After three seasons with the California Golden Bears, running back Jaydn Ott decided to take his talents to the SEC, announcing last April that he would be transferring to Oklahoma football.
But before he made that decision, other programs in the conference were after him as well, which isn’t surprising given how effective he was for the Golden Bears’ offense. He revealed that his choice came down to a two-team list that consisted of the Sooners and the Georgia Bulldogs.
“I just felt like it was time to move on,” Ott shared, per On3’s Sooner Scoop. “I really kind of had my mind made up — it was between here and Georgia. Talked to the coaches when I went in the portal and went down fairly quickly. It felt like a good spot for me here.”
During his stint with the Golden Bears, Ott burned rubber for a total of 2,597 yards and 24 touchdowns on 116 carries. His 2024 campaign was a down year in terms of efficiency, as he only averaged 3.3 rushing yards per attempt, but he could recapture his top form in Norman as part of Oklahoma football’s attack. In his first two seasons with California, Ott racked up 2,212 rushing yards with 29 touchdowns, while gaining 5.3 yards per carry.
Apparently, Oklahoma got Ott’s nod in large part because of another major acquisition via the transfer portal — quarterback John Mateer.
“Getting to play with John Mateer,” Ott said. “I think they have something good going on. This offense is very familiar. I played against Arbuckle and his offense at Wazzu when I was at Cal. I was just familiar with what he has going on, so I thought it was a good place.”
Mateer comes over following three years of football with the Washington State Cougars. In the 2024 season, he passed for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns against seven interceptions through 12 games.
With Mateer and Ott in the fold,…
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Publish date : 2025-07-30 23:48:00
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