Steve Curtis July 21st, 2026
Taylor Wein spent much of Monday at SEC Media Days explaining how toughness and consistency helped carry him from a rotational role into one of Oklahoma’s defensive leaders.
Now entering his fourth season in Norman, Wein is no longer fighting simply to earn snaps. After breaking through in 2025, he has become one of the veteran voices expected to help lead a defense with College Football Playoff aspirations.
The increased attention has not changed how Wein approaches his work.
“As far as the noise, it’s definitely a little louder. But as far as football and habits and just staying consistent, that hasn’t changed… As far as football, nothing has changed. Just put my head down and go to work and get better.”
His goals this offseason extend beyond his own production.
“My individual goals are just to get better overall as a leader and as a teammate. Get better and develop and then just be more versatile in my game. Understanding my weaknesses and attacking those. That’s my goal this offseason.”
Wein has taken on a larger role in the years following the departures of R Mason Thomas and Ethan Downs, two veterans he credited with establishing the standard inside Oklahoma’s defensive end room.
“I embrace it. I love it. Leadership is a really important thing. And to me, that’s taking people where they want to go that they can’t go without you… R Mason, he paved a really wide road for us and showed us how to do things the right way. He has high standards, and that’s something that we uphold here in this program.”
Now, Wein is responsible for passing that standard down to the next group.
“The biggest thing for me is just leaving this place better than how I got here… Guys like R Mason Thomas and Ethan Downs really poured into the system, and they made us better as a defensive end group. So that’s my goal, to pour into the young guys, just so when it’s their time and they’re on this stage, they’re ready to go.”
Oklahoma adopted a “hard to kill” identity during its run to the College Football Playoff last season. Despite the changes throughout the roster, Wein said that mentality has become part of the program.
“Each team is different in its own, and it’s not much bringing it over. It’s just the standard that we built into our program now… To me, that’s what hard to kill means, is that you bring it every single week. You’ve just got to put it all together and show up ready to go.”
The Sooners fielded one of the nation’s top defenses in 2025, but Wein believes the film revealed clear areas for improvement.
“We know that we have improvement, and it is all over the tape if you watch it with critical eyes. In three of our losses, we failed in the fourth quarter. And turnovers, we didn’t get our first turnover until Week 5, and that’s not on anyone but this defense.”
Correcting those issues starts during the week.
“Those habits of getting turnovers, that’s built Monday through Friday. If you’re not building that Monday through Friday, then it will not translate onto Saturday. So it’s just being intentional and understanding we’ve got to get better.”
One player Wein believes can help Oklahoma take that next step is Adepoju “PJ” Adebawore.
Adebawore entered Oklahoma as one of the highest-rated prospects in program history, but injuries and limited opportunities interrupted his first three seasons. Wein, who lives with Adebawore, has seen a change in his teammate’s approach.
“Adepoju Adebawore has played consistent ball. I live with him, and I know that his goals and his mindset has changed, and he’s ready to attack and get better. We expect a lot out of PJ, and he expects even more out of himself. So we’re excited to see him put it together.”
Wein also believes Adebawore is physically prepared to take advantage of the opportunity.
“PJ has done a great job with his mindset. I think he’s completely transformed as a player, and he’s a healthy man. He’s ready to go, and he’s fired up. It’s a new PJ Adebawore that people are about to see, and I’m excited for that.”
Danny Okoye gives the Sooners another young option within the defensive end rotation.
“Danny’s just taking another leap. Danny’s becoming more and more consistent, more and more reliable, and you can hang your hat on Danny Okoye. You’ve got to get dudes that uphold that standard and elevate it, and those two dudes are doing that right now.”
That depth will be tested early. Oklahoma opens the season against UTEP before facing Michigan, Texas and Georgia within its first five games.
Wein believes the difficulty of the schedule provides the Sooners with the opportunity they want.
“If you want to be the best, you’ve got to play the best. If you want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. We embrace that, and we cherish our schedule. We know it’s not easy, and we wouldn’t want it any other way. To that we say, ‘Good.’”
