NORMAN — It’s not a secret that OU’s special teams needed an upgrade following last season’s struggles.

Entering the SEC where the margins will be slim on every side of the ball in most conference games, Brent Venbales didn’t shy away from the reality that all special teams categories required change. The Sooners ranked 94th in SP+, a college football effiency rating by ESPN, on special teams a season ago, while also finishing 50th nationally in kick returns and 95th in punt returns.

Kicker Zach Schmit made just 11 of his 17 attempts in 2023, including a crucial miss in a loss to Oklahoma State. Josh Plaster, who started the year as OU’s punter, was benched after the Texas game for Luke Elzinga, who is expected to keep his job in 2024.

When Jay Nunez left to become Alabama’s special teams coordinator on Feb. 5, Venables knew he needed to nail his special teams hire. He moved swiftly, nabbing Doug Deakin, San Diego State’s former special teams coach on Feb. 22.

“Doug's body of work,” Venabales said on what attracted him to Deakin. “He’s been committed, he's built something where he's at in lots of different ways in this profession. He's got a great journey, he’s got a great testimony on how he got to where he is. But he's really good, he's passionate about what he does and smart and has been very successful.”

Deakin spent six years as the Aztecs’ coordinator and had them ranked No. 56 in the country in SP+ in 2023.

“He's got a philosophy on special teams from the aggressiveness standpoint that aligns with what we want to be as well in the special teams area,” Venables said. “We feel like this is an opportunity to improve and get better. Obviously a space that we’ve got to improve. Kick the ball with more consistency and can’t turn the ball over. We've got to be more efficient.”

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OU football 2023 special teams rewind

The good: Elzinga was a difference maker late in the season as he averaged 45.1 yards per punt in 2023. He a​​ppeared  in 11 games, totaling 1,217 yards on 27 punts with a long of 58. He also finished the season with six punts longer than 50 yards.

The bad: Schmit was not consistent enough to feel good about him as the starter moving forward. And Venables couldn’t look to backup Gavin Marshall as he suffered an injury during the season.

Marshall entered the transfer portal on Wednesday.

OU also struggled to find consistency from their kick and punt returners. Jalil Farooq underwent fumbling issues, including on an explosive return to open the Tulsa game before he lost the ball. Gavin Freeman also struggled last season, muffing four punts and averaging just 6.8 yards per punt return.

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OU football special teams roster management

Who’s in: Florida State transfer Tyler Keltner and Moore High School standout freshman Liam Evans

Who’s out: Gavin Marshall, Redi Mustafaraj

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OU football special teams depth chart

The starters

Kickers: Tyler Keltner, redshirt senior or Zach Schmit, redshirt senior

Punter: Luke Elzinga

The reserves

Kickers: Liam Evans, freshman; Josh Plaster, redshirt senior

Punters: Ashton Logan, redshirt sophomore; Josh Plaster, redshirt senior

Returners: Brenen Thompson showed flashes of speed late last season. Expect him to get more special teams looks in 2024. Deion Burks, a wide receiver transfer from Purdue could also factor in to the return rotation, along with safety Peyton Bowen and speedster Jaquaize Pettaway,

Expect Keltner and Schmit to compete for the starting kicker spot during spring camp. Elzinga’s spot is seemingly locked up.

“They certainly made it by no means clear of who was going to play next year,” Keltner told The Oklahoman. “From the start, we’re going to compete and we’re gonna see how this thing goes for the year. We’re going to put the best product on the field.

“But with me in my situation, I still feel like I really want to go play in the NFL after this year, OU’s going to be the best platform for me. I want to contribute, I want to go to work and I think nothing good ever comes easy.”

We should find out who is cementing themselves as contributors in the special teams unit during OU’s annual spring game at 1 p.m. Saturday, April 20 at Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football special teams seek upgrade with Doug Deakin in fold