Oklahoma defensive back Woodi Washington has seen just about everything in his time as a member of the Sooner football program. He began his career all the way back in 2019, playing in four games as a true freshman.
To put that in perspective, here’s what Oklahoma football looked like in 2019: The head coach was Lincoln Riley, not Brent Venables. In fact, Venables had just helped Clemson win their second national championship in three years, serving as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator. Quarterback Kyler Murray was off to the pros after winning OU’s second straight Heisman Trophy and its eighth overall. The Sooners had been soundly beaten in the College Football Playoff by Alabama in the Orange Bowl semifinal, and Riley was onto his third season as the head coach, after Bob Stoops handed over the reins in the summer of 2017.
The 2019 season saw another star quarterback in the form of Heisman runner-up Jalen Hurts. It saw another decisive defeat in the CFP, this time at the hands of LSU in the Peach Bowl semifinal. Riley had just six losses in three seasons as OU’s head coach, but the cracks were beginning to show, we just didn’t know it yet. The Sooners are still seeking that return trip to the playoff, and they only won the Big 12 one more time (in 2020) since then. Riley’s exit after the 2021 regular season paved the way for Venables to return to OU, this time as the head ball coach.
The SEC rumors were non-existent. Realignment itself was quiet in general. It was still illegal to pay players. NIL discussions were still months from blowing up. The Playoff was still at four teams, and folks were okay with it. The transfer portal was still in its infancy. Nobody knew what COVID-19 was. EA Sports wasn’t making college football video games.
Washington has stayed a Sooner though it all. A head coaching change, multiple coordinators and position coaches and the entire landscape of college football shifting under his feet.
He’s the longest-tenured member of Oklahoma’s roster, taking over that role with Drake Stoops’ OU career finally over. And just like Stoops, he’s hoping his last season as a Sooner is his best one.
The super-senior was the leader in defensive snaps last year at cornerback, but he’ll be moving all over the defensive backfield in his final season as a Sooner. He’s been a fixture on the outside of the defense at cornerback since 2020, but he’ll likely play some safety and even some cheetah in 2024.
Washington has started 36 of his 46 career games, including all 13 each of the last two seasons. He’s registered 202 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss, is OU’s active career leader with 19 pass breakups, and ranks second with five interceptions. He’s the only player on Oklahoma’s roster with CFP experience as a member of the Sooners.
He’s not the headliner of Oklahoma’s defense this year. Danny Stutsman, Billy Bowman and Ethan Downs take that crown. Damonic Williams has garnered a ton of attention since his high-profile recruitment. Washington’s exact position on the field is still up in the air, but he brings something to the table that is valuable to the team.
Washington’s experience will be crucial in 2024. The Sooners will have to respond to success, and failure, in the SEC differently than they did in the Big 12. They will no longer have weeks against cupcakes in conference to catch their breath after a loss or a close call. They will no longer have a tune-up for a big-time matchup. Every week in the SEC is a dogfight for sixty minutes.
There will come multiple points in the 2024 season when the Sooners are reeling from a blow as a team. While it’s primarily Venables and the coaching staff’s job to make sure the team stays locked in, Washington’s veteran presence will be important as a leader on the field who’s seen everything in college football. From the College Football Playoff to 6-7 and everything in between, Woodi Washington has spent half a decade as a Sooner.
Maybe Year 6 will be his most memorable patrolling the secondary in Norman.
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