Weekend Open Post | May 1st – May 3rd
Posted on: May 1, 2026
Sunday Brunch | Reestablishing the Standard in the Draft
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 26, 2026
For a program like the University of Oklahoma, seven NFL Draft picks is not a surprise. It is a reminder.
4-5-6 draft picks used to be the standard in Norman. Now, under Brent Venables, it is starting to look like the standard again.
Seven Sooners selected in the NFL Draft sends a clear message. The rebuild is no longer theoretical. It is producing real results. More importantly, it is showing what this roster is becoming.
This is not about one strong class. It is about structure.
Oklahoma is building depth again. Not just stars at the top, but real layers across the roster. Offensive line, defensive front, rotational pieces. The kind of players that develop, contribute, and eventually move on to Sundays. That is what elite programs do, and it is what OU is getting back to.
The addition of Jim Nagy only sharpens that edge. His NFL background brings a different lens to evaluation. This staff is not just chasing rankings. They are targeting traits that translate. Length, toughness, versatility, football IQ. Players who fit the league, not just the moment.
That alignment matters.
When recruiting, development, and NFL projection all point in the same direction, you get consistency. You get a pipeline. You get numbers like seven feeling normal again.
And that is the shift.
Seven should not be considered the ceiling for Oklahoma. It should once again be the expectation.
Spring Ball Accolades and Awards
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 27, 2026
Spring ball has ended and based on our sourcing, I thought it would be fun to hand out some accolades and awards!
We will talk about the rooms with the most buzz, the all-spring team (based solely on sourced buzz) and hand out the “Mr Spring” award for the guys who stood out above all!
Just having some fun with it.
Room with the most buzz:
Offense…gotta think it would be the tight end room on the surface, as they have completely transformed the room from what was once a barren desert to what appears to be a capable oasis. However, the room that received the most consistent praise for potentially making a high-impact transition was the offensive line room. The top seven guys appear to have made some folks very happy.
Defense…The EDGE room got the most consistent buzz with the DT starters being out and the linebacking corps dealing with some injuries and some NCAA shenanigans during the spring. The corner room was strong and probably had as much buzz as the EDGE room by the end of the spring, but the EDGE room brought it from day one.
Room with the most question marks:
Offense…Aside from the questions that will hover over John Mateer until the games begin, the wide receiver room was unquestionably the most mysterious room on offense during the spring. A multitude of nagging injuries and clean-up procedures limited the projected starters’ reps, and there was not a ton of buzz on consistent playmakers or breakout candidates. The WR room enters the summer and fall as the room that needs to find some playmakers and breakout guys.
Defense…Depth questions at safety and linebacker ruled the spring and with the linebackers getting a late spring reinforcement in Owen Heinecke, the biggest question marks on the defensive side of the ball reside in the safety room. There are no questions about who the starters are, and they should be very good in Bowen and Boganowski, and there was substantial buzz about the growth of Omarion Robinson as safety three…but beyond that, OU needs someone to emerge.
All-Spring Team:
Offense: (One player from each position group)
QB – Whitt Newbauer
RB – DeZephen Walker
WR – Mackenzie Alleyne
TE – Rocky Beers
OT – Michael Fasusi
IOL – Jake Maikkula
Defense: (One player from each position group)
EDGE – Danny Okoye
IDL – Trent Wilson
LB – Cole Sullivan
CB – Courtland Guillory
S – Mike Boganowski
CH – Jeremiah Newcombe
Mr. Spring: The dude who everyone was talking about the most!
Offense…wide receiver Mackenzie Alleyne earns the nod of “Mr Spring” as he made a ton of plays and always seemed to be in the middle of the action for the offense. What the season holds for him, I don’t know, but he definitely was a top performer in the spring.
Defense…EDGE Danny Okoye edges out LB Cole Sullivan for defensive Mr Spring, and he was the guy who folks could not stop raving about. Okoye is a guy who figures prominently into the season’s plans and in this case, you want to be able to put a lot of faith in what we have heard throughout the spring.
No First Rounders and Still…
– Super K – Posted on: April 28, 2026
And still the Sooners made the playoffs and almost (should have) won their first round opener against Alabama.
This was my primary takeaway from this past weekend – that there is still so much upside.
You remember Matt Dimon? Great high school player but whether it was a scheme fit or whatever, just couldn’t be that player in college. And I think most knew that his upside was a bit tapped by the time he got to Oklahoma.
When you’re recruiting, you’re looking for guys who have some skill but plenty of room to grow (upside).
Last year, I noted back in April that the 2025 team would be BV’s most talented team by far (LINK TO THE ORIGINAL POST). In fact, the title of the post was “This is BV’s Best Team on Paper and it Isn’t Close” and that turned out to be true.
