7 Best Oklahoma Sooners Football Players

The Sooners are still in the loop as far as the top programs go, but if betting on college football odds was legal in the 2000-2009 era, they would’ve been heavily bet on after a run of Jason White and Sam Bradford. 

The Sooner football odds are bound to take a hit going forward without Dillon Gabriel on the roster following his transfer to Oregon. Still, at BetMGM online sportsbook, they’re a team you can wager on to win the national title or make the new 12-team College Football Playoff. 

While the 2000s were a hit time for the Sooners, and they had winning seasons in 23 of the 24 of them, some of the best players in program history came even before that time

During the 2000s, the Sooners had 23 winning seasons, winning bowl games like the Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sun Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and more. 

However, the top two players in program history came before all of that. 

Below, I have a list of the top seven Sooners of all time.

7 Best Oklahoma Sooners Football Players

1. Billy Sims

Playing in the mid-1970s, Sims won the Heisman Trophy in 1978 and was part of the 1975 national title team. During his stint with Oklahoma, he was also the UPI Player of the Year, Davey O’Brien Memorial Trophy winner, and two-time unanimous All-American. 

Sims ranks as the second-leading rusher in Sooners history with 4,118. He’s also second in rushing scores with 53.

He didn’t have more than 71 carries during his first three seasons with Oklahoma, but over the last two, he had at least 224 carries, 1,506 rushing yards, and 20 touchdowns. 

Sims is now in the College Football Hall of Fame, and the Detroit Lions would eventually retire his No. 20. 

2. Steve Owens

Another running back on my list here, Owens, won the Heisman Trophy in 1969. That same year, he was named the SN Player of the Year, won the Walter Camp Award, and was a unanimous All-American. He also received second-team All-American honours and was a three-time first-team All-Big Eight.

To this day, Owens ranks fifth in rushing yards (4,041), first in rushing touchdowns (57), and also holds the record for rushing touchdowns in a single Sooners season with 23 in 1969. 

3. Sam Bradford

Another Sooners Heisman winner, Bradford, threw for 4,720 yards and 50 touchdowns in that season. He also led the Sooners to a national title appearance. They lost to Florida 24-14, but in that game, Bradford threw for 256 yards, two touchdowns, and two picks. 

During his time with Oklahoma, Bradford also won the Davey O’Brien Award and Sammy Baugh Trophy, was the AP College Football Player of the Year and SN Player of the Year, and was a consensus All-American. 

He ranks third in passing yards (8,439), third in passing touchdowns (93), third in total offence (8,439), and third in touchdowns responsible for (93).

Bradford started in 2007 and 2008. He returned for 2009 but had a shoulder injury and missed the remainder of the season after three games. 

4. Adrian Peterson

I’m now four players on my list, and we have the third running back with Peterson. 

He ranks fourth in rushing (4,045), seventh in rushing touchdowns (41), and also has the Sooners single-season record in rushing yards (1,925). 

Peterson was a unanimous All-American and was a three-time first-team All-Big 12. 

In 2004, Peterson was a freshman. He rushed 339 times for 1,925 yards and 15 touchdowns. He finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting. 

5. Baker Mayfield

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Mayfield had quite a career at Oklahoma. 

Mayfield’s standout season came in 2017, when he completed 70.5% of his passes, 4,627 passing yards, 43 touchdown passes, and six interceptions. 

That led to the following accolades: 

• Heisman Trophy
• Maxwell Award
• Davey O’Brien Award
• Manning Award
• Chic Harley Award
• AP College Player of the Year
• SN Player of the Year
• Unanimous All-American

He ranks second in passing yards (12,292), second in passing touchdowns (119), second in offence yards (13,185), and first in touchdowns responsible for (137). 

6. Jason White

White was a 2000 national title team member, but he didn’t start games until 2003. However, once he got going, he had an excellent stint at Oklahoma. 

In 2003, he passed for 3,846 yards, 40 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions and won the Heisman Trophy. 

In addition to the Heisman Trophy, he won the Maxwell Award and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, won two Davey O’Brien Awards, the AP College Football Player of the Year, and was a unanimous All-American. 

After being part of that 2000 team, he did manage to lead Oklahoma to two more national title games, though the Sooners didn’t win. 

White ranks fourth in passing yards (7,922), fourth in passing touchdowns (81), fourth in total offence (7,877), and fourth in touchdowns responsible for (83). 

7. Lee Roy Selmon

Defence enjoyers, rejoice. We have the first defensive player on my list. 

Selmon is easily the best defensive player in Sooners history. 

Not only was he part of two national champion teams, but he won the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award, was the UPI Lineman of the Year, and was also a unanimous and first-team All-American. 

He had 40 sacks with the Sooners, eight tackles for loss, and 325 total tackles.