Open Post | Weekend, February 18th – 20th
Posted on: February 18, 2022
Nick Evers | A Family’s Journey – Part Two | Finding Comfort
– Charlie S – Posted on: February 15, 2022
The past two and half months have been one of the most tumultuous periods in the long and storied history of the Oklahoma Sooners football program. One of the stories that I feel has not garnered enough attention is that of ’22 Oklahoma signee Nick Evers. Evers is an exceptional talent at quarterback and was a long-time commit of the Florida Gators prior to signing with Oklahoma.
I was looking to cover Nick’s journey to Norman from a different perspective as this was an unprecedented situation for all of the parties involved.
I was able to connect with Nick’s mom, Monica Evers, to get a sense of how it came to be that their son found himself at OU and what their journey, as a family, was like.
Monica was incredibly gracious with her time and I am going to present you all with a series of posts documenting their journey to Norman.
In PART ONE, we covered the ‘Speed Dating’ aspect of the compressed recruiting process between the Sooners and the Evers which led to Nick committing and signing with Oklahoma.
Here is part two:
By the time the Evers got on campus in Norman, the recruiting part was just about done and the family was really just looking to make sure everything lined up and there was a comfort factor for all of them.
Everything sounded good, but getting on campus and getting a feel for what OU was all about was important.
I asked Monica to go a bit deeper into her feelings as she would soon be handing Nick over to the men and women at Oklahoma. For those of you who have done that (dropped a child off at college for the first time), it is a very emotional time and I could only imagine what it would be like to drop a child off who will eventually be the face of one of the most storied programs in all of college football and all that comes with the national spotlight.
I was looking for what gave them the comfort that OU was the right place. Monica had already stated that the family loved the vibe in Norman and she reiterated that by saying, ‘The whole village seemed like a presence. I don’t think there was any one super-powerful personality. Coach Venables was talking to current kids on the team, recruits, parents…he was so busy working to maintain current relationships while building new ones, yet, he made every person feel special with how he treated them.’
Having some familiarity with Venables helped as the visit went on, Monica said, ‘Prior to getting in front of all these people, the only way to keep the lines of communication open and building those relationships, with both the current team and the recruits and families, was to use facetime and I can tell you that not all coaches feel that way, and I will leave it at that. That doesn’t happen in some cases so as a result, you have natural attrition and multiple people jumping ship. If you leave people to form their own narrative, most leaders know that is not a good thing…unless you just don’t care to begin with. That was not the case with Coach Venables.’
She added, ‘Coach Venables seemed very much to care. It felt like he was very present and said to himself ‘Okay, I need to talk to the people that are here and let them know that I care where I am and I need to let them know what we will be as a team and as a program’. He took the initiative to allow people to say ‘Coach helped me form this narrative and I am not forming it on my own. I’m not out here on my own trying to pick up tidbits of data and trying to form my own narrative.’ Everybody was overwhelmingly of the ‘one village’ mentality.’
Sometimes in life, it’s the unnoticed things that wind up providing exactly what we all need when we are able to sit back and reflect on things and one of those unnoticed things happened on the trip.
Monica was talking about how much Coach Venables impressed them as he had so many balls in the air that he had to juggle without dropping during those hectic first days since his arrival in Norman.
She said ‘Coach V, from an energy perspective, both in observation and direct interaction with him, just delivered an unbelievable narrative and it was an incredible experience. I mean, amidst all of the dynamics we had on that trip, with signing day approaching, the dead period coming, all the recruits that were on campus, a current team that he had to take care of, the natural politics of becoming the face of a historic program, keeping the branding and adding his own energy to it…there was so much on this man’s plate. Yet, he sees my daughter, who is on her iPad trying to be part of the situation, but in reality, she really doesn’t want to be there as she has been around football and recruiting for what feels like her entire life (she’s 8), he happened to notice her off to the side and apparently, he slipped over there and took a selfie with her which I didn’t even notice until I was going through the pictures.’
She continued, ‘When I saw the picture, I asked her about it and said ‘Hey, you took a picture with coach V?’ She said ‘yeah, he’s such a nice man. He asked me what I like to do and then asked me if he could take a selfy with me’. It was so awesome, and to me, Nick had already made his decisions, but to me, I was like ‘Wow, nice big red bow on the package here’. That was amazing. The fact that he took the time to do that, he didn’t have to do that and he didn’t do it in a showy way, nobody was watching him do that…it was all on his own and I think that speaks to the true authenticity of him as a coach and as a man.’
