Oklahoma
OU football: What’s the biggest area of focus for Oklahoma Sooners’ 2025 recruiting class?
NORMAN — With signing day having come and gone, and transfer portal season mostly in the books — at least until the spring when it kicks back up again — it’s time to turn attention to the 2025 class for OU.
The Sooners already have nine commits in the class, with six from the state — three from Carl Albert alone.
It’s another indication of the Sooners’ increased focus on recruiting in the state — as well as the strength of the 2025 class in the state.
OU signed six Oklahoma players in the 2024 class — including Del City’s David Stone, who played his final two seasons in Florida, but not including recruited walk-on Heritage Hall’s Andy Bass.
The Sooners hadn’t signed as many as six in-state players since the 2017 class.
Here’s a look at the Sooners’ 2025 commits, the players who figure to depart after next season and OU’s biggest outstanding needs in the class:
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2025 OU football commits
- Gracen Harris, WR, 6-10, 170, Ennis, Texas
- Owen Hollenbeck, OG, 6-2, 315, Melissa, Texas
- Marcus James, Ath., 6-3, 210, Midwest City (Carl Albert)
- Ka’Mori Moore, DL, 6-1, 295, Lee’s Summit, Mo. (North)
- Jaden Nickens, WR, 6-3, 190, Oklahoma City (Millwood)
- Alexander Shieldnight, Edge, 6-2, 220, Wagoner
- Kevin Sperry, QB, 6-0, 200, Midwest City (Carl Albert)
- Elijah Thomas, WR, 6-1, 63, Checotah
- Trynae Washington, Ath., 6-3, 195, Midwest City (Carl Albert)
More: OU football: Which players have committed to Sooners’ 2025 recruiting class?
Expected departures
- OL: Spencer Brown, Michael Tarquin
- TE: Jake Roberts
- WR Andrel Anthony, Jalil Farooq, JJ Hester
- DE: Ethan Downs, Trace Ford, Caiden Woullard
- DT: Jacon Lacey, Davon Sears, Da’Jon Terry
- LB: Justin Harrington, Konnor Near, Danny Stutsman, Shane Whitter
- CB Kendel Dolby, Dezjhon Malone, Woodi Washington, Gentry Williams
- S: Billy Bowman
More: Who has OU football added, lost via the transfer portal? Here’s the complete list
Biggest need
Offensive line: The Sooners still hope to add a bit to the 2024 offensive line, but need to make inroads in the 2025 class as well.
They currently have just one commit there —interior offensive lineman Owen Hollenbeck.
OU has plenty of options at defensive tackle but three of the most intriguing are all from the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex — five-star Michael Fasusi of Lewisville, four-star Ty Haywood of Denton Ryan, and Lamont Rogers of Mesquite Horn.
Each is in the top 10 nationally at the position, according to the 247 Sports Composite, with Fasusi leading the way at No. 2, Haywood at No. 6 and Roberts No. 7.
If the Sooners could get one, they’d be in solid shape, they’d be over the moon with two and getting all three would be a pipe dream.
More: Oklahoma football adds David Stone, Danny Okoye in 2024 class: Follow National Signing Day
Biggest local target remaining
Nate Roberts, TE, Purcell: The 247 Sports Composite four-star has offers from a who’s who of programs — Ohio State, Oregon, Alabama, Notre Dame, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Iowa, Louisville, Miami, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Penn State, Tennessee and Texas A&M among them.
So Roberts has plenty of options.
But with the tight end figuring to play a more prominent role in the Seth Littrell/Joe Jon Finley offense than it did under Jeff Lebby’s system, and with the lack of proven playmakers at the position (though they’re high on 2024 signee Davon Mitchell), getting Roberts would be big.
Robert’s proximity to Norman certainly helps, as does the fact his brother, Jake, transferred to OU from Baylor recently.
It’s still not an easy sell, with Ohio State being the primary competition for Roberts, but he’d be a big-time addition to an already state-heavy recruiting class.
Looking for another?
The Sooners are also recruiting yet another Carl Albert player, Trystan Haynes. Haynes is a four-star prospect according to the 247 Composite and could wind up as a cornerback at OU.
