Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said Wednesday, when asked during the SEC coaches teleconference, that Gibson is “no longer with the team.” The Sooners’ fourth-year head coach did not provide any further details on the reasoning Gibson’s departure from the team.
As of late Wednesday morning, Gibson was still listed on Oklahoma’s official online roster.
Gibson has been sidelined since August 2024, when he tore the patellar tendon in his knee. He missed the entire 2024 season and was set to return this year, but he sustained a setback with his knee before the start of spring practices while running routes on air.
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The last update Venables provided on Gibson’s status was in late May at SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Florida, when he said the 6-foot-5, 186-pound receiver was “on schedule” to return toward the beginning of this season.
Midway through the regular season, Gibson has not appeared in any games for the 14th-ranked Sooners, and he has not been spotted on the sideline in street clothes. He was with the team at the start of fall camp, when he was seen on the field doing light stretching but not participating in practice as he continued to work his way back from injury.
When Gibson was last healthy during the 2023 season, the Apopka, Florida, native caught 14 passes for 375 yards and five touchdowns during a bit of a breakout sophomore campaign. He averaged 26.7 yards per reception and established himself as one of Oklahoma’s top downfield threats in the passing game. His average depth of target was 23.3 yards downfield, according to Pro Football Focus, and he made four contested catches on six contested throws during the 2023 season.
He was expected to see an increased role in Oklahoma’s offense last season before sustaining a ruptured patellar tendon in fall camp. Gibson was one of five Sooners wide receivers to miss significant time — or in his case, the entirety of the season — during that program’s frustrating 2024 campaign.
Oklahoma’s wide receiver corps this season has been led by Arkansas transfer Isaiah Sategna, former Purdue transfer Deion Burks and Southern Illinois transfer Keontez Lewis, while the Sooners recently welcomed back Arkansas-Pine Bluff transfer Javonnie Gibson, who returned from a broken leg he sustained during spring practices.