The fact that Venables took that time, on his own, meant a lot to the family. Monica said, with what I perceived to be a sense of admiration and wonder, ‘He doesn’t have to say ‘Look at me and look what I am doing for these kids’. The man just cares.’
Once the decision was made and the visit was over, real-life starts to come into focus. As I mentioned above, one of the most emotional times in one’s life as a parent is that moment when you drop your first child off at college. I can only imagine what that must be like when you add in the pressures and expectations that are placed on a kid who is walking into a prominent role at a place like OU. I mean, think about it, Nick Evers is an 18-year-old quarterback who is about to head to QBU and he will be talked about and scrutinized, good or bad, for the next 3-5 years.
Monica was more focused on her son than the outside noise. She said ‘When you take everything out of the equation football related, and even if you take OU itself out of the equation, when we were leaving Nick, as a parent everything runs through your mind…yeah it’s unnerving. You find yourself asking ‘Did I tell him everything? Did his dad tell him everything? Does he know everything he needs to know? Is he resourceful enough? Is he going to hold up under pressure? We knew what that was like on a much much smaller scale when we entered college. Did we give him the tools he needs to be able to make the right decisions on his own as his support network grows?’
She added, ‘I still feel like that today, but I am reassured when I see him interacting with other people, or I see a social media post with him in it, or I see an interview with him. It’s different with him there, as I have to look and watch from afar. Nick is not a kid that is going to wear his heart on his sleeve. He is naturally such a chill person so he is not an easy read in respect to knowing when he is up or down. People sometimes think he isn’t an energetic kid because he doesn’t show the highs and lows, but that is really since he is just a chill kid so even as his mom, it’s difficult to pick up on any clues or behaviors on how he is feeling.’
The changeup in plans, from passing on Florida to ending up at Oklahoma, did have its natural perks for the parents.
Monica said, ‘I think our transition as parents has been pretty easy though. Geography, that helps. Knowing that you can just jump in a car and go is comforting.’ Having additional familiar faces was also a bonus as Monica brought up that Florida and OU had a couple of other things in common since the time Nick made the flip. She said, ‘From Lee Davis leaving Florida to head to OU and even the Gibsons making the transition from Florida to OU, there were a lot of outside signs.’
Monica and I shared our stories about going through the process of leaving our children for the first time. I told her that one of the things that gave me comfort as my wife and I walked away from our son as he stood at the front of his dorm hall on a late overcast August evening came by way of an act of nature. As we were walking away from my son, after about 50 yards of walking, I looked back over my shoulder to see if he had turned and walked back into his dorm hall. He hadn’t…but he was staring up into the sky and he was bathed in one of those rays of sunshine that burst through the clouds like a spotlight. Just him, standing there in a ray of sunshine. It was like a scene from a corny movie. That gave me peace. Call it what you will, but that was where some of my comforts came from.
Monica shared where a lot of her comfort came from. She said ‘But what really helps me, as a mom, is knowing what we felt on our visit, what we have felt every time we talked to the coaches and the staff…everything came together and it really just felt like it was a God moment. The coincidences just aren’t coincidences. I think that is what gives my heart peace, and while I can’t speak for his father, I believe that also gives him peace.’
She added, ‘Everything seemed to fall in line so perfectly and without much effort. I can’t explain it, which is what I mean by it being a God moment. Other parents that we are close with have said the same thing, and I don’t want it to sound corny, but the sense of peace and the overwhelming sense of OU being the right place at the right time brings you back to that. The fact that it wasn’t just me feeling that way about what is happening in Norman, and other people openly discussed it, gives me great comfort for where Nick is at and what he will be part of, and that all starts with Coach Venables.’
Oklahoma has always been spoken about, by recruits and parents, as having such a strong ‘family’ feel to it. In the four years I have been here at TFB, that has been the one constant. 90-95% of visitors have spoken about that ‘family’ vibe following their visits. It almost felt like it became a cliche. The reviews coming out of Norman in the short time that Venables has been in place have been anything but a cliche. These people give me goosebumps with the way they speak about the way their visits made them feel. The substance and specifics they offer about their feelings and the way they speak about how Coach Venables and his staff affect them is pretty unbelievable.
