Image of Jace Sternberger via NewsOK
– Lately we’ve had quite a few people ask us whether Kenyon Frison was in jeopardy of not making it to OU. I don’t know where the rumors came from, and honestly we’d never heard anything about Frison being an academic concern. But with all the questions, it started to make us curious as well. So we asked around and were told definitively that everything is fine with his academics, and he’s just finishing some things up.
– As most of you have probably noted by now, every school listed in Torrance Gibson’s Top 7, other than Oklahoma, now has at least one QB committed. This was something last month we mentioned could very well happen, but I would have expected at least Tennessee to hold off. They have not and while that certainly does not eliminate them from the chase, it will be something Gibson has to consider as things continue to progress.
Also, Torrance has been in Knoxville hanging out for a few days now. Obviously, that only helps support the idea that he’s going to end up at Tennessee, but again the Vols already took a 2015 QB. This is a long process and schools aren’t going to sit around waiting for Gibson, no matter how talented a player they consider him to be. So Gibson’s perception of things may also be drastically different as the process goes on. I do know he’s been talking to people that he trusts about whether he should or shouldn’t advance his commitment date. If he doesn’t, then I suspect Oklahoma is all but guaranteed an official visit. And then who knows what could happen.
We’ve received questions about Torrance’s suspension from school, his attitude, recruitment, etc., so I wanted to take a moment and address the most recent issue as carefully as I can. His suspension from school was not related to a confrontation with a teacher. It was actually related to a bit of verbal tiff with another student.
– Had a chance to talk with Anthony Wheeler last night. We talked mostly about his visit to Oklahoma and his commitment timeline. It comes as no surprise that he’s high on the Sooners. He said he has a great relationship with Coach Kish, and he feels very comfortable around him. But he also added that being close to Frank Shannon is important, because it gives him some additional insight into how Kish coaches. He said that Frank sings Kish’s praises and that means a lot to him. But it’s also clear in talking with Wheeler that Kish has put in plenty of work himself building a great relationship with Anthony.
In talking with him a little bit about his commitment timeline, it’s clear he is pretty torn. A part of him would clearly like to make the decision this summer before the season starts or shortly thereafter. And another part of him feels like he’d still like to see some of the many schools he has offers from but hasn’t had a chance to visit yet. Schools like Alabama, Ohio State, etc. If he decides he really wants to see some other schools from outside this area, then he’ll wait to take his official which will extend his commitment timeline. If not, then perhaps we can expect a decision to come sometime this summer. Either way it’s clear OU has done a great job recruiting Wheeler, and he’d be a huge pickup giving Oklahoma a true ILB that fits their scheme perfectly.
– I (Super K) continue to be intrigued by Kingfisher TE Jace Sternberger. Last week we talked about his athleticism, which I’ve heard he continues to demonstrate at camps this summer. Jace said at the OU camp much of what they did was blocking work, but right now he is really more of a flex TE whose strengths are his soft hands, great speed, length, and agility. The other day however, Sternberger measured in at 6’4″ 220 lbs at the Missouri camp and clocked a 4.7 40 which was the fastest TE time. He also ran a 4.3 shuttle and had a 30 inch vertical.
For a kid that long with a frame that can comfortably hold 240+ lbs, his numbers are fantastic. And let me tell you, those are not artificial numbers. You’ll find a lot of kids with great camp numbers because they are trained in how to run a 40 or a shuttle or whatever. Jace isn’t doing that kind of specialized training. If he’s running a 4.7 raw right now, there are trainers down here in Texas that could shave .1 or .2 secs off that just on technique alterations alone. I don’t know how interested OU may be, but I suspect some BCS level school is going to take a chance on him and it’s going to pay dividends. Jace is just now coming into his own. Last year was his first at TE ( he played QB and safety before that) and with his athleticism it won’t surprise me if he plays in a spread based offense that uses a big flex TE, really flourishes, and then finds himself in front of NFL scouts one day. Again, very intrigued by his potential upside. It’s hard to not be enamored by that size and athleticism.
– We got some great news yesterday. I got a text message from Jake Pickard’s father telling me that the Oregon Ducks have extended an offer to Jake. Those of you who have read our site for a while know that we’ve been fans of Jake’s for some time, and we were very excited to hear the news of the offer. Oregon does a great job finding and developing long rangy athletes like Jake. Pickard has been working hard and he’s now measuring in at 6’5″ 233 lbs.
