Open Post | Weekend, July 27th – 29th By: The Brainiacs Posted on: July 27, 2018

Sooners Welcome Chip Viney Back To The Staff
– Charlie S

The Sooners officially welcomed Chip (Courtney) Viney back to the staff.

Viney returns to Norman after spending the past two years as Jay Norvell’s defensive back coach out in Nevada to fill the “Defensive Recruiting Analyst” vacated by Eric Striker who left to pursue his football dreams in the CFL.

This is a very big hire for Lincoln Riley as Viney is an excellent recruiter who is adept at building relationships with recruits and their families.

While he will not be able to go on the road to recruit, he will fill a role for the Sooners much in the same way as Bryan Carrington in Austin as being the face of Sooners recruiting while on campus.

Viney will hit the ground running as he will be on campus for the ChampUBBQ…an event which he helped create during his first stop in Norman.

We will have much more on Viney very soon…

 

 

Ronnie Perkins | Great Expectations
– Michael Kinney

– The same question was asked to almost every Sooner at the annual media day Sunday morning. Heading into the start of camp, which freshman has stood out.

The name that came up more often than not was Ronnie Perkins. The 6-foot-3, 256-pound defensive end has been the physical beast many projected of him coming out of St. Louis.

“I am really pleased with him as a true freshman, who should have been a high schooler in the spring, to see some of the things he can do and how much he has grown,” Mike Stoops said. “I feel like throughout this summer we are going to see a guy who can really help our defensive line.”

Perkins has the size and speed to create havoc against opposing offenses. Even as a freshman who has yet to play a single down of college football, his teammates have great expectations of him.

“Ronnie, he came in a strong, explosive guy,” redshirt defensive lineman Kenneth Mann said. “Not too many freshmen come in where he is. That’s why he is going to be a great player. Once he cleans some things up, I see good things.”

Perkins graduated early from Lutheran North High and was able to go through spring ball with the team. According to Stoops, that is vital for a freshman who wants to make an impact their first year.

“Ronnie Perkins has really made a big step,” redshirt sophomore quarterback Austin Kendall said. “Definitely, him being on campus early, he has made a big leap just from the spring game and summer workouts. You see him coming, you are like ‘Holy crap. You better watch out. He has made a big jump since he has been here.”

https://twitter.com/EyeAmTruth/status/1021092134772969473

My Take: Charlie S

Ronnie Perkins could turn out to be “That Dude”.

The guy you all look back on as the face of a changing defensive line, which over the next two or three years could blossom into quite a formidable unit.

Over the past two recruiting cycles, with #SoonserSquad17 and #ST2k18, the Sooners have landed the deepest and most talented defensive line classes in the conference. I would go as far to say that the ’18 class is actually one of the top five DL units in the country.

The 17 class wasn’t so much about “Star Power”, however, when looking at the rest of the conference classes that cycle, the haul of Isaiah Thomas, Dylan Faamatau, Tyrese Lott, Zach McKinney and Troy James can only be viewed as the most formidable class.

The ’18 class of Jordan Kelley, Ron Tatum, Michael Thompson, Jalen Redmond, and Perkins is one of those classes that is filled with difference makers and elite talent pretty much across the board and Perkins may very well end up being the face of that class.

Perkins was the “must get” guy from the start. His recruitment took a lot of twists and turns along the way, but Coach Thibodeaux and Coach Riley kept their noses down and really ground out a big win on an elite player.

Perkins talent is only one part of his value to the Sooners. Ronnie is an extremely likable guy, who is very vocal both on and off the field. He has a magnetism, not unlike Bookie, where players and recruits are drawn too him. He has been receiving rave reviews for his play from both staff and teammates.

Ronnie Perkins perhaps already is “THAT Dude”.

 

 

Quick-Hitters | Jonah Tauanu’u, Dwight McGlothern, Weekend Commits
– Super K

***It’s looking less likely that Dwight McGlothern will make it in this weekend. It’s a transportation issue right now that may or may not be remedied.

***The same may be true of the secret visitor.

***Sooners 2019 OT target, Jonah Tauanu’u (Harbor City, CA) visited Oklahoma earlier this summer. The remaining summer plans were to visit Florida (which they did) followed by LSU, Auburn and Ole Miss which were scheduled for this upcoming weekend and into next week.

Jonah’s mother said they will no longer be taking those visits.

Following their OU visit, Jonah’s mother said that they hadn’t locked in their OU return visit but it was definitely top five. In other words, an official is expected. Oregon is also an official they will be taking.

So, it’s starting to sound like this may be a three-horse race between OU, Oregon and in-state USC.

***I spoke with Stacey Wilkins recently and he said this will be the first time his parents visit Norman. Still feeling good here though it will be clearer after this weekend. I will say, it’s pretty cool to see how close he already is with guys in this class. Stacey talks about EJ Ndoma-Ogar like they’re best buddies and have known each other for a long time.

 

 

Sourced Note | Lincoln Riley Hiring Philosophy
– Super K

Earlier this year, Lincoln Riley brought in former Connecticut head coach, Bob Diaco as a defensive analyst for the Sooners. Diaco has held defensive coordinator positions at Notre Dame and Nebraska.

