Brent Venables has been locked into the 2025 recruiting class, hosting a group of nine high school recruits in Norman this weekend, but apparently, he wasn’t done building the 2024 class yet either. 

On Sunday, the Sooners added safety Devon Owen to the roster as a preferred walk-on, he announced on social media. The 6-foot-1 190-pound Texas native has been a Sooners fan his entire life and told Sooners Illustrated that even his great-grandfather went to OU. 

Owen had committed to Navy in high school but decommitted during his senior year, so he wasn’t sure where he’d play football. Owen was in Norman this past weekend for camp, working out at linebacker when Venables and the Oklahoma staff offered him a spot as PWO. 

The 2025 class is still far from complete, but while adding the final piece to the 2024 class and attempting to lockdown top 2025 recruits, Oklahoma has landed a 2026 commitment from Ryder Mix a four-star tight end from Frisco, Texas. 

He is ranked as a three-star by 247Sports, but On3 has him rated as a four-star and the latter considers him a top-10 tight end in the 2026 class. Mix was mulling offers from Ohio State, Michigan, Auburn, Florida State, and Oregon. 

Mix is the second player in the 2026 class to commit to the Sooners, joining four-star running back Jonathan Hatton Jr. 

Patty Gasso brought Kelly Maxwell to Norman from Stillwater through the transfer portal to win a national championship and that’s exactly what Maxwell did. Well, with Maxwell out of eligibility, Stanford pitcher NiJaree Canady who just entered the transfer portal could be the perfect replacement in the circle. 

Canady, a sophomore from Topeka, Kansas, went 24-7 with a 0.73 ERA in 41 games for the Cardinal, striking out 337 to just 44 walks. That, after posting a 0.53 ERA as a freshman. Canady was named the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year for the second straight season. 

Oklahoma, and nearly every elite softball program in the country, will be after Canady, but the team with four consecutive national titles and a need in the circle is rightfully considered the favorite.

University allegedly told white female student she would get more aid if she was black

The University of Oklahoma deleted some diversity information to “obscure the extent to which it has engaged in race-based decision making,” according to a pending federal lawsuit.

Furthermore, it appears more pages were deleted after the filing of the suit, according to a review by The College Fix.

“It is therefore difficult to determine the full extent of the University’s race-based programs,” the lawsuit states.

The federal lawsuit accuses the public university in Norman of violating the 14th Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by awarding some financial aid on the basis of race.

“Rather than determining who to admit based on their race, the University of Oklahoma determines how much financial aid it gives to students based on their race,” the lawsuit states. “That is unlawful.”

The lawsuit lists a multitude of race-based programming the university offers.

These programs include the “McLaurin & Lewis Leadership Conference,” which is a “college preview program for African American students,” “Welcome Black Weekend,” an orientation event for black students, and “Black Excellence Ceremony,” a segregated graduation event.

The College Fix was able to verify that these events do exist, but the university’s webpages cited in the lawsuit no longer exist.

No one at the university responded to requests for comment.

The Fix contacted the university’s media relations department three times in the past week and a half, asking for comment. The Fix also contacted the named defendants in the lawsuit on June 10.

The plaintiffs, three white students, filed the lawsuit on May 15. According to the Wayback Machine, an internet archive, at least one of the pages was still in existence at that time. The university had already deleted another of the pages, and the archive did not record the third.

The defendants’ legal counsel Pete Patterson declined to comment for this story. (Former College Fix reporter Kate Hardiman is a listed co-counsel).

According to the lawsuit, the university had a page about “increas[ing] African American student . . . representation on campus.” The page no longer exists. The Fix could find nothing similar to the phrase anywhere else on the university’s website.

The lawsuit says that the university is doing it on purpose. “In an effort to obscure the extent to which it has engaged in race-based decision making, the University of Oklahoma has recently deleted many webpages with information about its diversity and race-based programs.”

The lawsuit alleges that an admissions official told Kayla Savage, one of the plaintiffs, that “financial aid was generally not available to students like, her but would have been if she were African American.”

All three defendants identified themselves as “white and non-Hispanic” on their college applications. Brayden Johnson is in an accelerated master’s degree program. Logan Rhines is a junior.

“Universities that discriminate on the basis of race when making financial-aid awards violate the same equal protection principles that apply in the admissions context and elsewhere,” the lawsuit states.

There is statistical evidence, the attorneys argue, to further back up their complaint.

“A statistical analysis of publicly available data indicates that the University of Oklahoma considers race when awarding financial aid to its students,” the lawsuit states.

The analysis of UO’s financial aid “analysis shows that black students receive more institutional grant aid from the University of Oklahoma than other students, even when controlling to the extent possible for factors such as family income.”

MORE: Kendi’s ‘antiracist’ center is racist, according to his own standards

IMAGES: University of Oklahoma; Welcome Black OU/Instagram

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On Thursday evening, Stillwater (OK) 2028 wide receiver David Thomas announced that he received an offer from Oklahoma State.

Thomas’ first Division I offer came on the heels of an impressive outing at the Brent Venables Football Camp in Norman, where the incoming freshman worked against the top group of defensive backs in one-on-one drills. Thomas got opened at all three levels of the field and showcased good speed, quickness and route running ability.

In addition to snapping off comeback routes for easy completions, Thomas was also able to run by defensive backs who were heading into their sophomore and junior seasons on deep passes. In a solid group of pass catchers, Thomas was one of the youngest prospects, but also one of the top performers.

Listed at 5-foot-11 and 160 pounds, the Pioneers’ standout pass catcher already has decent size and will likely still grow, especially in a high school weight program.

In addition to the Pokes being the first school to offer Thomas, the skilled wideout is also the first recruit Mike Gundy and company have extended an offer to in the 2028 recruiting class.

While Thomas will likely receive attention from schools around the country as his recruitment progresses, OSU being the hometown school and the first program to show real interest in the rising freshman should help keep the Cowboys in the mix.

While the 2028 class is still a long ways away, Thomas has the potential to be the top wide receiver in the entire region.

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