Open Post | Wednesday, April 27th
Posted on: April 27, 2022
Post Spring Game Thoughts
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 23, 2022
Brent Venables and his staff delivered like none before them did. They packed the palace with over seventy-five thousand passionate fans.
Seventy-five THOUSAND fans made their way to Norman to see a scrimmage from a team that is in its infancy of the bigger picture of what they are striving to become.
It didn’t take fancy cars or other gimmicks to make it a memorable event.
This event was forged with passion and hard work from the program and the fan base. Tip of the cap to all involved.
Things sure are different from just 6 months ago and as Baker Mayfield said…this place is headed in the right direction.
This place is special.
In regard to the play on the field…
Over the last few months, I have been optimistic about the future of the OU football program, but hesitant to jump in with both feet on ’22. I absolutely felt like OU was in a better position for the years ahead and the move to the SEC than they would have been under Riley.
I was more wait-and-see about the ’22 season itself, but ever since Brent Venables took over, Super K has been beating the drum that OU was in a much better spot and the results were not ‘years off’ as I believed.
K felt that the additions of elite coaches and an improved S&C program along with a focus on accountability and culture led by a man who knows how to do it and has done it repeatedly (Venables at Clemson) would immediately elevate the play on the field.
After a quick look at this team in a scrimmage, I have to say a lot of my concerns have been alleviated…let’s get to it…
QB – Gabriel is better than Spencer Rattler or Caleb Williams would have been in this system at this point and I would surmise for the beginning of the season as well. What he showed me today helps me understand why Lebby and Venables stopped pursuing Caleb Williams to come out of the portal in short order. He showed no hesitation, he knows the offense inside and out, and has plenty of arm, legs, and intangibles to lead OU on and off the field. Yes, the backup spot is a question, so OU goes as Gabriel goes this season in regard to challenging for trophies. I do think Ralph Rucker is the guy to be QB2 at this point.
RB – Barnes stole the show but Gray and Tawee Walker had their moments. The biggest thing I noticed was the level of violence from the running back position. They were hitting the holes with conviction and decisiveness. Loved loved loved the style of running between the tackles and that will only improve when the full OL is playing together.
WR – My one position of concern offensively coming into the game still is a bit of a concern to me because we really didn’t get much of a chance to see a real accounting of themselves. Mims and Wease are Mims and Wease, we expect them to be good but we didn’t get to see a lot of the big picture in regard to the rooms blocking and ability to get separation. Work to be done and work to be seen. Was good to see Gibson come back with a few catches and the long TD after having a couple targets broken up early so they are an incomplete for me right now. Farooq made a nice contested catch late in the game that was called back so I’m not saying they were bad, just really a non descript day.
TE – Willis and Parker had a catch or two and we saw a lot of Llewellyn blocking but again, pretty much just a workmanlike effort. Stoops caught a lot of the balls that I think will eventually be headed to some of the TEs.
OL – Liked what I saw, liked the push, liked the bodies, liked the play calling…that being said, at no point in the game did the OL I expect to play together get to play together so yeah. I will say Mettauer had a couple nice blocks but all in all, not a lot to take away from the first watch and I look forward to seeing specific plays later this week.
The biggest surprise to me…the Defense was not as far off as I thought they would be at this point and in fact, they looked vastly improved in some instances.
DL – Defensive line was getting pressure…mostly from the ends but I did notice Redmond get robbed of a sack or two because of the rules and I thought Johnson played well from what I could see. So I was impressed overall with the defensive line and in particular the play of the ends including Grimes, Downs, and Stripling in particular. Tough to get a great gauge on them in this setting but I was encouraged by what I saw. Good to see Clayton Smith flash a bit as well in the second half. Laulu looks like a steal as well.
LBs – DaShaun White probably had the hardest hit of his career in Norman in this game…I kid, sort of. I was surprised how much blitzing the backers did in a scrimmage and again, they were kind of handcuffed when it came to making plays on the QB. With that said, we did get a chance to see both Kanak and Lewis playing that Cheetah or Hybrid role which was pretty cool. This is a group I look forward to check-in out more on the rewatch.
DB – The secondary was the story of the day for me…corners impressed me the most by far. If Riley would have simply made that change…one simple change, by removing Manning from the CB room, you may have seen a completely different ending to last year. They have clearly made the biggest jump…OU actually was able to cover slants…I know, breathe, but they did. Kendall Dennis made a tremendous interception and for the most part we did not see guys running 10 yards open through the secondary aside from a couple clear busts. Busts happen and you want them to happen now as you can bet that Valai and Venables will help those guys fix the busts and fix their issues by giving them more tools to put in their tool box ;). Eaton stood out, Dennis with the INT, thought the safeties played well, didn’t see them taking bad angles and such.
What Lincoln Riley and Alex Grinch were doing at the CB spot over the last 3 years was malpractice. Plain and simple. They have some dudes back there and more are coming in.
