John Mateer's Injury Status, Latest Updates for Oklahoma vs. Arch Manning, Texas

Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer is listed as questionable on the team's initial injury report for the team's Red River Rivalry game against Texas on Saturday but is reportedly making a bid to play.

According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, Mateer is "pushing" to play against Texas, and it is believed a Saturday return is possible despite the fact that he underwent surgery on his throwing hand two weeks ago.

Mateer announced on Sept. 25 that he underwent successful surgery to repair a broken bone in his right hand. At the time, Thamel reported that he was expected to miss about a month of action.

Thus far, Mateer has missed only one game for the 5-0 Sooners, that being a 44-0 thrashing of Kent State this past weekend.

Mateer spent the previous three seasons at Washington State, and he enjoyed a breakthrough campaign in 2024, throwing for 3,139 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions, and rushing for 826 yards and 15 scores.

Coming off a highly disappointing 2024 season that saw them finish 6-7, the Sooners landed Mateer in the transfer portal in hopes that he could get the offense back on track.

Early returns were excellent, as the dual-threat signal-caller got Oklahoma off to a 4-0 start, including victories over Michigan and Auburn.

Mateer established himself as a top Heisman Trophy candidate one month into the season, completing 67.4 percent of his passes for 1,215 yards, six touchdowns and three picks, and rushing for 190 yards and five touchdowns.

Thanks largely to Mateer's play, Oklahoma is the No. 6-ranked team in the nation and one of four SEC teams with an overall record of 5-0 along with Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Missouri.

One team somewhat surprisingly not in that group is Texas, which has disappointed to the tune of a 3-2 overall record and an 0-1 mark in conference play.

Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning was the Heisman Trophy favorite entering the season, but he has struggled, and Texas is coming off a surprising 29-21 loss to Florida.

Even so, Texas is a potentially dangerous team, and going into a game against the Longhorns without Mateer would undoubtedly increase the threat of a Texas victory.

Backup quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. performed well during Mateer's absence last week, accounting for four total touchdowns, but there is a huge disparity in competition between Kent State and Texas.

If Mateer is able to play on Saturday, Oklahoma will likely go from a slight underdog to a favorite, and it should significantly increase the odds of the Sooners carrying a 6-0 record into the bye week.