Ex-OU quarterback Jalen Hurts made up for his turnover-heavy showing in Week 14 with a stellar Week 15 performance.
Hurts, who spent the 2019 season at Oklahoma, led the Philadelphia Eagles to a 31-0 win against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
The quarterback completed 12 of his 15 pass attempts for 175 yards and three touchdowns, and he also rushed seven times for 39 yards. Hurts averaged 11.7 yards per pass attempt, his second highest mark of the year in that category.
The week before, Hurts had his worst showing of the season. Against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football, Hurts accounted for four turnovers. The final one of those was an interception that he threw into the hands of fellow former Sooner Tony Jefferson in overtime to seal the Chargers’ 22-19 win.
With Sunday’s win, the Eagles improved to 9-5. Philadelphia is in firm control in the NFC East race and will win the division with one more win or one more loss from the Dallas Cowboys, who are 6-7-1.
In 14 games in 2025, Hurts has completed 65.2 percent of his passes for 2,929 yards, 22 touchdowns and six interceptions. The quarterback has also rushed for 376 yards and eight touchdowns.
Hurts has spent his entire professional career with the Eagles after the franchise selected him in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He has been selected to the Pro Bowl twice, and he won his first Super Bowl earlier this year, as Philadelphia defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 55-23 in Super Bowl LIX.
Before becoming an NFL star, Hurts played three seasons of college football at Alabama and won the national title with the Crimson Tide in 2017. He transferred to Oklahoma for his final year of eligibility — 2019 — and led the Sooners to an 11-2 record and an appearance in the College Football Playoff.
Mayfield, Buccaneers Continue Skid
Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost a heartbreaker on Thursday.
After holding a 28-14 lead in the fourth quarter, the Buccaneers allowed the Atlanta Falcons to score 15 unanswered points and win 29-28.
Mayfield, who spent three years as Oklahoma’s starting quarterback, finished the game 277 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on 19-of-34 passing. His lone pick came in crunch time, though, as he underthrew wide receiver Mike Evans in the fourth quarter, and Atlanta’s Damien Alford intercepted the pass. The Falcons scored a touchdown on their ensuing drive.
The Buccaneers have lost six of their last eight games after beginning the 2025 season 5-1. Individually, Mayfield has thrown 10 touchdowns and six interceptions in the last eight games after logging 12 touchdowns and only one pick in the first six contests.
Mayfield has completed 61.2 percent of his passes for 2,999 yards, 22 touchdowns and seven touchdowns in 14 games.
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The Buccaneers, once in firm control of the NFC South race, are tied with the Carolina Panthers for first place in the division. The silver lining for the Bucs is that the division is weak, and the Panthers dropped what should have been an easy opportunity for them to take sole possession of first place on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.
Mayfield is playing in his eighth NFL season and third with the Buccaneers. He spent the first four years of his NFL career with the Cleveland Browns and split the 2022 season between the Panthers and the Los Angeles Rams before signing with Tampa Bay in 2023.
At OU, Mayfield boasted a 33-6 record as the Sooners’ starting quarterback. He finished his three seasons in Norman with 12,292 passing yards, 137 total touchdowns and 21 interceptions, and Mayfield won the Heisman Trophy in 2017.
Lamb Shines Again in Cowboys’ Loss
Even though the Cowboys fell 34-26 to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday Night Football, veteran wideout and former Sooner CeeDee Lamb had another big game.
Lamb finished Sunday’s loss with a game-high six catches for 111 yards. His flashy performance marked Lamb’s third game in a row eclipsing 100 receiving yards.
Dallas, though, dropped to 6-7-1 with the loss. For the Cowboys to win the NFC East, they must win out, and the Eagles must lose out.
Lamb has caught 63 passes for 976 yards and three touchdowns in 2025. He has played with the Cowboys since 2020, when the franchise selected him with the No. 17 overall pick in the NFL Draft. Lamb has made the Pro Bowl four times, and he was a First Team All-Pro selection in 2023.
At OU, Lamb was a consensus All-American in 2019, his final year in Norman. Over the course of his three collegiate seasons, Lamb recorded 3,292 yards and 32 touchdowns on 173 catches.