Overall, doesn’t appear to be any major injuries, the game was physical, 75,000 fans came out, the recruits loved it…good day.
Based on the days events…the demise of the OU football program has been greatly overstated.
Visitor Quick Reactions | Update: 9:30 pm
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 23, 2022
The Sooners hosted a ton of recruits and their families today.
I have been checking in with a bunch of them throughout the day and every one of them has responded with few words but major superlatives.
I will not list them all, because they are redundant but I will throw up a few quick ones for you:
’23 RB Dylan Edwards called the atmosphere ‘Legendary’
’23 OL Logan Howland said the game was ‘Electric’
’23 QB commit Jackson Arnold told me ‘The atmosphere did NOT disappoint. Insane fans’
’23 WR Anthony Evans responded by saying ‘Over 75k for a spring game? *eye emoji*
’24 DL Xadavien Sims said the atmosphere was ‘Very hype’
’23 OL Cayden Green simply said ‘Its a lot of people here (with a laughing emoji) and he also mentioned that while the recruits were pretty closed off at the game, he had been receiving ‘lots of love from the fans around campus and at their hotel’.
Update: 9:30 pm
’23 OL Jaydon Chatman told me ‘Oklahoma this weekend was really good. Every time I come up here its always good and the fans and energy is always crazy! The best thing about today was the game time experience. I mean, it was a spring game and it was over 70,000 people which is crazy. Getting to see coach B back at it was awesome and it was great getting to meet some of the players.’
Chatman told me he has no more planned visits scheduled at this time and is in the process of planning his official. I believe OU will get one.
’23 WR Anthony Evans let me also let me know that OU will ‘definitely’ be getting a summer official from him and that should be locked in this week.
Sunday Update | ’23 Safety Kaleb Spencer
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 24, 2022
The Sooners hosted ’23 safety Kaleb Spencer (6’3 200) out of Colonial Heights, VA this weekend on an unofficial visit for the OU spring game.
We have not talked much about him to this point on the board but he was offered by OU back in early February.
Several members of the community, after having been to the game and having interacted with Spencer (autographs and whatnot), have asked about where things stand between him and OU.
We (James, K, and I) did some digging around, and here is the conclusion we have come to…
The best way to put it is that OU feels like they are in a very good position with him.
Spencer has a really nice offer list and following the OU offer, he picked up offers from Kentucky, LSU, Arkansas and Michigan State among others.
Film: Kid is a thumper at safety
Where are the Commitments?
– Super K – Posted on: April 25, 2022
That’s a question some of you may be asking. We’re getting rave reviews from the recruits. So, why the lack of early commitments?
Most of you are used to Lincoln Riley landing a bunch of early stars only to see many of those players end up elsewhere.
I spoke to a source on the OU side regarding the recruiting strategy of this staff and I think it’s clear that they don’t place a lot of weight on getting a bunch of guys in early.
***Source said “commitment is a two way street, we make it clear to guys that if we are committed to you then you’re committed to us.” In other words, it’s more important to this staff that the guys take a sufficient amount of time and commit when they are truly ready to shut things down.
***It’s also abundantly clear (if you follow recruiting at all) that this staff is making major early moves on the 2024 and 2025 classes. For the recruiting schedule that Venables and co like to keep, they started the 2023 class late. So they’ve hit the ground running with 2024s and are way ahead of schedule in that regard than anything I’ve seen.
***I very much get the sense that there have been some commitments OU could have taken or pushed for but the priority seems to be getting the right guys who are locked in. I remember last year, Jordan Hudson was committed to OU and still publicly talking about visiting the Sooners’ rival, Texas. Venables and co don’t seem to want that and I don’t get the sense they’ll tolerate it.
***I think you’ll start see more and more commitments happen in the summer. That will have given a lot of these recruits time to have taken enough visits to decide they’re willing to actually shut it down.
Sooners Offer ’24 QB DJ Lagway
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 25, 2022
OU staff out on the road early this morning and Jeff Lebby has offered ’24 QB DJ Lagway (6’2 215) out of Willis, TX
Lagway is a highly rated guy who holds around two dozen offers from major programs around the country.
He had made his way to Norman back in March and following the visit, I noted that OU offensive coordinator had yet to make an offer to a ’24 recruit as he was being very deliberate. HERE.
‘He is eagerly building his relationship with Sooners OC Jeff Lebby. He said “My relationship with coach Lebby has grown a lot over the past few weeks. I love talking football with him and he has already helped me to expand my game”.
It also sounds like Lebby is seriously considering Lagway as an option at QB in ’24 as DJ told me “Coach Lebby said he is going to come to a practice this spring to see me throw”.
Lebby is being very deliberate with his ’24 QB target. I would assume you will see the ’24 QB offer(s) start to go out once the OU spring practice schedule is cleared and Lebby and company can get out and see some of these guys in action’
It did not take long for Lebby to pull the trigger and offer his first QB of the cycle following his trip to Willis this morning.
