It was August 5 when the Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold was already wondering about “Peyton Bowen younger brother.”

Bowen, a sophomore safety, played in every Sooners game as a freshman and started two. Now, his younger brother, Eli Bowenhas become a major contributor to OU’s defense at cornerback in his first college season. Not only does Arnold face them regularly during practice, but he also played with both Bowen brothers at Denton Guyer High School (TX).

“I love Eli,” Arnold said during fall camp. “He is just a technical player. Coach (Brent Venables) talks about effort with technique, and it has it all. It has all the technique you need. …

“Just a technical player. You will be in the right place at the right time. “He’s capable of making all the plays he needs to.”

However, expectations were not as high for Eli as they were for his brother. Eli has been considered undersized, standing at 5 feet 9 inches. Peyton is three inches taller and stands 6 feet tall. That could have been the difference in Peyton getting 5 stars from every major recruiting service besides 247Sports, which gave him 4 stars. Meanwhile, Eli was a 4-star commodity according to ESPN and Rivals, while 247Sports and On3 scouted him as a 3-star recruit.

Those insufficient expectations only continued once Eli took the field for an SEC program. venables shared a story after the Tennessee game about a 6-foot-5 receiver who noticed their confrontation and yelled, “Hey, look! I have the little one! However, Eli never wavered.

“I guess my respect isn’t as high as all the other people, so they’ll definitely talk to me, I’ll definitely get that extra push after the whistle and stuff,” Eli said. “…I feel like I’ve always been like that since I was a smaller corner. They’ll always try to bother me and all that. They think I’m overrated or something. “I’ve always been prepared to deal with that in everything I do.”

Eli has shownalthough, in any case, it could have been underestimated. He made his first career start in Week 7 against Texas, making the Bowens the first pair of brothers to start together in a game for OU since 1987. Eli was also the first Sooner freshman defensive back in make his first Red River Rivalry start since Aaron Colvin in 2010. Eli led the Sooners with eight tackles in the loss.

Almost as if it were part of his DNA, it didn’t take Eli long to adapt to this level of football. Since then, the freshman has become a cornerstone of OU’s defense. In seven games played, Eli has totaled 18 tackles, two TFLs and three quarterback hurries. But despite proving to be a hawk by posting 16 interceptions during his three prep seasons, Eli is still looking for his first pick in college.

However, Eli’s stats don’t tell the whole story of how useful he has been to OU this season. His Pro Football Focus season grade of 82 is 35th best among all qualified cornerbacks in the FBS and leads OU’s defense.

“It’s great” Eli said Tuesday night after practice. “I am grateful for the opportunity I had. I am blessed. But it’s great for me because I can contribute to the seniors and other people on the team and help them win, help them do good. …

“I feel like my confidence has definitely grown more and more because of the level of experience that comes with playing a lot.”