Sooners new QB John Mateer receiving lofty comparisons, but former Oklahoma great Baker Mayfield is all for it
In 2025, if you're playing the quarterback position for the Oklahoma Sooners, you are likely going to be held to a standard that may not even be fair. This program, especially over the last 20 years or so, has had some really good quarterbacks come through. There is Baker Mayfield, who is now on the […]
In 2025, if you're playing the quarterback position for the Oklahoma Sooners, you are likely going to be held to a standard that may not even be fair.
This program, especially over the last 20 years or so, has had some really good quarterbacks come through. There is Baker Mayfield, who is now on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He is considered the greatest Sooners quarterback of all time. There is Kyler Murray, the Arizona Cardinals QB, who also won a Heisman. And then there is Jalen Hurts, who just won a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles over the Kansas City Chiefs and the dynasty that they are. Hurts only played one season in Norman, but it's the one that saw him develop the most.
It's impossible to ask any quarterback at OU to be any of those guys. And, you want the quarterback to try to be his own guy. John Mateer, the Sooners' new quarterback and transfer QB from Washington State, is getting the Mayfield comparison a lot, and it's not fair to both quarterbacks, actually. And, even Mateer knows that a bit.
John Mateer and Baker Mayfield address comparisons between the two
"It's an honor to be compared to him, and he's obviously super good," Mateer said to Mark Rodgers on the Sports Animal at SEC Media Days. "I wouldn't say I'm like him, he's a Heisman winner… but to be like him would be great. But I do like to take things from certain people."
Mateer is entering the season with an easy route to already be better than the quarterback he's replacing from last season. But when you look at the offense last year, is that really that hard? No. Mateer can have a bad season by his standards, or an okay season, and still be better than Jackson Arnold and Michael Hawkins were.
At Washington State, Mateer had 3,965 total yards of offense, with 3,139 passing, and 826 rushing. Mateer also finished with 44 total touchdowns, 29 passing, and 15 rushing. He had a very good season last year, one of the best seasons by a quarterback in the entire country. But, the knock on him seems to be that he played in the Pac-12, or Pac-2 at this point, and didn't play against great competition.
I'd rebut that with the fact that that means he also didn't play with great players at times. Sure, he is about to play SEC talent every game, and that's something he's never done. But, he is also about to play with SEC talent, and that's something he's never done. Mateer has the ability to have a huge season, maybe the biggest season at the position since any of those three guys I listed earlier, zll in the NFL, played at OU.
So, yes, naturally, a quarterback who can make big-time throws but also use his feet is going to be compared to Mayfield, and Mayfield is okay with it.
“I think there are some similarities in our game, just the way he carries himself," Mayfield said at his football camp in Norman this week. "You can tell leadership goes a long way with him. I love that… I’m planning on trying to catch up with him… We’ll chat throughout the season.”
If Mayfield is open to those comparisons, and he sees the vision, that's huge for the Sooners, because it's almost like they are getting a guy that can help put the Sooners back in that contention window again. And, Mayfield is a Sooner through and through, so he's always going to pull for his guys.
Having Baker Mayfield in your corner, as Mateer, the QB of the Sooners, is going to be huge for his development and mentality going forward. The two have similarities as QBs, but they are both different players. The biggest similarity is that they both just want to win.
No. 1 player at his position in the 2027 class and the son of a future NFL HOFer is strongly considering the Oklahoma Sooners
The Sooners would love to have him.
