Mason Young

Tulsa World OU Sports Reporter

NORMAN — John Kuceyeski will play a key role in preparing Michael Hawkins Jr. to start at quarterback versus Kent State on Saturday afternoon.

Kuceyeski is Oklahoma’s senior offensive analyst and assistant quarterbacks coach. He followed offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle and quarterback John Mateer from Washington State to OU over the offseason.

At Wazzu, Arbuckle and Kuceyeski developed Cam Ward into a star, and they also reared Mateer, who was the Heisman Trophy frontrunner this year, prior to injuring his thumb in OU’s win over Auburn. Kuceyeski joined forces with Arbuckle at Western Kentucky in 2022 and they’ve been together ever since.

“It didn't take me long after conversations with him and everything to figure out that this guy knows

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