OU football: Dillon Gabriel announces return to Sooners for 2023 season

NORMAN — At least one big offensive piece will return for OU football in 2023.

Quarterback Dillon Gabriel announced his return on Twitter.

“This island boy found a home in Oklahoma,” Gabriel posted.

In his first season with the Sooners after spending three seasons at Central Florida, Gabriel threw for 3,168 yards and 25 touchdowns with six interceptions in 12 games.

It was the fewest passing yards for OU’s starting quarterback — including the combined Spencer Rattler/Caleb Williams numbers in 2021 — over the past eight seasons, except for the COVID-truncated 2020 season where Rattler threw for 3,031 yards.

It was the fewest passing touchdowns for an OU starter during the span, including 2020.

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How did Dillon Gabriel fare in first season with Sooners?

There were high expectations for the Sooners offense when Gabriel transferred from Orlando, where he threw for 8,037 yards and 70 touchdowns in 19 games from 2019-21 before suffering a career-ending injury.

In Norman, Gabriel reunited with offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, who was the Knights’ offensive coordinator in 2019 when Gabriel threw for a career-high 3,653 yards.

His performance was inconsistent at times — he completed only 43.8% of his passes against TCU on Oct. 1 before being injured, and threw three interceptions in the Sooners’ Nov. 5 loss to Baylor, but he also threw for more than 400 yards twice becoming the first OU quarterback since Baker Mayfield in 2017 to reach the mark multiple times in a season.

“From a totality standpoint, I think there was a lot of good,” Lebby said after the Sooners’ 35-32 Cheez-It Bowl loss to Florida State on Dec. 29 when asked to evaluate Gabriel’s season. “I thought there was a situation today where he did an unbelievable job of keeping those guys together on the sideline when things weren’t good. He continued to try to play the next play, fight to play the next play, take care of the football and give us a chance to win the game.”

While Gabriel’s performance sometimes frustrated Sooners fans used to watching Mayfield, Kyler Murray, Jalen Hurts and even Rattler and Williams leading the offense, Gabriel’s value was perhaps never more evident than Oct. 8 against Texas when Gabriel was out with an injury.

The Sooners, with Davis Beville stepping in for Gabriel, threw for just 39 yards in that 49-0 loss.

When he returned the next week against Kansas, Gabriel threw for 403 yards and two touchdowns.

His other monster game came in the regular-season finale against Texas Tech, a 51-48 loss on Nov. 26, when Gabriel threw for 449 yards and six touchdowns.

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Marvin Mims' future is next big question for OU football

Now, the question is will Gabriel’s top target return?

Wide receiver Marvin Mims, who led the Sooners with 54 catches for 1,083 yards and six touchdowns, has yet to announce his decision.

But Gabriel’s return figures to enhance the chances Mims would decide to return.

Drake Stoops, who was tied for second on the Sooners with 39 catches, already announced his decision to return.

Gabriel’s announcement also comes the same day UCF offensive lineman Matt Lee, who had been the Golden Knights’ starting center for the past three seasons, visited OU after recently entering the transfer portal.

Lee, who has two seasons of eligibility remaining, was UCF’s starter in 2020 when Gabriel threw for 3,570 yards and a career-high 32 touchdowns.

With Nick Evers’ recent transfer to Wisconsin — where he’ll likely sit behind another former OU quarterback, Tanner Mordecai, next season — Jackson Arnold figures to be Gabriel’s heir apparent.

Arnold, a five-star prospect and the No. 13 overall player in the 2023 class according to Rivals, signed with the Sooners in December.

Beville also remains on the Sooners’ roster with two seasons of eligibility remaining.

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Dillon Gabriel's statistics for 2022 season

Here's how OU quarterback Dillon Gabriel fared in his first season with the Sooners:

Passing yards: 3,168 (FBS rank: 27th)

Touchdowns: 25 (T-24th)

Interceptions: 6 (T-35th)

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football: Dillon Gabriel will return as Sooners quarterback in 2023