Open Post | Tuesday, March 7th
Posted on: March 7, 2023
Junior Day Visitor Notes
– Charlie S – Posted on: March 4, 2023
Have touched base with a bunch of recruits who were at the Sooners junior day today.
Getting a lot of the usual feedback about the atmosphere being ‘amazing’ and the staff showing ‘lot’s of love’.
Once again, the SOUL mission is a popular topic for the recruits and their families and I wanted to start by passing along a couple notes on guys who went a little more in depth.
***Chatted with ’24 OL Bennett Warren out of Sugar Land, TX (Fort Bend Christian Academy) who holds more than two dozen offers from major programs. Warren is a guy that Bedenbaugh has high on his list right now and this trip certainly solidified OU’s standing in his recruitment.
Warren said “What stands out is how OU develops people, not just as football players, but as men going into the world”. He added that he feels like he is “Building relationships with all the coaches he met and they each made a real impression on me”.
Why do I feel like OU will be a player for Warren? Bennett told me “I definitely see an official to OU in my future”.
***’24 WR KJ Daniels made his way to Norman from Franklinton, LA and he has quickly become a focal point for OU and their wide receiver class. Sooners WR coach Emmett Jones extended the offer to Daniels on February 16th and as I reported previously, KJ wasted little time in setting up his trip to Norman.
The uber-fast wide out told me he plans on taking an official to OU and the staff made a big impression on him. He mentioned that the town and the environment stood out to him and all the coaches made a big impression on him.
We will have more in the near coming days on additional visitors, but so far it sounds like the staff put on another good show on a visit weekend.
Sunday Brunch | More Visitor Notes From Junior Day | Update: 2:35 pm
– Charlie S – Posted on: March 5, 2023
Wanted to pass along another set of notes from a few of the visitors who were on campus yesterday. I thought it was interesting to get the reviews of some guys who are at different places in their recruitment. Guys who have offers, guys who are close to offers, and guys who are working for offers.
***Start with a guy who has an offer in ’24 LB Michael Boganowski (6’2 195 out of Junction City, KS). Boganowski and his family made it to Norman and Michael noted that the staff was ‘super welcoming’ to not only him but to all his family members. He singled out Brandon Hall as a coach who made an impression on him during the event and talked about how that galvanized the relationship he already had built with Hall prior to getting on campus. Boganowksi was offered back in January and according to his words following the visit, OU has positioned themselves as a ‘high possibility’ to get an official visit from him.
***Now let’s talk about a guy who may be closing in on an offer. ’24 OL Harrison Utley, 6’4 275 out of Norman, OK, has been on campus numerous times. Utley mentioned that it was a ‘full day’ and they got to see a lot of good program stuff. One of the things that stood out to him was the fact that they got to see the end of a workout where the offense competed against the defense in a series of individual and group tug of war competitions. Utley said ‘The intensity on both sides was through the roof! The coaches and players really got into it and made it a lot of fun’. Utley also noted that Brent Venables came over and spent a lot of time with his family and that also stood out to him. As for where things stand with OU and Utley…Harrison noted that Bedenbaugh and OU didn’t talk about a potential offer yesterday, but he did say that they spoke recently and Coach B kept it 100 with him and mentioned that he was in the next group of offers as they are still sorting out the offer numbers at tackle and interior. Utley plays tackle in high school, but he said he projects to the interior for OU. I would not be shocked to see that offer come.
***I also touched base with ’24 LB Aquavious Dunbar 6′.5″ 217 out of Lake Village, AR. Dunbar is a guy that I had no idea would be heading to Norman. He wasn’t on my radar until I saw the following Tweet…
The inclusion of the word ‘motivation’ caught my eye so I asked him about it.
Dunbar said he really enjoyed the visit and was very impressed with the staff and folks around the program. When I asked him what stood out to him, Dunbar said “They care about the man you will grow up to be and not just the football player you will become.” He added “They motivated me to work harder and become a leader for my high school program”. Coming off the visit, it sounds like Dunbar is a guy that the Sooners can be as much of a player in his recruitment as they want to be. He mentioned if things continue to develop between he and OU, he would absolutely take an official to Norman.
