The excitement surrounding John Mateer in Norman has reached fever pitch. It’s the kind of buzz that brings echoes of a familiar name – Baker Mayfield, wafting through Oklahoma Sooners’ spring practice fields like a legend reborn. However, new OU GM Jim Nagy said he wanted to “pump the brakes” on that chatter. Keep it humble and grounded, he means to say. For Brent Venables, trying to steer the Sooners into SEC waters with a new QB1 and a reloaded roster, Mateer’s rise feels like a gift from the transfer portal gods. Yet, as his star rises, so does the caution from inside the building. The expectation isn’t just for Mateer to be good—it’s for him to be great. And that’s where the tone has shifted ever so slightly in recent weeks.

That SEC Podcast’s Mike and Shane laid the verdict bare in a way only insiders entrenched in SEC culture can. They believe the John Mateer hype may have already tipped into dangerous territory. “We may have reached the point where the day of the John Mateer hype is like too too out of,” Mike said. “That’s another one where like if he ain’t a Heisman candidate, he may be viewed as a damn disappointment. You know he’s Baker Mayfield 2.0—he ain’t even played a snap in the SEC yet. You know some people are going to have him as a top three quarterback, seemingly,” he continued. That sentiment, wild as it sounds, isn’t just hyperbole. In the SEC, hype has a short leash. If you’re not living up to it in September, you’re already written off by October.

The rising pressure isn’t lost on Nagy, who offered a firm but respectful course correction on all the Baker talk. “I feel like we’ve got a real guy,” Nagy said on The Oklahoma Breakdown with Ikard and Lehman. “I think everyone in the building knows we have a real guy at quarterback, including the teammates. I’ve had a chance to talk to some of the teammates about him, really, trying to ask about John’s leadership and how he is downstairs in the locker room.”

“Man, they love this guy. He makes a handful of throws every day in practice where, ‘Okay, that’s a real NFL guy out there.’ He’s going to make a difference. I want to pump the brakes a little bit on some of the Baker Mayfield stuff. The guy was the No. 1 pick in the draft and a Heisman Trophy winner. But everyone in the building is excited about John. He’s got it,” said Nagy.

What John Mateer does have going for him, beyond the hype, is substance. Real numbers. Real traits. And real familiarity with the system now being implemented in Oklahoma. His time with Ben Arbuckle at Washington State was nothing short of electric. 3,139 passing yards and 29 TDs through the air, paired with 826 rushing yards and another 15 scores on the ground. That dual-threat production turned heads and earned him a No. 2 ranking in the On3 Industry Transfer Rankings. So while he’s yet to take a snap in the SEC, it’s not like he’s walking in blindfolded.

Nagy, a longtime NFL scout and former Senior Bowl director, doesn’t hand out compliments lightly, but he couldn’t help himself watching Mateer work through his first spring in crimson. “The best compliment I can give any player at any position when I would meet with them when I was a scout, I would just tell them, ‘Man, you are fun to watch.’ Bottom line, that’s the highest compliment I can give. Right now, going out to practice every day, John Mateer is a lot of fun to watch.” For Nagy, it’s not just about the arm talent or the mobility—it’s the poise, the command, and how the locker room is rallying around the transfer.

But this all circles back to the tightrope HC Brent Venables is walking in Year Three. The Sooners are about to enter the SEC fire, where QB play doesn’t just elevate you—it defines you.

New QB, same grind: Sooners face SEC reality check in 2025

Where the lights are brighter, the hits sting harder, and every Saturday feels like a playoff game. After making their long-anticipated leap from the Big 12, the Sooners had a rough welcome in 2024. And while there’s plenty of buzz that Brent Venables’ squad will bounce back in 2025, David Pollack isn’t buying a full turnaround just yet.

“I think Oklahoma shoots up,” Pollack said on his See Ball Get Ball podcast. “Like, immediately shoots up and becomes exponentially more competitive. But the problem is the schedule. I don’t think they’re a team that is going to win 10 games and get to the College Football Playoff.”

Can you blame him? According to Athlon Sports, Oklahoma has the second-toughest schedule in all of college football this season. That’s a tall order for anyone — let alone a team breaking in a new passer. All eyes are now on new QB1 John Mateer, who’s been handed the keys to the offense. The talent’s there. The energy’s there. But in the SEC, nothing comes easy, and talent alone cannot get you to the end. It’s the fate of the schedule too, and 2025 will be a grind.