Oklahoma Sooners fans woke up Sunday morning with big smiles on their faces. The team closed on a five-star defensive lineman.
Now, people forget the staff got Adeboju Adebawore just last year, but if you ask Sooner fans, you’d think they can’t land anyone, and the coaches aren’t doing a good job. People only remember the misses like David Hicks and Williams Nwaneri (TBD). They forget they wouldn’t even be in those battles if it wasn’t for Todd Bates, Miguel Chavis, and of course, Brent Venables.
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But Saturday night, they got the great news that five-star and No. 6 player in the nation David Stone is coming back home.
With the commitment of Stone, the Sooners vaulted to No. 10 in Rivals‘ team rankings, No. 13 in 247Sports‘ rankings, and No. 14 in On3‘s team rankings. Can the Sooners land another top-five class two years in a row?
The answer isn’t one people will be satisfied with, but it is possible. A lot of things would have to go their way. Some notable commitments Sooner fans are waiting for are Dominick McKinley, Nigel Smith II, Brayden Platt, Grant Brix and Danny Okoye.
McKinley and Platt are two players Oklahoma is a finalist for, but it’s not looking like it will go the Sooners way as we sit here today. Now, Oklahoma has been able to shock people come decision day as recently as Jayden Jackson this summer.
If Oklahoma is able to land Smith II, Brix, and Okoye, without any other schools getting commitments, the Sooners would pass the Alabama Crimson Tide for fourth in 247Sports team rankings, which would solidify a top-five class. Again, that’s assuming Alabama or other schools in the top 10 don’t add players, which is unlikely with four months until the early signing period.
The rankings will change throughout the fall. But Oklahoma has to close on those three above to give them a chance at a top-five class.
Smith II is set to announce on Sept. 8, 2023, between Oklahoma and Texas A&M Aggies.
Brix hasn’t set a date, but it could happen any day with Oklahoma, the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and the Kansas State Wildcats being in the final three.
Okoye hasn’t set a date yet either. Many think Oklahoma has a good chance of landing him. If I had to bet right now, I’d bet Oklahoma lands in that 7-9 range when it’s all said and done, which is still a really good class.
It’s no secret since coming to Norman, Brent Venables and his staff have shown you can recruit at a high level on both sides of the ball. No matter what a previous coach made you believe.
They now have to work to close a class that will be the first to play their entire career in the SEC.
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