Harrington granted medical waiver year; he and Anthony to miss spring practice and return in the fall

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OU's Justin Harrington granted waiver for 7th year of eligibility, will play in 2024
by Tom Green

NORMAN — Oklahoma received the news Wednesday morning it had long been anticipating and hoped for. Justin Harrington’s petition for a medical hardship and a seventh year of eligibility was approved by the NCAA, Brent Venables announced during his pre-spring press conference Wednesday afternoon. The news came just days ahead of Oklahoma’s first spring practice and almost six months to the day since Harrington’s 2023 season was cut short due to a torn ACL. “Really excited for Justin,” Venables said.

Harrington started the first two games of last season at Cheetah for Oklahoma before sustaining an ACL injury late in the Sooners’ Week 2 win against SMU on Sept. 9. In those two games, Harrington had six total tackles and an interception in his two appearances prior to injuring his knee. Harrington underwent surgery to repair his torn ACL on Sept. 29 and was ruled out for the year, with Venables at the time saying the veteran defensive player planned to submit a waiver request for an additional year of eligibility. That process was drawn out, and while Oklahoma remained hopeful that Harrington’s waiver would be granted, official news did not come down until Wednesday morning. “It’s big,” Venables said. “Justin is a highly invested guy. He’s talented, can do a lot of different things, so you’re always looking for big, long, fast, aggressive, physical guys, and he’s those things. But he understands what commitment is and how we do what we do. He’ll bring, again, the experience from that standpoint, playmaking from that standpoint.”

The approval of Harrington’s waiver adds more depth to a Cheetah position that also returns key contributors Dasan McCullough, Kendel Dolby and Sammy Omogisho. Harrington will not participate in spring, however, as he continues to rehab his torn ACL. The hope is that he will be fully cleared in time for summer workouts.

Harrington isn’t alone in that regard, either. Venables said wide receiver Andrel Anthony, as expected, will also be out for the spring as he works his way back from an ACL tear he sustained last October in the Red River Rivalry game against Texas. The third-year head coach said both Harrington and Anthony are “coming along well” in their recovery processes. Anthony was the Sooners’ leading receiver through the first half of last season, catching 27 passes for 429 yards and one touchdown through six games. “Getting both those guys back will be huge,” Venables said. “So expect them to be full-go, if there’s no setbacks, when we start up here this summer.”

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