The Oklahoma Sooners possess one of the best defenses in college football. Head coach Brent Venables has built one of the worst defenses in the sport into a top-10 unit in just four seasons at the helm. While the Sooners return a lot of key contributors from last year's team, they also lost some important pieces. There might not be a bigger one than EDGE R Mason Thomas. He has 15.5 sacks and 22 tackles for loss in the last two seasons. His strong play led to him being drafted in the second round by the Kansas City Chiefs. With his departure, there is a starting spot up for grabs. Danny Okoye and Adepoju Adebawore are the two vying for that role. Okoye admitted in an interview that he wasn't always the most coachable player, and that this stemmed from not trusting people. He said once he put his faith in coach Miguel Chavis, his game went to another level. "Honestly, it took me a long time to trust him," Okoye said via SoonerScoop. "Because I don't trust people. I don't like people. After I kind of figured out his kinks and how he works and how he thinks, it kind of became obvious that this was a dude who I would probably be better off having in my corner. Once I bought into that idea fully, it became a lot easier to take that coaching." The relationship between Okoye and Chavis could ultimately be one of the most important factors in determining how successful the sophomore EDGE is in 2026. Okoye clearly believes that learning how to trust his coach allowed him to become more receptive to coaching and improve his game. That matters even more with a starting job available. Oklahoma doesn't necessarily need Okoye to become Thomas overnight, but the Sooners do need someone to consistently create pressure off the edge. If Okoye can take another step forward, Oklahoma could avoid a significant drop-off despite losing one of its best pass rushers. And if his relationship with Chavis continues to produce the kind of growth Okoye described, the Sooners may have found their defensive star just when they needed one.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X (formerly known as Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on X @jaronspor. This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma's Danny Okoye opens up on relationship with Miguel Chavis