Oklahoma Sooners Football: RB Rhamondre Stevenson has declared for the NFL Draft

After capping his comeback campaign by rushing 186 yards and a touchdown in the Oklahoma Sooners’ 55-20 Cotton Bowl win over the Florida Gators, running back Rhamondre Stevenson has declared for the 2021 NFL Draft.

After arriving at OU from Cerritos College in 2019, Stevenson provided OU with a quality third option (and eventual second option) out of that backfield with his combination of power, speed and surprising agility. The 246-pound back ended the season with a team-high yards-per-carry average of 8.0 and also proved to be a reliable target out of the backfield whe needed.

Stevenson, along with Ronnie Perkins and Trejan Bridges, was of course suspended by the NCAA for a positive THC test prior to the previous season’s Peach Bowl. In the early stages of the 2020 season, Oklahoma’s offense lacked a home-run punch out of the backfield, but once Stevenson was reinstated, that was no longer the case. In OU’s final six games, Stevenson rushed for 665 yards on 101 attempts (6.6 avg.) and seven TDs while adding 18 receptions for 211 yards.

With his physical attributes and sound instincts as a runner, Stevenson should find himself a nice role at the next level. Additionally, considering how well he performed after coming back from the suspension, he could very well earn himself a fairly high slot in this spring’s draft, as he was arguably one of the best backs in college football by season’s end. The Las Vegas native is striking while the iron is hot, and more power to him for it!

This departure obviously leaves OU with quite the void at the position, as the Sooners now return only three scholarship backs — Kennedy Brooks, Marcus Major and Seth McGowan — in 2021. Even prior to this announcement, the Sooners were destined to scour the transfer portal, and that fact is now even more obvious at this point. However, OU isn’t going to take someone who they don’t consider to be up to their standards at the position. If they end up without an addition, watch for Mikey Henderson to shoulder some of the load this fall.