Oklahoma’s star quarterback is coming back for next season. Baker Mayfield told reporters after his Bedlam victory that he’ll be back in Norman in 2017.
Baker Mayfield says he’ll return as Oklahoma’s quarterback in 2017
This isn’t that surprising, but it’s big for the Sooners.
Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
In further comments, he broached the topic of fighting for initial eligibility as part of his reasoning for sticking around:
“I dreamed of playing at this place for too long,” he said. “I fought for that extra year of eligibility for too long. Had everybody working on that. It’s not a feeling of I owe anybody that put the effort in, it’s just we all did that for a certain reason and I always dreamed of playing here.”
And as QB in Norman, he’s certainly excelled. His 2016 campaign ended with 35 touchdowns against just eight interceptions and 3,381 yards through the air. He may have thrown for more yards in 2015, but he also had more than 40 extra completions last season.
Mayfield was a walk-on at Texas Tech before transferring to Oklahoma. He had to sit out the 2014 season and originally would be able to play only through 2016 (his fourth year of eligibility), thanks to a Big 12 rule that appeared to have good intentions.
But in a practical sense, the rule penalized a player like Mayfield, who simply wanted to play his college career at a more advantageous place for his future development. But the rule was eventually rolled back, and now Mayfield can play for the Sooners in 2017. That’s big news for OU, which gets back maybe its most important player. And it’s cool that Mayfield gets to keep living out an OU dream he worked hard to make happen.
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