It won’t take long for elite offensive freshman to earn starting role for Oklahoma Sooners in his first year
How quickly can Michael Fasusi earn the starting left tackle job for the Oklahoma Sooners?
It was a coup for the Oklahoma Sooners to secure the commitment of elite five-star offensive tackle Michael Fasusi. The Sooners held off every other major blue blood, including Texas, for his services. A big reason why Fasusi chose the Sooners was because of offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh and his reputation as an NFL developer.
That faith in Bedenbaugh has been rewarded throughout the offseason, as it’s clear that Fasusi has springboarded up the depth chart. Now, he’s primed to earn a job as a starter.
Will Michael Fasusi be a Week One starter?
In my depth chart predictions, I locked in that the Sooners will likely name Jacob Sexton as the starting week one left tackle when they take on Illinois State this Saturday. Sexton was the starter to begin the season last year before missing time with injury.
Naturally, this has earned the chagrin of fans, who want to see Fasusi make his debut early. This staff and Bedenbaugh have rarely chosen to start freshmen outright, especially right out the gate on a season. With a tough matchup against Michigan in Week 2, it makes sense the staff would lean on an experienced player here, as virtually every other coaching staff in the country would do.
However, I wouldn’t be surprised if Fasusi has the starting job soon after. With games against Temple, Auburn, and Kent State (as well as a bye week), there’s plenty of time for Fasusi to ease into the starting lineup before the gauntlet of Oklahoma’s schedule begins. Obviously, if Sexton turns into a lockdown left tackle, then that equation changes, and there’s no point in switching things up.
But, Fasusi is too talented to not expose to in-game reps. He needs that development, and nothing is better for offensive linemen than learning from experience. The Sooners have a much, much higher ceiling with Fasusi out there than Sexton, and if this staff wants to get the most out of this current unit, it’s with Fasusi in the lineup.
Given my own evaluation here and what I’ve gathered from sources around the program, it’s only a matter of time before Fasusi earns the starting left tackle job outright. Barring a complete about-face from Sexton, I believe Fasusi will start before Oklahoma takes on the Longhorns in Week 7.
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