Being the starting quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners means you have to possess a certain level of confidence and leadership ability. It's a high-pressure job that always asks you to deliver, lead, and represent the university and the football program positively.
When the team isn't performing well, you get a big piece of the blame. When you also don't perform well individually, your slice of the blame pie only gets larger.
That's the situation that John Mateer finds himself in after the first four games of the 2026 season. His confidence and ability to lead are two of the main reasons head coach Brent Venables and offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle brought him to Norman ahead of the 2025 season. They are two of the main reasons that Venables,
Arbuckle, and general manager Jim Nagy bet on him to lead what many hoped would be a big season for the Sooners this year.
So far this year, though, things have certainly not gone as planned. The Sooners are 2-2 overall, and Mateer has struggled mightily in all but the season-opening game. The off-week reprieve was welcomed, but now OU plays the top-ranked Texas Longhorns in the Red River Rivalry on Saturday afternoon.
Mateer's poor play, especially last time out against second-ranked Georgia, did not inspire confidence in him from the fanbase ahead of this week. However, Venables is sticking with him as the starting quarterback in Dallas.
Mateer spoke to the media on Monday night after practice, and he was asked if he still has confidence in himself heading into another game against a team with a very good defense.
"Yeah, I think so," Mateer said. "I mean, it's super important, you can't go into playing quarterback playing timid or behind and I've been challenged, but I have the good Lord who has my back and and he has all of our backs. So if I, diminish in any confidence I just go to Him."
Mateer also spoke about trusting his process and his preparation during the week, as opposed to just putting trust in the results on the field alone.
"If your confidence is results-based, it will fluctuate in that way," Mateer said. "Have I been challenged to put my confidence in the process? Yeah, but I stand firm in that. Obviously there would be a smile on my face for 24 hours, but you get better as the season goes on to play every game consistently."
It's been a bad start to what was supposed to be a bounce-back season for Mateer. However, a breakout performance against rival Texas would be exactly what the doctor ordered after a very rocky opening month.
Oklahoma starting quarterbacks since 1999
Number of games started for each season in parentheses
- 1999: Josh Heupel (12)
- 2000: Josh Heupel (13)
- 2001: Nate Hybl (11) and Jason White (2)
- 2002: Jason White (2) and Nate Hybl (12)
- 2003: Jason White (14)
- 2004: Jason White (13)
- 2005: Paul Thompson (1) and Rhett Bomar (11)
- 2006: Paul Thompson (14)
- 2007: Sam Bradford (14)
- 2008: Sam Bradford (14)
- 2009: Sam Bradford (3) and Landry Jones (10)
- 2010: Landry Jones (14)
- 2011: Landry Jones (13)
- 2012: Landry Jones (13)
- 2013: Trevor Knight (5) and Blake Bell (8)
- 2014: Trevor Knight (10) and Cody Thomas (3)
- 2015: Baker Mayfield (13)
- 2016: Baker Mayfield (13)
- 2017: Baker Mayfield (13) and Kyler Murray (1)
- 2018: Kyler Murray (13) and Austin Kendall (1)
- 2019: Jalen Hurts (14)
- 2020: Spencer Rattler (11)
- 2021: Spencer Rattler (6) and Caleb Williams (7)
- 2022: Dillon Gabriel (12) and Davis Beville (1)
- 2023: Dillon Gabriel (12) and Jackson Arnold (1)
- 2024: Jackson Arnold (9) and Michael Hawkins Jr. (4)
- 2025: John Mateer (12) and Michael Hawkins Jr. (1)
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This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma's John Mateer outlines his confidence heading into Texas game
