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No reason to worry about Oklahoma Sooners 2024 recruiting

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No reason to worry about Oklahoma Sooners 2024 recruiting


This time a year ago, think pieces were written wondering if the Oklahoma Sooners had a problem on the recruiting trail. Fast forward to February of this year, and it was Brent Venables and his staff that had the last laugh, pulling in the No. 4 recruiting class according to the 247Sports composite.

One would think the way the 2023 recruiting cycle turned out, there would be a little more faith and a little more patience. But after Xadavien Sims committed to the Oregon Ducks, the same questions started to emerge about the Sooners on the recruiting trail.

On June 1, 2022, the Oklahoma Sooners had four players committed to the 2023 recruiting class. one of those players was a holdover from the Lincoln Riley era, Joshua Bates. Another was Brent Venables’ first commitment, Jackson Arnold, who pledged to the Sooners in January of 2022. Of the four players committed to the Sooners, only Arnold was a four or five-star prospect. At the time, Arnold was still a four-star prospect in the cycle.

As things stand right now on May 23, 2023, the Oklahoma Sooners have six players committed to the 2024 recruiting cycle. Of those six players, four are blue-chip prospects;Zion Kearney, Jeremiah Newcombe, Jaydan Hardy, and Michael Hawkins.

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Relative to the 2023 recruiting cycle, Oklahoma Sooners are ahead of schedule.

Take it a year further, and the Sooners 2025 class is way ahead of schedule with commitments from four-star prospects Kevin Sperry and Gracen Harris.

Brent Venables, his coaching staff, the scouts, and the on-campus recruiting team have proven in the year and a half in Norman that they can flat-out recruit. With two top-10 classes in two years and a top-five class in 2023, of that there is no doubt.

It’s certainly a bummer to miss out on a four-star defensive line prospect like Xadavien Sims. The kid is talented, which is why a pair of national championship-winning defensive coordinators like Brent Venables and Dan Lanning were pushing hard for his commitment. In particular, for Oklahoma, missing out on one of the top prospects in the state stings a bit.

But that doesn’t mean this staff can’t recruit. They’re still in a great place for  2024 five-star defensive linemen like David Stone and Williams Nwaneri, in addition to talented four-star prospects Nigel Smith and Joseph Jonah-Ajonye. They’ve also thrown their hat in the ring for five-star defensive lineman Dominick McKinley.

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The Sooners have laid the groundwork to put together another top five class in the 2024 cycle. As we saw last summer, the Sooners are about to remind the college football world just how good they are at recruiting.

The summer months of June, July, and August brought in 15 commitments to the Oklahoma Sooners. With the Champ U BBQ right around the corner and Oklahoma targets taking their official visits elsewhere, look for the Sooners to begin reeling in commitments as they did a year ago.

Gear up. It’s going to be another busy summer.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on Twitter @john9williams.





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Oklahoma

Oklahoma transfer LB Dasan McCullough commits to Nebraska

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Oklahoma transfer LB Dasan McCullough commits to Nebraska


Oklahoma transfer LB Dasan McCullough commits to Nebraska

Oklahoma transfer linebacker Dasan McCullough has committed to Nebraska, he confirmed on Instagram Sunday afternoon.

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The 6-foot-5, 235-pound McCullough spent the past two seasons in Norman with the Sooners. He began his college football career in 2022 at Indiana, where he earned Freshman All-American status.

McCullough will come to Nebraska with one season of eligibility remaining.

McCullough, who played Oklahoma’s versatile hybrid linebacker/safety position called the Cheetah, suffered an injury before the start of Oklahoma’s fall camp this season and missed the first five games. He returned to the field in October and played in the final seven games, the last five of which he started. He recorded 17 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss in 2024.

In 2023 at Oklahoma, McCullough played in 10 games and started seven while making 30 tackles with 3.5 TFLs and three pass deflections.

McCullough, who was a star recruit and ranked No. 61 nationally in the 2022 class, comes from a football family. His dad, Deland McCullough, played running back in the NFL and is currently Notre Dame’s associate head coach and running backs coach.

