Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer is officially listed as questionable for Saturday’s Red River Rivalry game against Texas,according to the initial SEC availability report released Wednesday. The potential absence of the Heisman Trophy contender throws uncertainty into the highly anticipated matchup between the No. 6 Sooners and the Longhorns.
Mateer is recovering from hand surgery performed on Sept. 24, but has been pushing for an earlier-than-expected return, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel. Oklahoma coach Brent Venables deferred questions about Mateer’s status to the availability report, stating, “It’ll come out here tonight and everybody will get it at the same time.”
The injury occurred during Oklahoma’s 24-17 victory over Auburn on Sept. 20, where Mateer completed 24 of 36 passes for 271 yards despite being injured in the first quarter. He has missed only one game since the surgery, with the Sooners utilizing a bye week and a 44-0 win over Kent State.
during the Kent State game, Michael Hawkins Jr.started at quarterback and led Oklahoma to victory.Further availability reports will be released Thursday and Friday evenings, with a final report issued 90 minutes before the 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff in Dallas.
ESPN’s Eli Lederman contributed to this report.
