National recruiting analyst Marshall Levenson is joined by rankings director and transfer portal guru Adam Friedman, OrangeBloods.com's Jason Suchomel and RedRaiderSports.com's Ben Golan to tackle three topics and determine whether they believe each statement is FACT or FICTION.
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1. Jackson Arnold will be highly sought after in the transfer portal if he enters.
Friedman: FACT. Seeing Jackson Arnold’s career at Oklahoma take such a sharp downturn was a shock to most of the college football world. There’s been so much optimism surrounding his rise to starting quarterback for the Sooners. Just three and a half games into this season, Brent Venables and staff opted to pull Arnold during the second quarter of the Tennessee game.
Even though he was not posting flawless performances, Arnold had shown a lot of promise up to that point. If he does transfer after the season, Arnold will be a coveted transfer prospect and should have opportunities to start elsewhere next season.
Levenson: FACT. While there is a slight chance Arnold could end up in a Malachi Nelson situation should he enter the transfer portal, there would likely be enough teams who believe they can still help Arnold live up to his potential. We have seen previous five-star prospects such as Nelson and Ty Thompson transfer out of their original schools and end up at Boise State and Tulane, respectively, only to become backups. The prototype of Arnold though would likely have suitors quite interested.
His former offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, now the head coach at Mississippi State, is a prime candidate to pursue Arnold if he does indeed depart Oklahoma after the season.
2. Garret Rangel will Oklahoma State's starter moving forward.
Johnson: FACT. During the bye week, Garret Rangel has taken over, getting the QB1 reps in practice. Redshirt freshman Zane Flores would have been in the mix, but a nagging injury has limited his reps for weeks. At this point, it's Rangel's job to run with after Alan Bowman has been very ineffective the last three weeks and true freshman Maealiuaki Smith simply isn't ready.
Levenson: FACT. It appears the Bowman era of Oklahoma State football has come to a quick halt. After starting 3-0, the Cowboys are now 3-3 and at the bottom of the conference, after having preseason hopes of making the 12-team playoff. The issues at hand are not solely Bowman's fault, but he has certainly been disappointing in recent week, leading to being benched two times in the last three games.
Rangel has starting experience, although limited, and provided a spark late last week. All signs point to Rangel getting the starting nod in the Cowboys' next game and likely to continue moving forward. As Johnson points out, the word is that Flores, a player the Oklahoma State has high hopes for, is not available at this point in the season. Rangel appears ready to be the guy moving forward.
3. Texas Tech should feel confident in finishing with 10+ wins.
Golan: FICTION. While Texas Tech is off to a tremendous start at 5-1, it’s a little early to be confident in 10+ wins. What fans should feel confident in is that Tech will compete and be in the game for four quarters every Saturday, which is a lot more than this program can say going back the last 15 years. The Red Raiders are 4-0 in one-possession games, which is a skill but also comes with a bit of luck.
Tech has some tough remaining games left, especially at Iowa State and home versus Colorado and West Virginia. For Tech to finish with 10+ wins it has to win two of those as well as every other game on its schedule (not counting a bowl game).
It’s not impossible, but not something to feel too confident in quite yet.
Levenson: FACT. Texas Tech has been one of the pleasant surprises in the Big 12 and around the country. I would not have predicted the Red Raiders started 5-1 to the season based on their woes in previous seasons. At this point, we would have to see the team drop some very winnable ball games to not be in contention for 10 wins.
We know Texas Tech can sweat out close games. And we know it can do it on the road, having beaten Arizona just last weekend. While Big 12 matchups are certainly no guarantee this season, the Red Raiders have some very favorable matchups to finish the second half of the season. They play three teams who have really struggled in Baylor, TCU, and Oklahoma State, who have combined for just one conference win. Right now, they outmatch those programs considerably. And while the other three in Iowa State, Colorado, and West Virginia are formidable opponents, the latter two are home in Lubbock.
I predict they win at least one of the three which means they have to find just one more among that group to find a path for 10 wins. If fans are not confident that it will happen, they should at least be confident in the team's ability to make it happen.
