It looks like one of the defensive linemen for the Oklahoma Sooners will be making a position change in advance of the new season, as OU is just days away from kicking off the new year. On3 SoonerScoop.com's Parker Thune reported that a player on the defensive side of the ball was going to be switching to offense, and it looks like Oklahoma has given away who that is.
On the official roster, the Sooners now list former defensive lineman CJ Nickson at the tight end position. Nickson is a sophomore who did not play for OU in his first season with the program in 2025. A local product and one of the top players in the state of Oklahoma in the 2025 recruiting class, Nickson played on both sides of the ball at Weatherford High School. He came to OU to play defensive lineman,
more specifically, defensive end.
Nickson also played basketball at Weatherford High, and the 6-foot-4, 275-pounder will now apparently try his hand at TE in Norman, as the Sooners are stacked on the defensive line heading into the season. It's unknown if this position change is permanent or just a more temporary switch. However, Nickson isn't listed at two positions and is only listed at tight end.
This change gives the Sooners nine total tight ends on the roster, and it adds a very big body to coach Jason Witten's room. Nickson is another new face in that position group, which has undergone another makeover this offseason.
This isn't the first time the Sooners have had a defensive lineman switch to offense since the end of last season. Ace Hodges was a DL for Oklahoma last year, but made the switch to offensive lineman this winter. Nickson will look to show Witten that he should be a part of the tight end rotation for the Sooners, either now or in the future.
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma defensive lineman changing positions ahead of 2026 season
