Steve Curtis - John Mateer Is Oklahoma’s Defining Problem

Steve Curtis | September 27th, 2026

Oklahoma did not lose to Georgia by 28 points because the Bulldogs overwhelmed the Sooners on every snap.

Oklahoma gained 296 yards to Georgia’s 306. It had more first downs and held the ball for nearly 11 minutes longer. John Mateer completed 25 of 34 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns.

None of that makes his performance acceptable.

Mateer turned the ball over three times in Oklahoma’s 41-13 loss Saturday. One mistake became a Georgia touchdown without its offense taking the field. Another killed a drive in Georgia territory. The third handed the Bulldogs the ball at Oklahoma’s 11-yard line.

Those weren’t blemishes on an otherwise good day. They were the defining plays of the game.

Trailing 14-0 in the second quarter, Oklahoma drove to Georgia’s 2-yard line. The Sooners had a chance to cut the deficit in half and put pressure on the Bulldogs for the first time all afternoon.

Instead, Mateer lost a fumble that Chris Cole returned 85 yards for a touchdown.

The score became 21-0. On Oklahoma’s next possession, Mateer threw an interception at Georgia’s 18-yard line. The Bulldogs didn’t turn it into points, but the Sooners had crossed midfield again and got nothing.

Then, facing fourth down late in the half, Mateer was sacked and lost another fumble. Cole returned it to Oklahoma’s 11. Georgia scored two plays later and took a 28-0 lead into halftime.

Mateer had opportunities to keep Oklahoma in the game. He turned them into the plays that took Oklahoma out of it.

Georgia earned its win. But Oklahoma moved the ball well enough to create opportunities. Mateer ended two drives in Bulldogs territory with turnovers, then gave Georgia the ball at Oklahoma’s 11-yard line. His mistakes turned a game the Sooners could compete in into a 28-point loss.

That’s why the passing line feels so hollow. Completing nearly three-quarters of his throws means little when he can’t finish drives or take care of the ball at the moments that matter most.

And it keeps happening.

In Oklahoma’s last three games against Power Four opponents, Mateer has committed five turnovers. His pick-six against Alabama in the College Football Playoff tied the game. His fourth-quarter interception at Michigan set the Wolverines up at Oklahoma’s 6-yard line, and they scored the deciding touchdown two plays later.

Against Georgia, he added two lost fumbles and an interception. Different opponent, same costly problem.

Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer (10) fumbles the ball as he is hit by Georgia linebacker Raylen Wilson (5) during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, in Athens, Ga. (AP Photo/Colin Hubbard)

At some point, Oklahoma has to judge Mateer by the entire game, not the quarters when he looks accurate, decisive and capable of carrying the offense. Those stretches show what he can do. The turnovers show why they haven’t been enough.

His physical ability is obvious. So was the 37-yard completion to Isaiah Sategna on the drive that reached Georgia’s goal line. But making an impressive throw doesn’t excuse losing the ball three plays later. Oklahoma needs a quarterback who can recognize when a play is slipping away and keep one bad snap from becoming seven points for the opponent.

Mateer hasn’t shown he can do that consistently, and the warning signs were there before Georgia. His turnovers helped decide the loss at Michigan, and the offense struggled again against New Mexico. Georgia made the problem impossible to ignore.

The offensive line didn’t give him a running game to lean on, and Georgia created pressure. But pass protection was good enough for Mateer to complete 25 passes and move Oklahoma into scoring position. The mistakes that decided this game belong to him.

There was one encouraging sign beneath the turnovers: Oklahoma’s offense moved the ball more efficiently than it had all season. Receivers found space, and Mateer often hit them. If he can protect the football, there is something there. Whether he can do it consistently is now Oklahoma’s biggest question.

That question also falls on offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and quarterbacks coach John Kuceyeski. Mateer is in his fifth year of college football and his third season working with Arbuckle. Why is he still struggling to process the game when the pressure rises? Why do the same mistakes keep appearing? They have two weeks before Texas to find an answer to those questions.

In the meantime, Arbuckle and Kuceyeski have to reckon with a quarterback who can play well for a quarter, then make a mistake that erases everything he did right. If they believe Mateer can grow past that pattern, the Sooners need to see it against the Longhorns.

Their decision to keep Mateer in after three turnovers Saturday suggests they still believe he can grow past that pattern. A change might not have rescued Oklahoma against Georgia. But if Arbuckle and Kuceyeski are going to stick with him, they have two weeks to address the mistakes that keep deciding games.

Right now, Mateer has the talent to produce a respectable stat line and the mistakes to make that stat line meaningless. That’s not good enough for Oklahoma.

And the schedule offers no place to hide. Texas is next, followed by Kentucky, trips to Mississippi State and Florida, South Carolina, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and a trip to Missouri. Oklahoma struggled against Michigan and New Mexico before Georgia showed how quickly Mateer’s mistakes can turn a difficult game into a rout. There is no stretch ahead where the Sooners can count on their defense to overcome three turnovers from him. If that continues, another win is far from guaranteed.