***Another guy who holds an offer that I was able to catch up with and get a little more in-depth with was ’24 DL TJ Lindsey (6’4 275 out of Bryant, AR). Lindsey said the trio of Venables, Bates, and Chavis made a ‘huge’ impression on him. He appreciated the fact they got to talk ‘for hours’ and got to know each other better. He also was impressed with what he saw from the workout he was able to witness. Lindsey said “The environment, the great facilities, the good people, that all stood out. On the field, we saw good competition between teammates, but you could definitely see the love among them’. While he didn’t tip his hand completely, he added that OU definitely is in the mix for an official visit down the line.
Thought that was pretty cool to be able to get the perspective from guys who are in different places on the totem pole for OU yet they all came away feeling like the Sooners made a concerted effort with them. Sometimes, in the past, when a guy wasn’t a ‘high priority’ for OU, you would get less than stellar reviews as it felt like they flew under the radar while on campus. That never has been the case under Brent Venables and that does not appear to have changed. If there is one thing that Venables and his staff excel at, it is making everyone feel welcomed and valued.
Update: 12:58 pm
***I was able to have a conversation with ’24 RB Tovani Mizell (6’0 195) out of Hyattsville, MD (DeMatha Catholic) this morning following his unofficial trip to Norman yesterday for the Sooners junior day. Mizell is a guy that falls into a different category than the guys mentioned above as he has been committed to the University of Georgia since last August.
You would figure the Sooners are fighting an uphill battle here as they are recruiting a kid who is committed to the reigning back to back national champions, and while that may be the case, OU certainly left an impression on Mizell.
So much of an impression that he told me he will “Definitely be taking an official in the future!!” Exclamation points and all.
Mizell mentioned that the staff and people around the program are what stood out to him “from the minute I walked thru the door till the end”. He added that Coach Venables made a great impression on him and he was happy that he got to spend a lot of time with him and had “a lot of great talks”.
He went on to tell me that Coach Murray and Coach Lebby also stood out and he noted that the trio of coaches kept instilling in him that he was a top priority for Oklahoma.
Bottom line…sounds like the defending national champions have a legit threat on their hands in this recruitment and the Sooners are squarely in this thing. Depending on how the dominoes fall at running back, I would not count out the Sooners in this one unless a couple guys jump in rather quickly.
DeMarco Murray has a lot of great options right now and before too long, there will be some urgency for some of these guys to jump on board if they want to be Sooners.
Update: 2:35 pm
***Just exchanged some messages with ’24 DL Joseph Jonah-Ajonye (6’4 240) out of Conroe, TX (Oak Ridge) and he let me know he really enjoyed his time.
Shocker here…he tells me he too plans on officially visiting Norman in the future following his visit yesterday.
Jonah-Ajonye pointed to Venables, Bates and DC Ted Roof as coaches who made a big impression on him during his time in Norman. He added “What stood out to us was that all the coaches and players are connected like one big family.”
In regard to what really caught his eye, Jonah-Aonye said “Coach Venables intensity and passion to help his players grow on and off the field”. He gave me every impression that OU has moved to a spot at or near the top of his recruitment at this time.
’24 DB Travaris Banks Post Visit Update
– Charlie S – Posted on: March 6, 2023
Caught up with ’24 DB Travaris Banks (6’1 190) out of Tuscaloosa, Alabama following his visit to Norman for the junior day event last weekend.
Banks, who holds more than a dozen offers including one from Alabama, loved his visit to Oklahoma.
He mentioned that it was a very ‘personal’ visit and he got to spend a lot of time with Jay Valai and was impressed by the meeting he had with Brent Venables.
Banks went on about Sooners Corners Coach Jay Valai and the relationship they are building. He said “Coach Valai definitely stood out. Saturday was my first time meeting him in person and he is the same guy he is on the phone. Energy on 10 the entire visit. Coach Valai is very knowledgeable and he is someone I am sure I can learn a lot from”.
Pulling a kid out of Tuscaloosa, who holds a Bama offer is never a small feat. But, Banks did say he would definitely like to take an official to Oklahoma.
Feels like Valai and Venables did a good job here and I expect a return visit from Banks down the line.
The Latest | ’24 QB Michael Hawkins
– Charlie S – Posted on: March 6, 2023
Just spoke to K who wanted to pass along a note on ’24 QB Michael Hawkins…
***K spoke to a source at TCU who told him that they believe TCU lost their lead with Hawkins following the visit with the Sooners and their offer to his younger brother, ’25 DB Maliek and that they feel like OU is now out front.
***Source told K they believe it will be difficult for them to land Michael without offering Maliek
***K is told no decision has been made at TCU on whether they will offer Maliek
