The thumb of Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer is the biggest story in college football. He did not want fans to know whether or not he was going to play against Texas.
His hands were buried in his pockets as he got off of the bus at the Cotton Bowl.
This is the kind of thing that makes college football the best sport in the world. The eyes of an entire nation were collectively focused on the thumb of a 21-year-old as he walked into a 95-year-old stadium.
John Mateer broke his thumb.
Mateer broke his thumb during a win over Auburn on the second-to-last Saturday in September. According to teammate Peyton Bowen, the starting quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners at no point gave any indication that he was hurt.
And yet, the injury was bad enough to require immediate surgery.
Mateer flew to Cedars-Sinai Orthopedic Center in Los Angeles, where Dr. Steven Shin performed the surgery on Wednesday, Sept. 24. He immediately became a folk hero in Norman.
One Sooners fan actually went to the hospital to hand deliver a gift to Dr. Shin. The State of Oklahoma also gave an official commendation to Dr. Shin after the surgery was deemed a success.
At that point, the clock started ticking…
When was John Mateer going to be able to play? Would he be back in time for the Texas game?
Nobody knew that answer except for one man. The tortilla presser at a local Chipotle in Norman reported the news of Mateer’s return. He apparently spoke to the quarterback, who told him he was going to play.
And then it became a game of “will he” or “won’t he.”
Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables would not comment on the status of Mateer. Pete Thamel gave us one of the most ridiculous updates of all-time in the middle of the week. It was 36 words to say nothing.
Mateer was ultimately listed as “probable” on the injury report on Thursday and Friday. The Chipotle tortilla presser was right. Totally normal sport.
Don’t look at his hand!
John Mateer was not the first Oklahoma player to get off of the bus at the Cotton Bowl on Saturday. He slid into the mix behind a group of his teammates as unruly Texas fans booed in the distance.
Not only did Mateer try to keep a low profile, he immediately slid both of his hands into his pockets as soon as he exited the bus. They remained in his pockets until he got inside of the stadium.
John Mateer arriving to Cotton Bowl. #Sooners pic.twitter.com/nEPSVO4Ksb
— Colby Daniels (@Colby_Daniels) October 11, 2025
Nobody was going to get a look at his thumb!
I so badly want to know if this was something Mateer had talked about with the Sooners coaching staff before the bus left the team hotel or if it was a spur-of-the-moment decision to hide his hands. This is not something he normally does. I went back and looked. It was intentional.