Monica summed up her feelings very succinctly when she said ‘Coach Venables is responsible for bringing in the people he has surrounded himself and these young men with, and each of them gives off the same vibe and speaks about the same values. Faith, Family, and Football. You want to know that the people that are going to be around your kid and influencing him on a daily basis have their own priorities straight and are all on the same page. They each say similar things and act in similar ways so I am not going to doubt it. The entire event has been a blessing and the people there make it very comforting to me as a parent. Everything seems perfect from people to geography to brand to the faith that they are bringing into the program.’
She concluded this part of our conversation by saying, ‘Brent Venables means business and he’s not just preaching it, he is walking it. They are one hundred percent about their players and they come across as family and they’re gonna take up for family.’
I love my job.
In part three of this series, Monica offers a deeper glimpse of Nick, the person, and some of the tremendous things he has planned for others through his first NIL deal and such.
Sunday Morning Sourced Note | Overton
– Charlie S – Posted on: February 13, 2022
Last night during the softball game, I spoke to a source about one Lebbeus Overton.
I know there is a lot of speculation about where the elite reclassified ’22 defensive lineman will wind up, and while James reported a few weeks ago that OU would be getting a visit from him, aside from that, we have not heard an awful lot either way.
As you know, Overton is the son of former Sooner OL Milton Overton and the brother of recent OU transfer offer, DT Micaiah Overton who has been at Liberty prior to entering the portal. So OU has a few different things going for them.
Source told me that Sooners defensive line coach Todd Bates is another major factor in this pursuit as you would expect and when you couple that with the lure of playing in Brent Venables defense, the Sooners are likely in a better standing than they would be if there was no coaching change. Bates had a previous relationship with Overton while at Clemson.
Here is what interested me about my conversation the most though.
Source said, “I’m not telling you Overton is heading to OU…but I want you to remember this conversation’.
He went on to add a little context to his opinion and information by saying ‘You know why Lebbeus decided to reclassify? To show that he can. Thats part of the reason I think he ends up at OU. Because he can. He can help make a change, on his own, at OU. The kid believes in himself and believes in his abilities to be the face of a program. He can be that guy at OU’.
He also brought up his connection to Bates again and depth charts, which we all know plays in favor of OU and Oregon when you start discussing what Texas A&M, Georgia, and Ohio State have on campus and coming in, who make up his final 5.
I brought up the NIL factor that other schools seem to be excelling at, and source said he didn’t believe that would be the deciding factor but it certainly could be an enhancement if two schools were close.
I have been pretty skeptical about OU’s chances but based on my conversation with my source last night, I am a little more open to the realistic possibility of OU landing him. While I am not saying OU is leading or going to end up with the brothers Overton, my source sure seems to think that OU has a very good chance.
We are working on nailing down the visit date and gathering some information from the OU side before we come up with our own thoughts on where things stand and what OU’s chances are.
Quick Hitter | ’23 DB Joenel Aguero
– Charlie S – Posted on: February 14, 2022
Touched base with ’23 DB target Joenel Aguero (6’0 195) out of Lynn, MA who let me know he will be visiting OU in April.
Aguero holds more than 2 dozen offers from across the country.
He tells me safety coach Brandon Hall is building a relationship with him and Brent Venables was the one who extended the OU offer shortly after he arrived in Norman.
Venables and the staff at Clemson offered him last June, so there is a previous connection there.
Team Notes | Sourced
– Super K – Posted on: February 15, 2022
***Been trying to dig on how Sooners’ transfer QB, Dillon Gabriel has looked early on. It’s been a bit tough. Outside of workouts, there isn’t a whole lot going on. I’m told there is still no player led 7v7.
***However, I did hear that those who have seen him throw a little bit say his arm talent is comparable to that of both Spencer and Caleb. If that’s the case, then you can certainly understand why Lebby made the move so quickly.
***Additionally, I’m told that Gabriel has a ton of moxie. “Definitely confident but not cocky.”
***Source out in the SE told me that Kiffen actually wanted Gabriel even once Lebby left.
***Overall, liking what I’m hearing so far.
***Not a ton to report on the workout side, overall. Was told that there aren’t any injuries.
***Also, told that the players had their first drills sessions with the coaches, yesterday. Again, nothing big but it’s a brief first glimpse that the coaches get to watch their guys move around.
CHO23N | Offensive Line Big Board
– Charlie S – Posted on: February 16, 2022
Continuing to drop the Big Boards for the ’23 class.
Let’s take a look at the Offensive Line targets.
