Contender #11

Oklahoma

SEC · 2026 preseason baseline

Projection

79.4

SP+ preseason

+17.2

Returning prod.

65%

Recruiting

84%

2026 portal cycle

Inside a standard deviation of zero.

−0.87z

talent-weighted z-score

applied: −0.17 pts

Top gains

  • 4★ WRParker Livingstone from Texas
  • 4★ WRTrell Harris from Virginia
  • 4★ TEJack Van Dorselaer from Tennessee

Top losses

  • 4★ LBSammy Omosigho to UCLA
  • 4★ LBKobie McKinzie to Northwestern
  • 3★ QBMichael Hawkins Jr. to West Virginia

Portal moves are weighted by recruiting stars, position (QB and skill positions weighted higher), and eligibility. Withdrawn entrants are excluded. The z-score is normalized across teams appearing in the 2026 portal cycle. See the full portal leaderboard →

2025 season · final grade

The 2025 season, graded.

C CeilingC

On the projection.

Realized SP+ +18.3 · SP+ rank #14

Projection

75.0

Realized

76.1

Δ

+1.1

Δ grade

C

Ceiling SECONDARY

C

Projection vs realized

Realized 76.1 Projection 75.0

The yellow tick is Oklahoma's August 13, 2025 preseason SP+ rating (+17.5) — the last preseason release before Week 1, from Bill Connelly / ESPN. The dark bar is the final 2025 SP+ (Connelly, post-championship). Both mapped to the 0–100 scale by score = 50 + SP+ × (50/35), clamped [1, 99]. The gap between them is Δ: +1.1. Δ banded A through F gives the letter grade.

What the grade means

A C means Oklahoma finished within a narrow band of the projection (Δ +1.1, band −6 to +8). The season the projection described.

Ceiling grade: C · secondary lens · 5% of upside headroom used. Δ divided by the room Oklahoma had to move (upside if Δ is positive, downside if negative). Ceiling normalizes for projection height: a projection-90 team has 10 points of upside room, a projection-50 team has 50.

The letter grade always records the same relationship: realized minus projection, banded A through F. A team can sit in the Elite tier and still receive a D. LSU in 2025 is that case.

Read the methodology →

Offense (2025)

30.1

SP+ offensive rating

Defense (2025)

12.9

SP+ defensive rating (lower = better)

Nat'l SP+ rank

#14

Final 2025 SP+ ranking

2025 portal cycle (context)

Net negative on talent-weighted flow.

−1.54z

talent-weighted z-score

Top gains

  • 4★ QBJohn Mateer from Washington State
  • 4★ EDGEMarvin Jones Jr. from Florida State
  • 4★ RBJaydn Ott from California

Top losses

  • 4★ QBJackson Arnold to Auburn
  • 4★ WRNic Anderson to LSU
  • 4★ LBDasan McCullough to Nebraska

Portal moves are weighted by recruiting stars, position (QB and skill positions weighted higher), and eligibility. Withdrawn entrants are excluded. The z-score is normalized across teams appearing in the 2025 portal cycle (context).

Returning production (2025): 53% of prior-year PPA back on the field (Bill Connelly's percentPPA metric via CFBD). This is a narrative reference — the 2025 grade itself is Δ vs preseason SP+ only.