall.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X@Aaron_Gelvin. This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: College Football Pundit high on John Mateer entering 2026