Open Post | Tuesday, July 14th
Posted on: July 14, 2020
Snippet from: Weekend Notebook | McCutchin, DB Recruiting & COVID Notes
– James Hale
Five-star quarterback Caleb Williams (6’1, 210) from Gonzaga High School in Washington DC stole most of the headlines on July 4th, but another player that deserved some headlines, and that’s four-star corner Latrell McCutchin (6’1, 176) of Austin (LBJ), Texas. McCutchin committed to the Sooners several hours before Williams.
“Yeah, man I can’t wait to get on campus, I’m going to be there in January,” said McCutchin. “I’m very excited to be a Sooner and it’s hard for me to tell you how excited that I am. A lot of my friends in Austin are wearing Crimson today and they’re very happy for me that I’ve committed to the Sooners.”
“There were a number of things that played into my decision. The main reason why I wanted to play at OU was because of how genuine the coaches were. That, and along with the relationships that I’ve built with the whole staff there. It was just the whole vibe that I got from Oklahoma that showed me that they really wanted me to be a Sooner.”
OU is trying to recruit corners with more length and size. Last year OU signed D.J. Graham (5’11, 194), Joshua Eaton (6’2, 175), and Kendal Dennis (6’0, 174), and McCutchin is as big if not bigger than at least two of those and he knows how to use his size.
“Throughout my recruiting, the coaches did emphasize that to me,” said McCutchin. “They told me that they wanted to change the culture within the secondary. I was looking for a program that was going to be progressive, and that was looking to get better, and OU was that program.”
“I was able to visit OU once when I got up there on March 1st before the pandemic hit. I saw there how much OU really wanted me in their program. I was committed to Alabama at the time but decided to decommit on my way home, and I started thinking real hard about OU at that time.”
McCutchin’s mom Reyna Lewis was on the trip with her son in March, and she was sold in OU before they left.
“Everybody at OU was so genuine, and they seemed so real to us,” said Mrs. Lewis. “What I wanted for Latrell was that he felt he was home. OU definitely felt like home. A lot of times on that trip we felt so good about it. I know a lot of times, recruiting is all business, and on a trip like this, you don’t want to be looked at like a business plan.”
“Throughout the whole trip, they just kept making it feel like home, and the entire time it just felt genuine. When we went into the office of Coach Riley our conversation just felt real, and what we had been looking for was there.”
Alabama always turns out defensive backs to the NFL, and they recruit the very best DB’s in the country. The fact they wanted McCutchin to commit to the team tells you something about how good he really is. Under Defensive Coordinator, Alex Grinch OU has worked on changing the culture of the OU defense, and last year the secondary played much better than they had the last couple of years. Still, most defensive players would not pick the Sooners over Alabama, but McCutchin did, and it all happened after he visited OU.
“I wouldn’t say the visit in itself was the reason why I decided to go OU” said McCutchin. “However, the visit definitely opened my eyes to what opportunities I had at OU. From there over time the relationships that I built with the coaches from Oklahoma were better than what had developed at Alabama. It was just the way that the whole staff handled me. I felt wanted by Oklahoma, and in time that is what really won me over.”
McCutchin tore his ACL at the beginning of his junior year, but that didn’t stop Oklahoma or Alabama from recruiting him. As you saw in his commitment video McCutchin has been working hard to make sure his knee his right for his senior year and if not then to certainly be ready once he arrives in Norman in January 2021.
“I was just cleared to practice and play a few days ago,” said McCutchin. “My doctors and trainers have been top-notch, and my knee is getting stronger and stronger every day, and I have no doubt that I’m ready to play this season, and I will be even healthier when I get to Norman in January.”
McCutchin and most of the LincUp21 recruiting class has not been on an official visit to OU, and there is a good possibility that they will not be able to take an official visit to OU thanks to COVID-19. For most of these guys they would have loved to have been up for the spring game, and to the BBQ in late July, but because of the virus, all recruiting visits have been put on hold.
“It’s a bummer that I don’t get to take any visits because that was something that I was looking forward to since my freshman year,” said McCutchin. “Truly, I’m glad that recruiting is all over with. I just want to get there and play. Recruiting has been pretty stressful at times.”
“It was a bummer that we could not go on any visits,” said Mrs. Lewis. “This summer was definitely going to be full of official and unofficial visits. That is the biggest bummer about the recruiting process because after he had sat out the whole season teams still wanted him to visit, and we would spend the whole summer checking out schools.”
“Hopefully, we will still get to go on an official visit to OU during the season. I’m looking forward to that if that is a thing that can still happen.”
Sooners Saturday | Justin Harrington Note
– Charlie S
Just got off the phone with James who let me know he has spoken to Sooners 2020 DB Signee Justin Harrington
*** Harrington let James know that all his course work is done and he has sent in his transcripts
*** He is hoping things go smoothly and he can make his way to Norman early next week
*** James mentioned that Harrington seems confident that all loose ends are tied up and he will be able to begin his career with the Sooners in the near future
*** So, there is the latest…still not in town, completed his coursework, sent in the transcripts, now he just needs clearance.
Sooners Could be Getting Some Help With 5-Star DL
– Super K
I recently heard a pretty significant piece of news regarding 5-star DL, JT Tuimoloau (Sammamish, WA).
As we’ve previously noted, Sooners new DE/OLB coach, Jamar Cain has made a significant and immediate impact in the recruitment of JT. So much so that we’ve come to believe that the Sooners have made their way into his top two or three along with Ohio State and Oregon.
But as I said above, I recently heard something that could play a role in this recruitment and a role that would likely be favorable to OU.
I was told that JT’s family is planning on moving to Dallas sometime in the near future. That would give OU a massive proximity advantage.
The Latest | 2021 Safety Tommi Hill
– Charlie S
Over the weekend, Sooners safety target Tommi Hill announced on Twitter that he will be making his commitment this Wednesday.
After speaking with K, here is the latest we have on him:
*** Sources tell us that Hill is indeed a priority target for OU
*** We have been led to believe Hill is focused on three schools in particular: Nebraska, Arizona State, and Oklahoma.
*** We (TFB) do not have a clear picture of where this one is trending at this time.
*** It is also our understanding the OU is not completely clear which direction this one is going at this time. In other words, he has not indicated that OU is in or out at this point.
*** We will update you with any new information we get heading into Wednesday.
*** The Sooners currently have two defensive backs committed this cycle in Latrell McCutchin and Jordan Mukes and they are in a very good position with Damond Harmon. We will have more on the defensive back numbers later though.
Quick Hitter | Good News Incoming
– Charlie S
Last night, prior to the ‘o’ tweet from head coach Lincoln Riley, we posted a note on the Donor Board that we were able to confirm that OU had received some good news from a 2021 target on the defensive side of the ball.
This commit could give you all an answer on Sooners safety target Tommi Hill who is announcing his decision on Wednesday, as he is not the recruit in question.
I touched base with the recruit to see if he had a timeline, and the plan is for him to announce ‘later this week’. So you all won’t have terribly long to wait on this one!
