Starting quarterback John Mateer's stock has plummeted with six turnovers in three games, leaving Oklahoma with questions heading into its game against archrival and No. 1 Texas in Dallas on Saturday.
The unranked Sooners (2-2, 0-1 SEC), which began the season at No. 10, are averaging just over 12 points per game over their past three. The Longhorns (4-0, 1-0) have the nation's 22nd-ranked defense.
After saying he almost benched Mateer during the Sooners' 41-13 loss to No. 2 Georgia on Sept. 26, coach Brent Venables said last week that Mateer remains the starter, but backups Whitt Newbauer and Bowe Bentley "took a lot of the reps."
"I have no idea," Venables said when asked if the backups would see action vs. Texas. "We're not there right now. ... John's our starting quarterback."
Newbauer is a 6-foot-6 junior who played at Mercer last season, while Bentley is a 6-1 freshman from Celina, Texas.
"We've got great belief in them, trust in them," Venables said. "There's a body of work that both of those guys, both Bowe and Whitt, have put out there and for us to evaluate. They're doing a nice job, they're working hard, improving incrementally and doing all the things that we want our quarterback to do as a whole, as a group."
At this time a year ago, Mateer was considered a front-runner for the Heisman Trophy. Then came a 23-6 loss to the Longhorns, when he completed 50% of his passes for just 202 yards and threw three interceptions in his first loss since arriving on campus.
The fifth-year quarterback is coming off a bye week following the loss to Georgia in which he had two fumbles and an interception. Mateer also had a crucial late interception that set Michigan up for the game-winning touchdown in Week 2. He had two early picks against New Mexico in a shaky 14-6 Week 3 win.
"I think he just has to get his swagger back," defensive back Peyton Bowen said. "... He's a great leader, a great teammate, great ballplayer. He just has to get out of his own head right now and that's all it is."
Bowen compares the situation to what the Sooners went through with former starting quarterback Jackson Arnold, who played his way out of Norman two seasons ago.
"Seeing how much he was on a pedestal to just being thrown tomatoes at, damn near, I mean it sucks," Bowen said of what happened to Arnold. "I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. I don't think people know the effect of the words they're saying and just think that they're coaches and stuff and play ball.
"This is a whole different thing, like [John] is a human being, so I know what he's going through. I've seen what he's going through."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.