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While Deland spent three seasons as the Kansas City Chiefs’ running backs coach from 2018-20, Dasan played his high school ball at Blue Valley North High School in Overland Park, Kansas. Deland became Indiana’s associate head coach and running backs coach in 2021, and Dasan, then an Ohio State verbal commit, flipped to Indiana not long after.

Dasan followed his father to Bloomington and made an impact right away. He played in all 12 games with four starts and racked up 51 tackles, 6.5 TFLs, four sacks and four pass deflections. He gained Freshman All-American honors and a Big Ten honorable mention selection.

— Steve Marik, Inside Nebraska staff writer,

Analysis

McCullough is a versatile backend defender that can play a variety of roles in Nebraska’s defense.

A rare blend of size and athleticism at 6-5, McCullough shows good speed and change-of-direction ability for his size. Has high-end instincts and IQ, which shows up in zone coverage and reacting against the run. Has had some intriguing flashes as a pass-rusher, but largely relies on athleticism to get into the backfield, still developing consistent pass rush moves.

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Technically sound tackler, though lean he’s got wiry body strength. Consistent aggression could improve as could hip fluidity. Athletic enough to hold his own in man coverage, technique can continue to improve, better in zone at this point in his career.

In Nebraska’s scheme, McCullough can play all three linebacker positions, rover or even safety if needed. He’s likely best at inside linebacker with a few pass-rush opportunities.

This addition provides Nebraska defensive coordinator John Butler something of a chess piece to move around his defense.

— Tim Verghese, Inside Nebraska recruiting analyst

Additional analysis

McCullough is a versatile and sizable defender who played both a traditional linebacker position and Oklahoma’s “cheetah” spot, which is roughly equivalent to the nickel. He also saw some periodic snaps as an edge rusher for the Sooners during his two years in Norman.

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McCullough at his best against the run, as he takes good pursuit angles, fills gaps responsibly and is a reliable tackler. That said, he’s intelligent and instinctive in zone coverage and can generally be trusted to hold his own in man-to-man matchups against tight ends and running backs.

McCullough ought to be quite the chess piece in John Butler’s defense, and could truly thrive in Lincoln depending on the Huskers’ specific vision for his diverse skill set.

— OUInsider writer Parker Thune

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Fears leads No. 14 Oklahoma against Central Arkansas

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Fears leads No. 14 Oklahoma against Central Arkansas


Associated Press

Central Arkansas Bears (3-8) at Oklahoma Sooners (11-0)

Norman, Oklahoma; Sunday, 1 p.m. EST

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BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Sooners -28.5; over/under is 145.5

BOTTOM LINE: No. 14 Oklahoma hosts Central Arkansas after Jeremiah Fears scored 30 points in Oklahoma’s 87-86 victory over the Michigan Wolverines.

The Sooners have gone 6-0 at home. Oklahoma has a 2-0 record in games decided by less than 4 points.

The Bears are 0-6 on the road. Central Arkansas ranks fourth in the ASUN with 23.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Brayden Fagbemi averaging 4.6.

Oklahoma averages 82.0 points, 5.2 more per game than the 76.8 Central Arkansas allows. Central Arkansas averages 9.0 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.5 more made shots on average than the 6.5 per game Oklahoma allows.

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TOP PERFORMERS: Fears is scoring 17.9 points per game with 3.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists for the Sooners.

Layne Taylor is scoring 17.0 points per game and averaging 4.4 rebounds for the Bears.

LAST 10 GAMES: Sooners: 10-0, averaging 80.9 points, 29.3 rebounds, 14.1 assists, 10.1 steals and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 47.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 68.5 points per game.

Bears: 3-7, averaging 73.0 points, 34.3 rebounds, 14.3 assists, 8.8 steals and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 38.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.7 points.

___

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.




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Firefighters respond to commercial fire in Oklahoma City

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Firefighters respond to commercial fire in Oklahoma City


OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded to a commercial fire near the area of NW 10th and N Western Avenue.

OKCFD were at the scene of a commercial fire around 7 p.m. Saturday night, when they arrived there was heavy smoke visible from multiple floors of a boarded up building.

One adult female was found in the building and taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.

At this time no cause has been reported.

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Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.



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