Oklahoma hasn't been as good this season as the college football world thought at the start of the season. They are 2-1 after a disappointing 14-6 win against New Mexico and social media believes Sooners quarterback John Mateer deserves most of the blame.
Many fans and analysts believed that Mateer would be able to get Oklahoma into the College Football Playoff again this year, but so far this season he's only completed 62.7 percent of his passes and already has three interceptions. This has led fans on social media to claim he is a bad quarterback, but Kirby Smart isn't buying what they're selling.
"Obviously his (John Mateer) athleticism pops out at you,” said Kirby Smart. “He's hard to tackle. ... He's tough. When you talk about the run game, he runs inside, he runs outside, he runs to pass, he scrambles to throw. He's made explosives with his legs.”
Mateer is similar to Gunner Stockton in that he can beat teams through the air and with his legs. That's what made him such a coveted transfer back in 2024 and why he was such a great player at Oklahoma last season before getting injured. He however hasn't lived up to the hype yet this year and even he would admit that he has to be better, but acting like he is a bad quarterback all of a sudden is a bit of a stretch and Kirby Smart knows it.
John Mateer could benefit from having his back against the wall at Georgia
No one outside of Oklahoma expects the Sooners to win this game. Georgia is a two touchdown favorite not only because of how good they've looked this year but because of how bad Oklahoma has looked the past two weeks.
The Sooners lost at Michigan in week two after scoring just 10 points. This loss came one week after the Wolverines controversially beat Western Michigan. Then this past week they only scored 14 points against New Mexico in an eight point win. Oklahoma's defense did their job in both games, but Mateer and their offense left a lot to be desired.
Heading to Athens might be exactly what Mateer needs though to start playing better. Fans across the country are giving up on him especially now that his next game is at No. 2 Georgia. They are counting him out which means he can play free and without any pressure. That freedom could be exactly what he needs to find success even against Georgia who is one of the best teams in the country.
If Mateer starts Saturday's game fast then it could be a long night for Georgia. On the flip side if Georgia's defense dominates the start of the game then Mateer could lose confidence and not be able to get anything going throughout the rest of the game. Georgia's offense likely won't score as many points as they have been, so the defense will have to do their part to make sure this game doesn't turn into a shootout.
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