Bucs fans have grown a strong appreciation for quarterback Baker Mayfield after he replaced Tom Brady and led Tampa Bay to a third-straight NFC South championship last year, in addition to a playoff win over Philadelphia. Yet it was fans of the Oklahoma Sooners who loved Mayfield first – and still do to this day.

But Sooners fans may not love what Mayfield had to say about Oklahoma’s prospects for success next year as the school joins Texas in leaving the Big XII conference and joining the SEC.

“I hope it’s not as rough I think it’s going to be the first couple of years,” Mayfield said after his press conference in Tampa Bay last week. “SEC ball, it’s tough. The big difference is the guys up front – the O-line and the defensive line. They make a difference. Obviously, you talk about the football aspect, it always starts up front at the line of scrimmage. To me, that’s the big difference.

“When you look at some of these SEC schools continue to push out these guys in the first couple of rounds in the NFL and they have success. Obviously, I think it will be good for the school in the long run, but it will be a challenge in the beginning.”

Oklahoma Bounced Back In 2023, But How Will The Sooners Fare In The SEC?

Oklahoma lost the Alamo Bowl, 38-24, to Arizona after starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel transferred to Oregon in late December to replace outgoing senior QB Bo Nix. Sophomore Jackson Arnold, who started in the bowl game, is expected to start this year.

Bucs QB and former Sooners QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

After Lincoln Riley left for USC following the 2021 season, the Sooners slumped to 6-7 in Brent Venables’ first year as head coach, including a 3-6 mark in the Big XII. The last time the Sooners had a losing record in the conference was back in 1998 when Oklahoma went 3-5 and finished with a 5-6 record overall.

Oklahoma rebounded last year with a 10-3 record, going 7-2 in the Big XII with former UCF quarterback Dillon Gabriel at the helm for a second season after replacing Caleb Williams, who left for USC with Riley. Williams had beaten out previous starting quarterback Spencer Rattler, who transferred to South Carolina for the 2022 season.

The Sooners finished ranked 15th in the AP Top 20 in 2023, while rival Texas finished fourth, losing to Washington in the College Football Players. But the days of dominating a conference for Oklahoma and Texas, who were usually the favorites to win the Big XII, could come to an end as they join the SEC. The transition from the Big XII to the SEC has not always gone smoothly.

Texas A&M made a very successful debut into the SEC in 2012, posting an 11-2 record after finishing 7-6 in the school’s final season in the Big XII. In a shortened 2020 season due to COVID-19, the Aggies also finished 9-1, but have posted a 5-7 record and a 7-6 mark over the last two seasons, which led to the firing of head coach Jimbo Fisher.

In 12 seasons in the SEC, Texas A&M, which is Mike Evans’ alma mater, has posted just three winning conference records. The Aggies have finished with a mediocre 4-4 conference mark seven times, including 2023.

Missouri also followed Texas A&M out of the Big XII into the SEC in 2012 and had an initial surge of success after a rough start. The Tigers went 5-7 in the SEC in 2012, including a 2-6 mark in the conference, but posted two very good seasons afterwards.

Missouri went 12-2 and 11-3 over the next two years with 7-1 conference records in each season. But the Tigers only finished with more than six total wins twice over the next eight years before going 11-2 last year with a 6-2 mark in the conference.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield Is Another Sooners Legend In Tampa Bay

Former Bucs DE Lee Roy Selmon – Photo courtesy of the Buccaneers

Baker Mayfield, who won the Heisman Trophy in 2017 and became the first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, is the second-most popular Oklahoma star to land in Tampa Bay. The Bucs’ first-ever draft pick back in 1976 was defensive end Lee Roy Selmon, who was an All-American for the Sooners.

Selmon, who became the Bucs’ first Pro Football Hall of Famer in 1995, later went on to plant roots in Tampa and opened up the Lee Roy Selmon’s restaurant chain. More importantly, he went on to become the athletics director at the University of South Florida before passing away in 2011 at the age of 56. Under Selmon’s leadership, the Bulls launched their football program with Jim Leavitt in 1996.

Selmon’s place in Bucs history – he’s still the franchise’s all-time leading sacker – is not lost on Mayfield, who is planting his own roots in the community due to a newly-signed three-year contract extension.

“Lee Roy was a huge part from the university to here [the Buccaneers], as well,” Mayfield said. “I mean you hop on the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway, so he made a huge impact. Obviously, an unbelievable person. He carried his legacy on and made a big difference.

“So that’s what we’re looking to do here, and that’s what was so special about going to school in Oklahoma – the journeys that everybody went on and continued to try and live [out].”