The Football Brainiacs

Image via 247 Sports

It’s has been a bit of a whirlwind over the last two weeks with respect to OU on the recruiting trail. Most recently, of course, picking up a commitment on Wednesday from 2017 LB Addison Gumbs (Hayward, CA).  Gumbs goes around 6’4″ 215 and on film looks to be the prototypical outside linebacker you look for when it comes to a Big 12 defense. And it’s not just his size, but perhaps even more importantly it is his range and fluidity with the ability to stay on the field for all three downs.

Though he’s considered somewhat of a ‘tweener’ by a number of recruiting services, Gumbs is an ideal fit for what OU does defensively. Probably not quite big enough to play in a 4-3 as a true defensive end (though he obviously has time to add weight), but exactly what you want as a SAM linebacker, similar to the position Eric Striker just vacated.

Kenneth Murray, another 2017 LB, committed to OU last week and if you watch his tape and then Gumbs, you can see the subtle differences between the two. Murray is more of a ‘Jack’ linebacker and a little heavier, maybe more of a ‘point of attack’ type guy. While Gumbs, like Striker, is someone who can run plays down from the backside and really be a difference maker in the blitz game.

Going back to Gumbs’ fluidity, though, I really like his ability to change direction at the mesh point (the point in the zone-read game where the QB is making the read to hand off or keep the ball).  Quite a few times you see he is able to not only diagnose the play, but also quickly change direction and easily make the play. Again much like Striker, this allows Gumbs to slow play the option and because of his athleticism still make the play or at least cause it to flatten out on the QB enough until help arrives if he hasn’t already made the play himself.

In Gumbs, the Sooners get a much needed elite pass-rusher. In his tape, he’s routinely on top of the QB in around two seconds or less (two and a half if he has to fight off a block). With his length, and in the quick pass happy Big 12, you can expect a lot of batted passes, sniffed out screens, and pursuit tackles for loss in the WR screen game.

The staff continues to stay hot on the recruiting trail and with this most recent addition to the group, there’s no doubt that #SoonerSquad17 is most definitely ‘lit.’