NORMAN — It’s been a difficult week across the board in Norman, but perhaps nobody is taking things harder than quarterback John Mateer. 

His play has been poor, and his relationship with former Oklahoma offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle goes back years. 

They arrived in Norman together after forming a successful partnership at Washington State. 

“It was tough (for Mateer). Tough,” OU coach Brent Venables said on Tuesday. “He was emotional.”

Venables said that everyone on the offense gets a “fresh start”, a statement that includes Mateer, but he also spoke with the quarterback to ensure that he doesn’t feel the burden of the change. 

“John’s a tough guy. Carries, again, a lot of weight,” Venables said. “There’s a cause and an effect to everything. So I’m sure he feels like he played a part in that. I told him he doesn’t deserve that weight. That’s not your responsibility. Doesn’t have anything to do with you.”

There were plenty of failures along the way that led to Arbuckle’s dismissal. 

Bill Bedenbaugh’s offensive line can’t stay healthy, and the unit that has made its way onto the field consistently underperformed. 

Mateer is completing 65.6% of his passes, which is a slight uptick from the 62.2% of passes he copmleted a year ago, but he’s already thrown seven interceptions with four games remaining after throwing 11 picks last year. 

The Sooners rank 111th in total offense and are tied for 108th in scoring offense. They also rank 66th in passing offense and 128th in rushing offense. 

Bedenbaugh’s line has surrendered 2.62 sacks per game, which is tied for 111th as well, but Mateer hasn’t helped matters with how long he holds onto the football.

"Obviously, we didn't make the improvement," Venables said. "We played inconsistently. We lead the world in the turnover margin on the wrong side of it. Gotta have better, more consistent quarterback play. Those are reasons why maybe you don't do as well on offense." 

Interim offensive coordinator Jason Witten will be tasked with getting the most out of Mateer, who has suffered from hits to his confidence all year, but Venables hopes Mateer will be able to enter the week without any extra baggage. 

“When you make these types of decisions, there’s a lot of layers to it other than how’s the quarterback play,” Venables said. “Tough for him.”

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.