Sept. 3, 2026, 6:04 a.m. CT
The Oklahoma Sooners have officially filled their last roster spot, just days before the beginning of the 2026 season. However, there’s a bit of a complicated twist, and it all comes down to something college football fans are sick of hearing about: eligibility rulings. Former Arkansas defensive lineman Danny Saili entered the transfer portal after last season, despite being out of eligibility.
He was hoping that a ruling would come down in his favor that would grant him a fifth season of college football, and he got exactly that when a judge in Colorado ruled that players who graduated high school in 2022 were eligible for a fifth season, thanks to the NCAA’s new “five-for-five” eligibility plan. However, the Colorado 10th Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the ruling shortly after, making Saili ineligible for the time being. Saili had since committed to Oklahoma out of the transfer portal, but weeks went by without the Sooners adding him to the roster. An important note in Saili’s situation is that he never signed an NFL contract or suited up for an NFL tryout or practice, making his plight different from that of former pros re-entering college football, which has made headlines in recent days and weeks. Now, Saili has been added to Oklahoma’s official roster ahead of the season-opening game.
He is not currently eligible to play, but he has been with the team and has been going through practice, according to head coach Brent Venables, who was asked about his newest player on Wednesday during the SEC teleconference call. “He’s on the team,” Venables said.
“He’s been added to the roster, and he’s currently practicing.”
Though Saili isn’t available to play right now for the Sooners, he is enrolled at OU, and he can participate in team activities. The 6-foot-1, 280-pound defensive lineman is a fifth-year player for Oklahoma, and Venables was impressed with his ability to play defensive tackle. “He’s done a good job.
He knows how to play d-tackle,” Venables said. “That jumped out at you right away … His fundamentals, his precision, his quickness … he really picked things up well, remarkably well. I was incredibly surprised.”
Saili spent two seasons at Hutchinson Community College before enrolling at BYU ahead of the 2024 season. However, he entered the spring transfer portal window a few months after signing with the Cougars and chose to sign with Arkansas. He’s spent the last two seasons with the Razorbacks and played in 18 games over those two years, including 11 last season. Oklahoma has very good starters and good depth at defensive tackle, with Jayden Jackson, David Stone, Bishop Thomas, Trent Wilson, Nigel Smith II, and James Carrington as the headliners at the position.
If Saili were to be ruled eligible to play for the Sooners, he’d be another depth piece at DT, and he’d bring SEC experience to one of the most important spots on the field. During the period while his status gets figured out, he’s able to get practice reps and learn Venables’ defense, even if he can’t hit the field on gamedays. Saili fills the final roster spot for the Sooners, and gives the team 111 total players, which is the same number that the program entered last season with. The kickoff of the season is drawing closer, as Oklahoma hosts UTEP on Friday night in Norman at 7 p.m.
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