Oklahoma football is rolling behind a reinvigorated offensive machine with John Mateer at the controls. Now the Sooners' mastermind behind the offense is rising as a “top candidate” for the UCLA head coaching gig.
The Bruins fired DeShaun Foster Sunday — two days after UCLA's disastrous 35-10 loss to New Mexico. Oklahoma offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle is now surfacing as a big contender for the job Foster bequeaths.
Pete Nakos of On3/Rivals weighed in on the prospects of Arbuckle giving head coaching a try.
“Arbuckle is only 29 years old, but has proved to be one of the brighter offensive minds,” Nakos began. “He doesn’t have front-office experience and hasn’t recruited much in the Power Four, but UCLA could be drawn by his offensive play calling.”
How Oklahoma OC has changed offense amid UCLA interest
OU averaged only 331 yards per game in 2024, helping lead into the disappointing 6-7 campaign.
Arbuckle has changed that number immensely — with this unit hitting 472.7 yards per game in 2025. Enough to place OU 28th overall on the offensive side.
Arbuckle schematics has additionally lifted OU's points per game to 33.7 per game. The Sooners settled for only 24 points per game last season. Oklahoma dropped 42 on Temple this past Saturday.
What's Arbuckle calling that's leading to the astronomical numbers in Norman?
Arbuckle schemes up an up-tempo power spread attack suited for Mateer. He thrived in the same system in Pullman when both were at Washington State. The College Football Transfer Portal addition has shown a mix of strong passing decisions with taking off and running.
Arbuckle isn't just working wonders with Mateer for the second straight season. He ignited Cam Ward during his brief run at Wazzu.
The young OC is the first prominent Southeastern Conference coordinator to become linked to the UCLA opening. Meanwhile, Jonathan Smith of Michigan State is called a No. 1 choice for UCLA by numerous insiders. Smith has coached against the Bruins in both the Big Ten and Pac-12 while with Oregon State.