I caught up with DJ following the offer and he said ‘Coach Lebby came to practice to see me throw and he told me to call him after the workout. I called him and that’s when the offer came’.
Lagway also mentioned that he plans on getting to Norman again this summer as well as getting back on campus in the fall.
Anthony Evans | Post Visit Update
– Super K – Posted on: April 26, 2022
Sooners are in pursuit of 2023 WR Anthony Evans (Converse, TX). The Sooners are trying to upgrade the speed on the offensive side of the ball and Evans would certainly help do that. Evans is a 10.2 type 100 guy.
It’s pretty clear Evans is very interested in the Sooners. This past weekend he made his way up to Norman for the Spring Game. This was already his second visit to Norman in the recent past.
***First, in terms of personality/character, Evans seems like a really good fit for what OU is looking for. He’s a military kid and seems to have the qualities you’d assume goes along with that – respectful, hard-working, etc.
***Evans has actually been on the recruiting scene for a while. In fact, up until recently, he was committed to Arkansas. That commitment happened all the way back on Thanksgiving of 2021.
***I very much get the sense that his relationship with Arkansas is strong and they will remain contenders in his recruitment, but it’s also clear that the Sooners getting in the mix were part of what prompted Evans to open things back up.
***Evans talked about the fact that with schools like OU recently getting involved, he felt it was important that he explore all his options. And again, having already visited Norman now twice in only a couple weeks or so, he’s certainly giving OU a fair look.
***Evans repeated over and over that relationships are going to be a big factor in his recruitment. Arkansas has a long standing relationship and that certainly helps but he talked about the immediate sense of respect he has for coach Venables and coach Gundy. He seems to sense a strong level of integrity and authenticity in this new staff.
***Of note, Evans’ mother is originally from Georgia and he did mention that they will definitely get an official visit from him.
***His plan as of right now is to take three official visits in the spring/summer. After that, he will evaluate things. He said he doesn’t have a timeline on when he wants to commit. I sense that he may have felt he rushed his initial commitment so he doesn’t want to set a hard date but one could come at any time.
***The Sooners will get an official which has already been scheduled for June. That visit is scheduled for the first weekend of June. Sounds like OU is going to be doing a big BBQ that weekend.
***The following week, he plans on taking an official visit to Georgia. He plans on setting up a third visit as well but right now UGA and OU are the only two scheduled.
***One thing I think worth noting is that Evans was trained and developed by his father. I mention that because when a father pours so many years into their son and that work pays off, they are generally going to be very selective about who they hand their son off to. Coach Gundy has a long track record and this Sooners staff is building a type of family atmosphere that I think could all work in OU’s favor with Evans and his father.
***Right now, I like the Sooners chances in this one.
Quick Hitter | Praise for Jackson Arnold
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 26, 2022
As you know when he is not working for TFB, our guy Darius is the NCAA Liason/ WR coach for Waxahachie (TX) Football.
In his duties, he works with coaches from around the country who come to recruit his players and often times they wind up talking about regional players.
One such highly regarded QB coach from a program outside of the region which has produced a lot of great offenses and QB draft picks had this to say about OU QB commit Jackson Arnold:
‘Jackson Arnold is the best QB prospect in America for this cycle’.
Darius went on to tell Super K, CJ, and me that ‘He stood on that when I pressed him’.
Thought you all may enjoy that little note.
Development and Unicorns
– Super K – Posted on: April 26, 2022
Just wanted to reiterate a sourced note I recently passed along. I think it’s worth mentioning again.
As you’re watching this recruiting cycle, keep in mind what I noted I was recently told – that while this staff is going to recruit the best, this is a development program. Superficially I was told that with what they’re doing, they don’t need everyone to be a unicorn. They need guys that come in, work and do their job as a foundation.
Then, they want to sprinkle in the unicorns to make the team go from really good to elite.
It’s worth reminding you that the context of this conversation was me asking a source about Justin Broiles. As you’ll recall, Broiles struggled at times in Grinch’s defense. He was put in a number of one on one situations. I also noted that we saw how Tony Jefferson’s career changed dramatically (and not for the better) when Venables left and Mike Stoops came in.
It’s also worth reminding everyone that a guy like Isaiah Simmons who turned out to be a unicorn at Clemson was not at all highly recruited out of high school. In fact, if I recall correctly, the Kansas native camped at Arkansas and didn’t even pick up an offer from them.
In Brent’s scheme, Tony Jefferson was turning into a unicorn. In other words, with development you maximize every level. And without it, unicorns can look average. So this scheme shift, and more importantly, cultural shift is critical to OU’s success.
I’ll be honest, I got really tired of hearing previous staffs complain about the players on campus. Over and over we heard the same lines about needing to get better players. I think you’re about to find out that OU has some pretty darn good players and might even have a unicorn or two.