– UPDATE (4:50 pm): Jace Sternberger just clocked a 4.6 40 at the Arkansas camp today. At 6’4 220 lbs that is some serious speed. And running that kind time without any 40 training is especially impressive. He may very well be a legitimate 4.5 guy.
106 Comments
Pickard’s going to be a beast. We’ve been high on him since the jump. Great news for him and his family!
I am a little frustrated on why Pickard and Nick Connor have not been offered. Especially Pickard.
Awesome open post today. Let’s get Gibson on campus for his visit for the Tennessee game and see what happens.
Seems like they could have the Under Armour All Star Game at halftime of the OU – Tennessee game with all the great recruits coming to that game!
7pm start. Hopefully ESPN Gameday. Has a chance to be a fantastic atmosphere on campus that day.
Great news to hear about Wheeler. Thanks!
Did Jace give any indication what was the final word from the coaches was? Are they going to continue following and evaluating him w/ the possibility of an offer later?
Yes they did bud
Great post as usual. I read that Frison’s high school graduation date was June 6th. Hopefully he will be here in a week or so. Anthony Wheeler just fits the profile of a “Striker Backer”- hope he chooses OU. Jake Prickard, I had forgotten about him. Would OU recruit him as a te? Purdue and Boston College seem to be in the lead right now, but an Oregon offer is a duck of a different quack-Sorry. On a more serious note is their an “official date” when colleges can have official visits? I know it needs to be during the season.
Gary, great info, thanks for the update. We’re really high on Wheeler ourselves. We are hopeful that OU gets in in Pickard.
I’d rather see Wheeler as a “Box..Austin Box” backer..we have plenty of potential on the outside…we need a stud in the middle
Great News on ALL FRONTS! Thanks again for all the hard work guys! Do you think Pickard will leave the Northeast already having offers from Rutgers, Purdue, Syracuse, Connecticut and others closer to home or do you get the sense he is open to going anywhere?
Early on when K spoke with his Dad, they were open. His Dad is really involved with his recruitiment. Being a former player himself, he understand how schemes can work to the advantage of Jake’s playing style.
Why we not in on Jake?
Monty’s aware of him. K would probably be able to speak more intelligently on the subject. He’s built a rapport with Jake’s dad.
That’s really good news. Oregon is a long way from home but they do well with De like him. OU has a pretty crowded offer list at Dline and Coach Monty has him on his radar but not sure it will result in a OU offer till later in the process. I’m confident Coach Monty will get us a great Dline cause he certainly has seen enough recruits this year!
Is Kish staying in touch with the Pickards?
Love the open posts!! Thanks so much for your efforts at beating the bushes to get those nuggets of detail we all enjoy reading.
K’s going full beast mode.
JY, a question.
I had mentioned an under the radar OT out of Marshall, Tx last week.
Currently listed as 6’6″ 306. Rivals doesn’t even have him in their data base, where as Scout shows he has about five offers, including Okie St.
The program has been down for three years and the kids got poor coaching until this past year when Coach Clint Harper came in and brought in about 100 years of coaching experience with him.
Just curious if you had heard or read anything about him.
EasTex, thanks! Can you get me some film on him? I’d love to have a look at him. E mail me direct at [email protected]
Will do.
Found his film by googling him. Will have writeup shortly.
Excellent.
Your search skills are supreme, I could never find anything on him.
i have moments…
Amazing how much difference one little “t” can make.
There has been some famous athletes that have come out of Marshall. A few good ball players. One of the coolest courthouse squares that I’ve seen. Especially at Christmas.
There have been a few, Y.A. Tittle is a name few today have ever heard of. A couple of guys from the 80’s-90’s at DB went on to have nice NFL careers and one of them ran track professionally in Europe.
The last two from there to be Sooners were Tremayne Green and Aaron Franklin(R-Sr), both OLBs.
The Christmas light festival is pretty spectacular and it’s all volunteer.
Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe Mr Thigh himself Robert Newhouse is from Marshall and George Foreman.
Just checked and Foreman is from Marshall. Newhouse was born in Longview.
Ol’George, what a character.
Newhouse was an interesting recruiting story, back when schools were still segregated he attended school at then tiny, tiny Hallsville. His Uncle delivered bread to the UH athletic dorm and ran into one of the coaches and told them they needed to get up there and check him out…the rest is history.
