Oklahoma Sooners may have made a drastic redshirt mistake that could come back to haunt them
The Oklahoma Sooners have now found themselves in a sticky situation. No, I'm not talking about the season, which has been sticky for a while now. This team is bad, very bad, which has opened up opportunities for young players to get some run and show their potential. Even in the loss to the Missouri […]
The Oklahoma Sooners have now found themselves in a sticky situation. No, I'm not talking about the season, which has been sticky for a while now. This team is bad, very bad, which has opened up opportunities for young players to get some run and show their potential. Even in the loss to the Missouri Tigers on Saturday, we saw that.
The Sooners went to Xavier Robinson, a true freshman running back, on one drive against the Tigers, which saw him take over. He had seven carries for 49 yards on that drive alone and led the Sooners down the field to score their only offensive touchdown of the game.
Robinson was great, as he showed patience, burst, and strength in the run game behind a very bad offensive line. And, he showed that this Sooners' true freshman running back group is really good. Robinson, Taylor Tatum, and Sam Franklin have all shown flashes of greatness at some point this season.
And, that's pretty much where the issue comes in. A few weeks ago, the Sooners made a mistake that is really going to haunt them, that is, unless they make the right decision.
Sooners' redshirt mistake with Robinson
Against the Texas Longhorns and the Ole Miss Rebels, the Sooners decided to give Xavier Robinson two snaps each. Yes, two snaps each. Had they not done that, Robinson would be eligible to play the last two games of the season and still qualify for a redshirt season, saving him some eligibility.
To redshirt a season, you cannot play more than four games in a season. With those two games against SEC teams, and this one against Missouri, Robinson sits at three.
There are two games left, and the Sooners will now have to decide if they play him in both and burn some eligibility, or if they sit him one game and basically save this season for him so they can have him for longer.
Robinson looks like he can be a cornerstone piece of this offense if he decides to stay this offseason. And, they will want to keep that eligibility so they can keep him longer. We will see after the bye week when the Sooners play the Alabama Crimson Tide on primetime, if they decide to play Robinson or not.
