• ESPN News Services

Sep 25, 2025, 05:10 PM ET

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    Sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Tuesday that Mateer, the early Heisman Trophy front-runner, will miss about a month after suffering the injury in Saturday’s win over Auburn.

    Mateer has completed 67.4% of his passes for 1,215 yards and six touchdowns this season. He’s also the Sooners’ leading rusher with 190 yards and five more touchdowns. Mateer ranks second nationally with 351.3 yards of total offense per game.

    Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said sophomore Michael Hawkins Jr. will start the Sooners’ next game — against Kent State on Oct. 4 Hawkins started four games last season, passing for 783 yards and three touchdowns.

    “He just has put together a really good body of work over the last several months, and he’s always had a great work ethic and he’s always been really coachable,” Venables said of Hawkins. “He’s hungry, he’s humble and ultra talented.”

    Hawkins passed for 783 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 204 yards last season. One of his best highlights was a 48-yard touchdown run in a win at Auburn.

    “He’s a guy that understands that to play quarterback, you have to do a great job being good at just making layups,” Venables said. “And don’t try to win the game the first series of the game.”

    Receiver Deion Burks said Hawkins has matured since then and doesn’t depend quite as much on his exceptional speed as in the past.

    “He looks comfortable in the pocket,” Burks said. “He trusts the O-line, so he’s not quick to run. He’s going to deliver the passes. If he scrambles, he’s looking downfield to throw it. But he also can use his feet as well.”

    Oklahoma faces rival Texas on Oct. 11.

    After a trip to South Carolina, the Sooners close out the regular season with five straight games against opponents that are currently ranked: No. 13 Ole Miss, at No. 15 Tennessee, at No. 18 Alabama, No. 20 Missouri and No. 4 LSU.

    ESPN’s Jake Trotter and The Associated Press contributed to this report.