His first game as a soph he came in mid way of the 3rd quarter, carried the ball 13 times for 245 yds and 3 tds and left mid way of the 4th qtr.
I want Kish to pull Wheeler in, if anything, to quell the noise about his ability to close. For some reason, he gets a lot of flak which is strange considering the way his crew played last year (not to mention the youth) and the mix of backers he brought in this year.
It would be interesting if Sternberger turned out to be as good as his TTU namesake. However,is OU really looking into taking a Tight end this year?
I agree on kish getting a bad rep i think it will take him another year or 2 to start pulling guys he wants kind of like Monty these kids are going to want stability from their position coach.
As far as tight end they should take at least one each year but they did get an hback, a freshman TE, a juco TE, and a tweener flex TE/WR. So if there’s a year they could go without it would be this year
A little off topic question but always interesting to watch… What current commit or potential commit can you guys see being a great recruiter for other 2015 recruits?
Usually it starts with a qb or someone like Mixon. I would say Rodney Anderson or someone like Sunderland.
It was definitely fun watching Mixon go after players… The two I had thought of were DeBerry and maybe Mbanasor.
Brainiacs…If Gibson was to commit to UTenn. What are you guys thoughts on Dormandy as far as a potential OU offer?
Just watched him film a little more and the guy reminds me a lot of Landry Jones with lighter feet.
Hopefully not happy feet!
Good question, but it seems OU is all in for Gibson and save the scholarship for Baker Mayfield.
If Gibson don’t make a decision soon Chris Wilson’s kid could get the offer.
Caleb Wilson, QB, (6-4 /215 / 4.8), Gardena, (Junipero Serra),CA
Just an FYI type thing., per 247 Sports.
2015 OU football offers=132
2016 OU football offers=29
2017 OU football offers=4
The 2016 football offers are from coast to coast, but zero from Oklahoma. For the star gazers all 2016 are 4* or more with a few 5*. The stars and percentage ratings are numbers that be construed in so many ways. Jordan (aka E.S.S.S.) would be great at making the numbers work. Isn’t he an accountant? (Esco Sports Star Services) !!!
My question – does OU always offer that many athletes 2 years in advance?
Thanks Gary I know you’re doing a bunch of research. I think part of the issue with not offering 2016 oklahoma kids is maybe it will be a down year or maybe they haven’t seen enough production from that class yet. Based on the ratings I would assume they are only offering early to special guys. This last 10 months or so is the first time I’ve been as into recruiting with checking things out each day. But based on what I’ve seen others who followed recruiting closely for several years that this is new territory for ou with early offers.
Hmmmm
Hmmmm https://twitter.com/FlashyHumphrey_/status/477111216226058241
I guess the secrets out. Waco sucks
Sorry, I’ve never posted a tweet link on here before. Don’t know why the Guest thing is on here.
Great news. Baylor commit-speed to burn. Had a listed 4.29 ?
Yeah I think the 4.29 can’t be laser times but still impressive.
The recruiting process is dynamic.
This video was posted this morning.
Thanks for sharing good stuff ou never gets love on espn
No mention of Anderson and the Humphrey tweet with BU showing him as their top commit was kind of funny.
It will be even better if he opens up his recruiting after this week.
Yeah, or flips to OU.
Well that would be ideal. He was considered an ou lean before his commitment
Yeah. And why Baylor is considered a recruiting powerhouse is beyond me.
They were having a good run until they lost browns commitment and if the lost Humphrey it would drop a little more. They do have some good recruits. But I think that video was more about what team that guy thought would have a big year recruiting.
It’s perfect and a GREAT find! Thanks!
You bet! He’d be a huge get. Hopefully the visit to Norman gets him to at least de-commit & start the process of flipping his commitment to the good guys!
Does anyone know if he is going to be in Norman or at the Houston Camp?
Hopefully he ends up at the camp. Maybe that’s what the “ou tomorrow” was about it may start tomorrow?
Yeah, tomorrows camp is in Houston so I’d I’m imagine that is where he will go…that’s where the coaches are
He’s from league City, Tx., near Houston. But he seems to be traveling to TCU (Ft. Worth). I think an on camp visit would be a better sign for OU. I think he has been in Norman before so who knows. He was at a Baylor camp on June 2nd?
Any chance Mouton or Armstrong will be at OU’s Satellite camp this weekend?