***2023 Offensive Line Targets***
Joshua Bates – Durango (Durango, CO) – 6-3 280 – Committed to OU
Kadyn Proctor – Southeast Polk (Des Moines, IA) – 6-7 330 – Offered: 3/18/21
Francis Mauigoa – IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL) – 6-6 325 – Offered: 4/10/20
Samson Okunlola – Thayer Academy (Braintree, MA) – 6-6 295 – Offered: 10/22/21
Chase Bisontis – Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, NJ) – 6-5 290 – Offered: 2/12/21
Luke Montgomery – Findlay (Findlay, OH) – 6-5 260 – Offered: 3/2/21
Cayden Green – Lee’s Summit North (Lees Summit, MO) – 6-5 310 – Offered: 3/1/21
Charles Jagusah – Alleman (Rock Island, IL) – 6-6 308 – Offered: 10/31/21
Olaus Alinen – The Loomis Chaffee School (Windsor, CT) – 6-6 315 – Offered: 6/12/21
Miles McVay – East St. Louis (East Saint Louis, IL) – 6-7 365 – Offered: 6/29/21
Payton Kirkland – Dr. Phillips (Orlando, FL) – 6-6 315 – Offered: 8/26/20
Logan Reichert – Raytown (Kansas City, MO) – 6-7 345 – Offered: 1/9/22
Lucas Simmons – Clearwater Academy (Clearwater, FL) – 6-7 300 – Offered: 6/12/21
Wilkin Formby – Northridge (Tuscaloosa, AL) – 6-7 295 – Offered: 2/14/22
Colton Thomasson – Smithson Valley (Spring Branch, TX) – 6-7 315 – Committed to A&M
Aidan Leigh – Pendleton (Pendleton, SC) – 6-4 275 – Offered: 8/22/20 (His last D1 offer)
OG Alex Birchmeier- Broad Run (Ashburn, VA) – 6-6 275 – Committed to Penn State
OG Harris Sewell – Permian (Odessa, TX) – 6-4 290 – Offered: 6/6/21
OG TJ Shanahan – Westlake (Austin, TX) – 6-4 300 – Offered: 7/27/20
OG Markis Deal – Naaman Forest (Garland, TX) – 6-4 290 – Offered: 6/5/21
OG Jaydon Chatman – Harker Heights (Harker Heights, TX) – 6-4 286 – Offered: 10/17/21
OG Knijeah Harris – IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL) – 6-3 305 – Offered: 1/24/21
OG Landen Hatchett – Ferndale (Ferndale, WA) – 6-3 285 – Offered: 7/26/21
Offensive Line Bottom Line:
I am working under the impression that the Sooners will be looking to take at least 4 offensive linemen from the high school ranks this cycle, and perhaps a full sleeve of five.
Currently, Oklahoma has one commit and that is from center, Josh Bates out of Durango, Colorado.
There are a few names that stand out in regard to the Sooners being in decent/good position with like Cayden Green and Knijeah Harris, but overall, it is early in the cycle and those ‘names to know’ really have not established themselves yet.
I expect Bedenbaugh to continue throwing out offers though as it is not a banner year for OL in the region and aside from Markis Deal, who may actually prefer playing defensive tackle, I don’t see OU making much noise in the state of Texas at this time.
I do like the recent offers, Formby and Reichert, and I think you are likely to see a bunch more go out this spring as the Sooners get a chance to evaluate some additional prospects.
Quick Hitter | ’23 Cole Adams Note
– Charlie S – Posted on: February 16, 2022
Didn’t know if I should post this as a quick hitter or a ‘random’ because it is actually pretty random.
But I know many of you are fans of ’23 WR Cole Adams (5’10 180) out of Owasso, OK.
As you know, in a 3 day span, Adams picked up offers from Alabama, LSU, and Texas A&M.
As I have mentioned in previous threads, I believe the OU offer is coming in the near future and I believe OU wants to make that offer in person. We do expect Cole to make it to campus soon, so we are expecting that to go down.
The random part comes from our guy CJ who has been out on the trail seeing a ton of schools down in Texas.
CJ passed along a note that not only is Adams impressing college coaches across the country, the Texas high school coaches have mentioned him.
He noted that one high school coach said ‘That kid up in Oklahoma, from Owasso, he’s the real deal’.
Just thought you all would enjoy this note as that does not happen very often (high school coaches talking about a kid from another state/region). Pretty cool for a kid that is underrated right now.
That will change, and as I said above, his lack of an OU offer, in my opinion, will change in the near future.