But my concern was, ok this was a very talented team that made it to the playoffs but the Sooners want a championship so how much more is left in the tank?
Well, there is a lot more potentially left in the tank. Because while this was a step up in draft production for BV, this is nowhere near what they can produce.
Six or seven draft picks should be the standard but moving guys up in the draft can make a massive difference in terms of wins and losses. So, when you’re already at 10 wins in the SEC with a pretty good draft class, it makes you feel pretty good about the possibility of a lot more with an elite draft class.
So, while the draft didnt go quite as well as I would have thought a few months ago. It left me feeling better about the team and the program, overall.
2027 Class | What’s Left Offensively
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 29, 2026
Heat check on where things stand with the ’27 class and how the Sooners will look to close things out with official visit season fast approaching!
QB: Jamison Roberts – Done. Sooners are not looking to add a number here.
RB: Keldrid Ben – Potentially done, likely keeping an eye out though. With Jaxsen Stokes’ flip to Cal, the Sooners aren’t sweating anything so long as they keep Ben in the fold, but they are not blind to the fact that Ben has a bunch of programs still working on him. Could someone else pop up? Maybe, but I don’t think OU is in any rush to add a body for the sake of adding one, given where things stand with the running back room at this time.
TE: Seneca Driver – Likely to add one more, and the one that is targeted is Ben Kolar at this time. Like where OU is at with Kolar, and if you add him to Driver, you’re talking about an excellent class.
WR: Demare Dezeurn, Tra’Von Hall, Greydon Howell – Likely to add one more at the very least, and keeping a close eye on Tra’Von Hall as he is openly talking with other SEC programs. I kind of do not expect Hall to stick, so OU could be back in the market for up to two more receivers. Kyron Brown is a name that keeps popping up.
OL: Kaeden Penny, Cooper Hackett, Luke Wilson, Tyson Ross, Isaac Coughran – The twist here is that OU and Gus Corsair seem to have fallen off a cliff, and what once looked like an OU lock now appears to be off the table. As I noted when Coughran committed, reselling Corsair would become a bit more difficult due to numbers alone (nobody wants to come into a program fighting guys in his own class for a spot), but to be honest, it appears as though OU has simply walked away from the table at this time. If OU stands pat with the five they have, this is still likely the best OL class in the country this cycle, but they may look for a late riser or someone else not publicly known at this point.
2027 Class | What’s Left Defensively
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 30, 2026
Continuing with the heat check on where things stand with the ’27 class and how the Sooners will look to close things out with official visit season fast approaching!
EDGE – Krew Jones is solidly in the boat. OU will be looking for at least one more EDGE and likely two more if they can get them. Samuel Nelson, younger brother of Sooners DE Matthew Nelson, is starting to look like a priority and OU is in a good spot; just have to close. Myles Smith visited previously and OU is tying there, and Uhlia Wolfgramm, a more recent offer, certainly has OU among his favorites right now.
DT – Elija Harmon, Deven Robertson, and recent commit Sione Felila could make this a closed case, but I do think OU will continue to keep their eyes open, as Harmon, in particular, is a guy who will continue to get attention from other schools. He is saying all the right things right now, so I am not looking to cause any panic.
LB – Cooper Witten and Taven Epps – This haul already, in my opinion, gives OU the top LB class of the cycle, but OU is not bowing out on potentially adding a guy like Case Alexander as a true linebacker (still think PSU will be tough to beat here, but as I noted previously, OU is making up ground) and then there is Gideon Gash who OU likes a lot and to me, he projects as a protypical Cheetah. Gash recently set up his official visit to OU for the summer, so the Sooners have at least a fighting chance here.
CB – Mikhail McCreary and Mikyal Davis are currently the CBs committed. OU will take at least one more, and they would love it if it were Gabriel Osborne (I still like OU here) and then it becomes a numbers/versatility game. OU is still in communication with Juju Johnson, and they will host Trenton Blaylock for an official as well. I think the priority is Osborne and then see what needs you need to address first…a true safety or another CB. McCreary is a guy who could slide to safety IMO and right now, as I reported previously, I think the focus is shifting from Johnson toward Blaylock. Will be interesting to see how it plays out.
S – Jaylen Scott – After Scott, the big target and OU lean would be Bode Sparrow. Again, Gideon Gash is a big (6’4, 185ish) athlete who can play anything from corner to safety to cheetah. Outside of that, right now, I don’t see any other real priorities at safety, and if OU can add Sparrow to Scott, that’s a dang good class, whether Gash is to land at OU or not, no matter what position he plays in college.