UPDATE: Power has been mostly restored in the wide area of Midtown Tulsa. Nearly 500 customers remain without power.
PSO says a car hit a pole near 2800 S Lewis Avenue, and a substation in the area may have shorted out as a result.
Investigation ongoing.
Public Service Company of Oklahoma Statement:
PSO Oklahoma is currently working to restore power to a wide area of Midtown Tulsa. Crews are on site, and working to restore service.
Residents can track outage updates and report outages at https://outagemap.psoklahoma.com/
If you or someone you know needs adequate heat, our warming shelters are open. Locations are:
All shelter beds are based on available capacity of the shelter.
Please share this information with neighbors who may need it and check on those who are most vulnerable during this cold weather.
Stay safe and warm.
Original Story:
The Public Service Company of Oklahoma Outage Map shows thousands in Tulsa are without power after reports of multiple downed power lines and a power flash, affecting customers starting near the area of Riverside Drive out past the Mingo Valley Expressway, all the way near East 21 Street to E 81 Street.
News On 6 has received reports of the location of multiple power lines down near 2800 South Lewis Avenue, so it is best to avoid the area.
Crews are currently out addressing the outage, and a time of restoration has not been published at this time.
PSO Communications Manager Matt Rahn said teams are still trying to figure out the specific cause of the outage and will update after an investigation is conducted.
After a quick shot of arctic air, things warm up quickly this week
Emergency Info: Outages Across Oklahoma:
Northeast Oklahoma has various power companies and electric cooperatives, many of which have overlapping areas of coverage. Below is a link to various outage maps.
- PSO Outage Map
- OG&E Outage Map
- VVEC Outage Map
- Indian Electric Cooperative (IEC) Outage Map
- Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives Outage Map — (Note: Several Smaller Co-ops Included)
This is a developing story. Refresh for updates.
Oklahoma is looking to make some history when it takes on Alabama on Friday in the opening round of the College Football Playoff.
The Sooners and Crimson Tide square off at 7 p.m. Friday at Gaylord Family — Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The game will be televised on ABC.
A win would not only boost the Sooners into the quarterfinals, but would give them three consecutive victories over the Crimson Tide.
OU beat Alabama 24-3 last season in Norman and 23-21 earlier this season in Tuscaloosa.
Since 1960, only 12 programs have beaten the Crimson Tide in three consecutive meetings and only one such streak included a win over Alabama following Nick Saban’s first season in 2007 when the Crimson Tide went 7-6.
That streak?
Another Sooners’ winning streak in the series, which included pre-Saban wins in 2002 and 2003 and the Trevor Knight-led Sugar Bowl win as part of the 2013 season.
In the last 65 seasons, the Sooners were only the second non-conference team to knock off Alabama in three consecutive meetings, joining Texas, which beat the Crimson Tide in 1981, 1972 and 1964.
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Now, OU has a chance to repeat the streak, but this time as part of the SEC and in a do-or-die situation.
The other most recent three-game winning streaks against the Tide were Auburn (six consecutive from 2002-07), LSU (five straight from 2003-07) and Georgia (three straight in 2003-03 and 2007).
Alabama had won 10 or more games every season since that 2007 season before last year’s team finished 9-4.
OU is 5-2-1 against the Crimson Tide all-time.
Only a handful of other programs that have played Alabama more than once have a winning record against the Tide.
Texas is 8-2-1 vs. the Crimson Tide, while Notre Dame is 5-3 and Michigan is 4-3.
The only other programs with a winning record against Alabama in more than one meeting are the Birmingham Athletic Club (3-2), Boston College (3-1), Louisiana Tech (3-2), Rice (3-0), TCU (3-2) and UCLA (2-1).
Alabama is, by any measure, one of the most successful programs in college football history, claiming 18 national championships and four Heisman Trophy winners.
Of course, the Sooners are one of the few programs that can measure up to that, with several national titles and seven Heisman winners.
No team has beaten Alabama twice in the same season.
“Obviously we have tendencies. They have tendencies,” Sooners coach Brent Venables said. “They have certain matchups they like. We have certain matchups we like. At the end of the day, you can throw all that out. It’s time to start completely over. All that matters is what you do here moving forward.
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