DeMarco Murray, OU Remaining Consistent for 2023 RB Tre Wisner
– CJ Vogel – Posted on: February 17, 2022
While Oklahoma has added some new faces to its coaching staff this offseason, one man has remained in place – RB coach DeMarco Murray.
And for 2023 four star Waco Connally RB Tre Wisner, that’s a very important face remaining in Norman for his recruitment.
I stopped by Connally’s final basketball district game of the season to catch up with the Sooners target ahead of what will end up being a busy spring period for both Wisner and the Sooners.
“Yeah, it sort of was (a big deal),” Wisner said about Murray being retained by BV on the new staff. “He’s my guy. Wherever he goes, I am rocking with him no matter what, that’s just the loyalty we’ve got.”
Wisner said he gets on the phone with Brent Venables and Jeff Lebby every Sunday night to recap the week and stay fresh with their relationships with one another. “It’s real smooth. Coach Lebby is always telling me, ‘You’ll fit in real well.’”
A school to be weary of is the Aggies out of College Station. Right now, they are making a strong surge in his recruitment and are doing a fine job of pushing life after football, which for Wisner includes starting his own clothing and apparel brand.
When March swings around and the visit window opens up again, Wisner said his first trip will be out west to check out USC and that old coach we don’t talk about anymore on this board.
A top schools cut is coming soon for Wisner and OU will certainly make the list. He also added he plans on taking all five official visits and one spot is already being held for Norman, Oklahoma.
For the time being, my best guess is this recruitment comes down to Texas A&M and Oklahoma. Though, I will be keeping a close eye on what Oklahoma does elsewhere with running back targets on the big board to decide where a final prediction will end up for the talented CenTex prospect.
5 Star LB Anthony Hill | Quick Update
– Super K – Posted on: February 17, 2022
CJ will be by to see 5 star 2023 LB, Anthony Hill (Denton Ryan) in the near future. He will have some notes to share on his conversation with Hill but I did want to pass along my own note.
There is some general thought down here in Texas that Hill will stay in Texas. That may be the case. However, a few notes…
***I think it was telling that Hill made it up to Oklahoma recently. Clearly wanted to see what the new OU is all about and made it a priority to get up to Norman ASAP.
***Additionally, Hill’s father tells me that they plan on heading back up to Norman during the spring. So, it seems Coach Venables and coach Roof made an impression.
***Hill’s father said as much, “Ant (Anthony) hit it off with Coach Venables and Roof. They’re defensive guys and their resume speaks for itself”.
***Lastly…Theodore Roof
Oklahoma High on the Mind of Five-Star DL DJ Hicks Jr.
– CJ Vogel – Posted on: February 17, 2022
I stopped by Kyler Murray’s old stomping grounds Wednesday afternoon to check in on a number of talent Allen Eagle prospects, but none so more talked about than five star David ‘DJ’ Hicks Jr.
Admittedly, I was taken aback at Hicks’ size at first. Yes, I had known he was big and even saw him in action this fall, but goodness, the afternoon in the weight room gave me a true indication of just how large he is.
But back to recruiting.
It is my understanding that the race for Hicks will come down to three teams – Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Texas.
“I love the fan base and especially the coaches,” Hicks said about the Sooners. “All of the coaches have been recruiting me and stuff like that.”
In a funny way, it is almost like the new defensive staff for OU was designed around recruiting Hicks. New Sooners defensive line coach Todd Bates had been in communication with Hicks everyday while at Clemson and Jay Valai was Hicks’ main communication point while at Alabama.
And when you add in Coach Brent Venables, there is a lot of familiarity with the Sooners and the five star Allen Eagle.
“I feel like me and Coach Venables have a really great relationship,” Hicks said. “He’s a really great man, as well as a coach. Just one of my favorite coaches to talk to.”
Texas A&M is undoubtedly the biggest competitor in this recruitment and despite signing one of the best defensive line hauls ever in the 2022 class, Hicks said he is relatively unphased by the depth in College Station.
Texas is lingering around in this recruitment, but my gut tells me they are running third to OU and Texas A&M.
The five star defensive lineman took visits to Norman and College Station last month and has his sight set on seeing Miami in a month. One other school he really hopes to see is Oregon, despite the Ducks not originally being a big player in his recruitment so far.
Hicks said he hopes to take all five officials and is in the process of narrowing down which candidates will be receiving those five officials. I think it is safe to assume the Sooners will be one of the recipients.
