Sooners land QB Mateer, No. 1 player in portal

Washington State transfer quarterback John Mateer has committed to Oklahoma, he announced on social media Wednesday.

Mateer is the No. 1 overall player in ESPN’s transfer rankings and joins the Sooners after a breakthrough season as the Cougars’ starter in 2024. He’ll have two more seasons of eligibility.

Oklahoma hired Washington State offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and quarterbacks coach John Kuceyeski earlier this month and was long considered the favorite to land Mateer if he transferred. Oklahoma held off a strong push from Miami to secure his pledge, sources told ESPN.

After backing up Cam Ward for two years, Mateer took over as the Cougars’ starter in 2024 and threw for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns on 65% passing. He was one of the top dual-threat playmakers in FBS, ranking sixth among all quarterbacks with 827 rushing yards and scoring 15 rushing touchdowns.

The 6-foot-1, 219-pound redshirt sophomore had a top-10 QBR among Group of 5 starters (71.4) over his 12 starts. The Cougars started 8-1 this season and were as high as No. 18 in the College Football Playoff rankings before closing with three consecutive losses.

After firing first-year offensive coordinator Seth Littrell midway through the season, Oklahoma coach Brent Venables hired Arbuckle on Dec. 2. Mateer resolves a significant need for the program after starting quarterback Jackson Arnold opted to transfer to Auburn.

Mateer, a native of Little Elm, Texas, was lightly recruited out of high school and was committed to play at the FCS level at Central Arkansas before Washington State made a late offer in January 2022.

Washington State coach Jake Dickert accepted the job at Wake Forest on Wednesday, after longtime coach Dave Clawson decided to step down earlier this week.

Dickert and Washington State’s leadership had attempted to negotiate a deal with Mateer to re-sign him for the 2025 season, but the coach said his quarterback wished to “play on a bigger stage” next season.

“John will be the most sought-after player in the portal,” Dickert told reporters Monday. “I think he’s going to be the best player in the country next year.”

In its first season as an SEC member, Oklahoma lost six of eight conference games and went 6-6 in the regular season. The Sooners rank No. 94 nationally in scoring offense at 24.3 points per game, their worst scoring average since 1998. Venables is counting on Mateer and Arbuckle, his rising 29-year-old offensive coordinator, to lead a turnaround in 2025.

Oklahoma will close out its season against Navy in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 27. Freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. started three games this season and was expected to start for the Sooners in the finale.