As we inch ever closer to the start of college football season, many programs are transitioning from player-led workouts straight into fall camp this week.
With that comes position battles, practice reports, and eternal optimism among fans that this is finally “the year.”
Some of the most underrated aspects of the start of fall camp, however, are the physical transformations of many of the players on the team from one season to the next.
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August is the first time a good portion of the fanbase has seen some of their favorite players since last season, save for a glorified scrimmage we call a spring game back in April, and with all the work these guys put in over the offseason when it comes to living in the gym and in the cafeteria, the changes can be eye-opening.
One such player who definitely took his offseason strength and conditioning program seriously is Oklahoma Sooners quarterback John Mateer.
Mateer has always been a pretty stoutly built dude, but a picture of the veteran signal caller at the start of Sooners camp is making the rounds on social media and has many people lauding the efforts of new S&C coach James Dobson.
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Good Lord!
What are the feeding these kids in Norman? Mateer is built like he subsisted on a diet of nothing but tomahawk steaks and protein shakes all summer.
He looks like if Tim Tebow ate a slightly skinnier Tim Tebow.
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Mateer suffered a hand injury during the 2025 season that ultimately derailed Oklahoma’s goals of winning the SEC.
They still made a College Football Playoff appearance, but their Heisman hopeful quarterback was never the same after the injury.
Reports are that Mateer is fully healthy heading into the start of the 2026 season, and I’d say this picture is all the proof any OU fan needs to confirm that.
Certainly healthy enough to throw around some serious weight in the training facility, that is.
I know the Sooners are supposed to have one of the best defenses in the SEC this season, but if they are short a middle linebacker they could always plug in Mateer in a pinch.
I can hear the haters and doubters saying things like, “having a jacked quarterback doesn’t mean Oklahoma will win a national championship,” and that’s true, at least on its face.
But as I mentioned above, Mateer was a trendy Heisman pick before his hand injury, so bulking up can only stand to help him become more durable.
The Sooners will be a force in both the SEC and national picture, and if the rest of the team took offseason workouts as seriously as Mateer, the rest of the country better watch out.
