Sooners Aim to Drop the Redbirds to Open the Season
- Owen Pannell
- Aug 28
- 3 min read
By Owen Pannell | KZA Sports
The Sooners kick off their 2025 season vs. the Illinois State Redbirds on Saturday. It’s not the biggest game, but it’s kickoff nonetheless. Here’s everything you need to know.
Keys to Victory
Don’t turn it over - There’s really no way we can lose this game, so the real test will be to see if we turn the ball over. I’d be very happy to exit this game with 0 turnovers by the offense.
Force turnovers - On the opposite side of that, I think the goal is to force the Redbirds into at least three turnovers, which would be a solid start for what should be a good defense.
Rack up stats early - We’ve got some dudes shooting for postseason awards, but the starters won’t play much in this game. By halftime, we should have put up at least 40 points, and if the defense allows more than three, I’ll be disappointed.
NO INJURIES - Please, please, please don’t get injured in this game. We’re going to need all hands on deck next week vs. Michigan. Getting hurt against Illinois State is not the move.
Key Players
JR QB John Mateer - Every Sooner fan is dying to see this man finally get on the field. We’ve heard the hype all offseason—now it’s time to really see what he can do.
FR CB Courtland Guillory - Guillory is atop the depth chart at left corner, and the buzz around this dude has been nuts all offseason. I want to see him strap up whoever the Redbirds’ top receiver is, and an interception in his first career game would be astronomical.
FR WR Elijah Thomas - Similar to Guillory, we’ve heard great things about Thomas in camp. Against Illinois State he should dominate, and he could get a lot of snaps. I want some big plays from him in his career opener.
FR RB Tory Blaylock - Third freshman in a row—crazy—but against an FCS opponent, freshmen are the biggest storylines. Blaylock might be the best freshman of them all, and he could get the bulk of the carries on Saturday.
FR OL Ryan Fodje and Michael Fasusi - Same as the other freshmen, these guys will be a huge part of this line in the future, and it’ll be good for them to get experience here.
DE Marvin Jones Jr. - If Jones Jr. makes some plays, he could lock himself in as the edge rusher opposite Thomas. There are a bunch of talented rushers battling for that spot, and hopefully we have a good idea who the second-best one is after this game.
S Peyton Bowen - Is this the year Bowen actually breaks out? We hope so. He needs to get his 2025 campaign off to a good start, especially against poor competition.
TE Jaren Kanak - We know Kanak is going to be a playmaker, but can he handle the other duties a TE has to have? Next week vs. Michigan, he is going to need to be able to block if he wants to get many snaps. Hopefully he gets some good reps in here.
Illinois State Best Players
I’m going to be honest, I don’t know a lot about Illinois State’s roster, but I’ll do my best to identify some players that could be big for them.
WR Daniel Sobkowwicz - Sobkowwicz has the potential to set Illinois State school records this season. He was an All-American last year, and he could be a threat vs. OU’s banged-up secondary.
RB Wenkers Wright - Wright is a playmaker in the Redbirds’ backfield. He is going to have a big year in 2025, and the Sooners can’t let him get going.
QB Tommy Rittenhouse - Rittenhouse is a veteran QB who might be able to do something early, but his life is going to be miserable vs. the OU defense. If the Sooners can get to him early and keep him from getting into a rhythm, that’ll go a long way toward taking over this game quickly.
Prediction
OU 72 – ISU 10
I believe the Sooners will get off to a very hot start—guessing somewhere around 45-3 at halftime. The Illinois State offense is solid, and I think they can find the end zone in the second half. The Redbirds will be able to compete for the FCS title, but they won’t be able to compete in this one.
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