Tre Norwood figured to be a major part of a revamped Oklahoma defense in 2019, but the junior defensive back will miss the entire season after tearing his ACL earlier this week. Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley announced the news to the media on Friday.
With Tre Norwood sidelined for the season, Lincoln Riley discussed #Sooners options at nickel: pic.twitter.com/fvbXky83wz
— SoonerScoop.com (@SoonerScoop) August 10, 2019
Prior to his injury, Tre Norwood had started 19 straight games in the secondary for the Sooners. The defensive back had been very versatile when Mike Stoops was the defensive coordinator, starting games at cornerback, safety, and nickel back during his two years in Norman.
The loss of Norwood isn’t optimal, but at least Oklahoma has depth throughout its defense. Four of five starters from last year return, and eight starters from the 2018 team are back as a whole.
Tre Brown, Parnell Motley, Robert Barnes, and Brendan Radley-Hiles are the returning starters in the secondary. Brown and Motley both were in the double digits in passes defended last season, and they will be the cornerbacks, while Radley-Hiles likely steps into the nickel role.
This will be the first season under new defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. Grinch took over for Stoops after a few years of so-so performances from the defense, and his presence has led many to believe this defense will be much better in 2019.
Grinch first came to prominence five years ago when he was hired to be Mike Leach’s defensive coordinator at Washington State. The Cougars had one of the worst defenses in the country when he got there, but by the time he had left, he had turned Wazzou into a top 25 defense. He spent last season as co-defensive coordinator at Ohio State before moving to Oklahoma in January.
Oklahoma’s new defense will be tested in its opener on August 31. The Sooners play host to a Houston team that had the sixth-best offense in the nation last season and now has Dana Holgorsen calling the shots.
H/T College Football Talk
