After an entire NFL football season, it all comes down to two teams. An exciting weekend saw the San Francisco 49ers come back from a 17-point deficit to defeat the Detroit Lions, and the Kansas City Chiefs continue their reign in the AFC after taking down the Baltimore Ravens.
Now, the San Francisco 49ers will face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11 in Las Vegas.
The Super Bowl is one of the biggest sporting events in the world, and it’ll feature six OU alums. The Chiefs have a total of four former Sooners on the roster, while the 49ers boast two.
For Kansas City that’s C Creed Humphrey, OT Wanya Morris and TE Blake Bell. For San Francisco it’s OT Trent Williams, TE Brayden Willis and LS James Winchester.
So, here’s a look at the OU football alums who play for the two Super Bowl LVIII teams:
Trent Williams, San Francisco
Trent Williams played at OU from 2006-09, where he earned All-Big 12 first-team selection for his final two seasons. Williams became the highest-drafted offensive lineman in OU history when he was selected fourth overall by Washington in 2010. Williams delivered on his potential, becoming an 11-time Pro Bowler (2012-2018 and 2020-23), three-time All-Pro first teamer (2021-23) and All-Pro second teamer (2015). Williams spent the first nine seasons of his career with Washington before he got traded to San Francisco in 2020. He has made 15 starts this season, and he earned his 11th Pro Bowl selection.
Creed Humphrey, Kansas City
Creed Humphrey played at OU from 2017 to 20. The former Shawnee High School standout was named the Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year for his final two seasons with the Sooners. He was drafted by Kansas City in the second round (No. 63 overall) in 2021 and became an immediate starter. He is a Super Bowl Champion (2023) and has made the Pro Bowl in each of the last two seasons, and he has started in all 17 games this season. Along with that, he was an All-Pro second team member in 2022.
TE Blake Bell, Kansas City
Blake Bell played at OU from 2010-14, where he became known as “The Bulldozer,” running for 631 yards and 24 touchdowns during his four seasons with OU. Bell started as a quarterback but made the move to TE near the end of his OU career. He was drafted in the fourth round (No. 117 overall) by San Francisco in 2015. But he has since played for Minnesota, Jacksonville and Dallas. He signed with Kansas City in 2021, marking his second stint with the franchise, and he has caught five passes for 26 yards and one touchdown this season. He is a two-time Super Champion (2020 and 2023).
James Winchester, Kansas City
James Winchester played three years for OU from 2009-2011. The Washington High School standout went undrafted in 2013 but signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent. The long snapper then signed with the Chiefs in 2015 and has become a two-time Super Bowl champion (2020 and 2023). He’s the second-longest tenured player for the Chiefs behind star tight end Travis Kelce.
Brayden Willis, San Francisco
Brayden Willis played at OU from 2018-22. There, he recorded career highs of 39 receptions, 514 receiving yards, and seven touchdowns in 2022. He earned an All-Big 12 second-team nod, which definitely boosted his draft stock. Willis was drafted in the seventh round (No. 247 overall) to San Francisco in 2023. He has appeared in seven games this season.
Wanya Morris, Kansas City
After spending his first two years at Tennessee, Wanya Morris played at OU in 2021 and 2022. Morris earned an All-Big 12 second-team selection from the Associated Press in 2022. He was then drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the third round (No. 92 overall) in 2023. He has since carved out a role with Kansas City. The rookie has started in four games this season.
Oklahoma plummets in Week 13 AP poll after consecutive home losses
Oklahoma dropped from 11th in the AP poll following back-to-back home losses to Texas and Texas Tech.
Tom Green
NORMAN — Oklahoma basketball tumbled in the Week 13 AP poll after the program’s most frustrating week of the season.
The Sooners dropped from No. 11 to No. 23, falling a dozen spots in the rankings after consecutive home losses to rival Texas and Big 12-leading Texas Tech last week. It was the second time this season that Oklahoma has sustained back-to-back losses in conference action—previously dropping two in a row on the road against TCU and Kansas earlier this month—but the last week’s setbacks were of a different variety.
Oklahoma lost at home to Texas by 15 points, as the Sooners struggled to contain Max Abmas while their own offense was stuck in the mud for about half the game—with a sluggish 10-minute stretch to open the game and an even worse shooting stretch over the final 10 minutes of the second half. The result was Oklahoma’s first loss to a Quadrant 2 opponent this season.
OU followed that up with a tough-to-swallow loss to Texas Tech on Saturday, as it was the Sooners’ defense that let them down this time. Oklahoma fell, 85-84, after Texas Tech shot 72% from the field in the second half — hitting eight of its final 10 shot attempts and knocking down clutch free throws late. While defensive lapses were the Sooners’ undoing, the loss was a result of several small mishaps adding up, including a season-worst performance from the free-throw line, where Oklahoma missed nine attempts (15-of-24).
Despite the back-to-back losses, Oklahoma is still ranked in the AP poll for the 10th consecutive week after debuting in the rankings in late November for the first time in Porter Moser’s tenure as head coach. OU sustained the largest drop among ranked teams from last week’s poll to this week’s. The Sooners, who are 34th in the NCAA NET rankings and 28th in KenPom, are one of eight Big 12 teams appearing in the Week 13 AP poll. They’re joined by No. 3 Houston, No. 8 Kansas, No. 12 Iowa State, No. 15 Texas Tech, No. 18 Baylor, No. 22 BYU and No. 25 TCU.
The consecutive losses at the Lloyd Noble Center dropped Oklahoma to 15-5 overall this season and 3-4 in Big 12 play. The Sooners currently sit in a tie for eighth in the conference, along with BYU, Cincinnati, Texas and UCF. If Oklahoma hopes to make some headway this week in the conference standings — and with its postseason resume — it will have to do so on the road. OU takes on Kansas State in Manhattan, Kansas, on Tuesday at 7 p.m. (ESPN+) before traveling down to Orlando, Florida, to take on UCF on Saturday at 3 p.m. (ESPN+).