Haven’t seen anything on them. Did see where Jarrett Guarantano, 2016 qb from new Jersey and Hunter Thedford from Comanche, Tx. were to be at OU camp today (12th).
https://twitter.com/Kahlilhaughton/status/476858450048454656
I only spent one night in Waco but it was not a good experience. Worst hotel I’ve ever been to
Waco and Baylor are strange and I’m from Texas.
A kid from my high school(salutatorian) went there and went to the wild side. Biggest brain I’ve ever known when it came to science and he has spent half of his adult life in federal prison. Hung out with him for a weekend when I got back from Nam and was glad to get out of there without being arrested.
Guess who is hanging out on Texan Trail? Good lord, it’s still a mess!
I don’t get to that side of the D/FW very often, but it seemed finished up to me the last time I was there.
It’s better
You headed to my town?
Tomorrow! Soooo glad…
You should reply that a 4 year vacation to Norman would be a great idea.
Saw this tweet from a local sports guy in Houston. I couldn’t get it to post so had to just copy and paste it.
WR Lacoltan Bester continues to impress. It started as a tryout and then he got a contract, now he’s looking at home at #Texans OTAs
The OU coaches time travelling/commit has gotta be the highest in the nation.
Jace Sternberger is flying under the radar right now for sure. He is only listed as a no star weak side defensive end and not even listed as a TE on Rivals. As he makes his way around camps and people start looking at his film his stock should rise.
I think the problem is a late bloomer. He’s grown from 5’8 to 6’4 in the past 1.5 – 2 yrs and he never really played TE. Also, right now he’s more of a flex TE type as opposed to a developed blocking TE. He’s working on the blocking aspect but I think there’s definitely room in a big program somewhere for an ultra athletic flex TE like him.
If he can put on 35 -40 lbs like you mentioned above and keep in that 4.6 to 4.65 range HE WILL HAVE A PLACE!
Read on Bleacher Report that DeMarkus Lodge was moving up his announcement date. Haven’t heard much on here about him but does Oklahoma have much of a chance there at all?
Anybody seen a Dominique Hearne, OG, Lancaster TX. committed to OU?
Just now from twitter
Know much about him ?
Not really I know he was at the camp last weekend. He’s not 300+ yet only 280 as a guard so I guess that’s a good thing means he will probably but good weight on. Or that he’s already got good strength to be undersized and offered by a lot of teams.
I would like to hear JY’s opinion on his ability, unless I missed it on here. Been too busy to keep up with all the offers.
Yeah true. I know I’m glad we’re not waiting around on the wariboko situation. Hopefully Barnett commits soon too.
True. I think that Jamal Danley projects as a guard for us, so it explains that offer as well.
Wonder if it was just a coincidence with Max War not coming to camp although it seems like the coaches have moved on…We still lead for Barnett I believe
Probably just coincidence I think max and josh would like to end up at ou so I would only hope they wouldn’t do things out of spite. IMO The only way max is going to have a shot at an early offer is if he gets in the ou camps and the coaches can see how he takes to coaching and what limits he has and see what he improves on this season.
Just curious why he couldn’t make camp…it’s quite possible there was a scheduling conflict but if they really want to end up at OU then you fig that camp would have been on the schedule long ago even before Josh decommitted
Yeah I agree I’m not sure what max was doing but if he was just chillin in okc then I would pass on trying to even look at him if he thinks he’s just going to ride his brothers success to a scholarship then it won’t be at ou. I’m pretty certain josh was at rivals camp in Baltimore.
I’ve been trying to get some film on him. His highlights are private. I’ll keep digging.
If anyone can fill us in it would be you, have another one of your moments. 🙂
I’m here for you guys. I’ll see if I can go “major league” and sacrifice some kFC to dig something up
U Da Man!
You can eat that chicken cold…..or nuke it! 🙂
I seen the picture he put up of him and Stoops. Looks like a lot of his weight is in his length.
Here’s his announcement
Well maybe not. It’s not showing me that the picture posted so not sure if it did.
Big pickup. Digging up film
247 Shows that Dominique Hearne, an OG, has committed to OU. TFB will probably have some good info on him tomorrow. BOOMER!!
JY’s working on it right now. SOONER!
I”m digging guys. I’ve reached out to Dom to get his film. May have to call his coaches tomorrow. Stay tuned.
……if you call, ask how he does in the classroom
Are we assuming every oline recruit is flunking?
reasonable question for any player
Is OU still in on damarkus lodge? I heard he’s announcing next Thursday.