He played linebacker at Iowa and has coached linebackers at a number of schools.

Where am I going with this?

I spoke to a source recently who said that Lincoln Riley’s hiring philosophy will mirror Gary Patterson’s at TCU and Nick Saban’s at Alabama.

What Patterson and Saban do, often, is to hire guys on their support staff that can learn their system/methods and when coaching positions come open, they will many times hire within.

That isn’t always the case. Saban recently brought in Miami’s Craig Kuligowski to coach his defensive line.

But a few examples of how guys came up through the Saban/Patterson system and coached either within their program or a disciples’ program include:

*Glenn Schumann who came up through the Alabama player personnel ranks and is now the ILB coach for Kirby Smart

*Mike Locksley, former Maryland OC who also acted as Interim head coach for Maryland, took a support position at Alabama and is now the OC.

*Kansas coach, Kenny Perry was a high school coach who took a support staff position at TCU and was eventually bumped up to TCU’s cornerback’s coach.

*Paul Gonzales was a GA at TCU who was bumped up to cornerbacks coach at TCU

And the list goes on…

Having said that, I repeat, this doesn’t mean Riley will hire exclusively from within. So, in the event that the OU’s DC position becomes available at the end of the year, it’s certainly not safe to assume that Diaco or anyone else who is hired to the support staff or is on the current staff would necessarily be OU’s next DC. Though I do think it’s very likely that someone like Diaco or other guys on the support staff coming up through Riley’s system will get real shots as position coaches.

Riley is building a system from top to bottom which includes his philosophy on coaching, recruiting, roster management, etc. Like Patterson and Saban, and unlike most other head coaches, he’s going to continue to be hyper-involved in all aspects of the program.

Moving forward, I think you’ll see more and more support staff hires who, if they’re the right fit, can naturally transition into an on-the-field position.

 

 

Inside His Number | Jaden Davis | 4
– Charlie S

Every athlete, in every sport, generally chooses his or her number for specific reasons.

Jaden Davis is no different. The elite defensive back and Oklahoma verbal commit out of St. Thomas Aquinas HS in Fort Lauderdale sent out this tweet a yesterday…

As a former athlete, it always intrigues me as to the story behind the numbers and as a reader and writer, I figured some of you all may enjoy hearing the story behind his choice so I reached out to him.

Jaden told me “The four stands for the most important people in my life. My mom, my dad, and my two brothers (ages 8 & 15).”

He went on to add “They are the reason I wear the number four chain and it always reminds me of why I am doing this.”

 

 

Defensive Expectations | Riley Says Top 5 | Stoops Says Top 15 – 20
– Michael Kinney

One of the hottest topics for Sooner fans since the Rose Bowl was how to set their defensive expectations for the coming season.

Mike Stoops said to combat the spread offenses in the Big 12, the Sooners will play much more nickel coverage this season compared to last year. He said that will be the biggest change the team will most likely make when it comes to schemes.

Yet, it’s the increased talent that is now showing up on the defensive unit that has the Oklahoma coaches believing that they can play at an elite level.

“It’s possible to have a defense as good as anywhere,” Riley said. “There is no magic-league for defenses. Like I’ve said many times, I think it is more challenging numbers wise to have one of the best defenses in our league when you compare to the others because of the offenses. But absolutely, you can have a defense that you know is a top five defense and plays the way we did in Columbus last year. That’s kind of what we envision, a top offense that can go in there and have the capability to shut somebody down. We have to do it more consistently.”

Stoops agrees with Riley, but has a different outlook on just how highly ranked any defense in the Big 12 can rise to.

“I think there are a lot of variables that go into playing good defense,” Stoops said. “I would think more of a top 20, top 15 is more realistic in our league just because of the efficiency that these guys work at. Obviously, the last few years have been off the charts with the type of personnel that we’ve had to deal with. Certainly, you have to balance the caliber of defense you have going against it. Those are the areas I think we need to make up the most ground. The personnel you need across the board to match up in this league and we’ve made some adjustments in that area.”

https://twitter.com/EyeAmTruth/status/1021071256160890880

To read Ryan Lewis’ “My Take” on this article, please click the Donor Board Link!

Also, for the latest update on Dax Hill, please click the Donor Link!

 

 

Sourced Team Updates | Summer Quick-Hitters
– Super K

Some additional sourced team notes to wet your whistle before the BBQ and fall camp…

***Source on Ronnie Perkins, “Perkins will be a man. He’ll take more and more reps as the season goes on”. In other words, don’t be surprised if Perkins takes a few games to get things going. There is a learning curve. But there is little doubt, he will get going.

***The offensive line is obviously set this year. So, if you see Brey or Darrell it’ll mean they are a) getting them some reps because OU is beating the brakes off someone or b) a disastrous string of injuries has struck. Both are good athletes but have a lot of learning to do.

***Asked about Ryan Jones who we first heard good things about back in the winter. As you all know, Jones has been moved to Caleb Kelly’s old spot at the SAM. The hope was to get a more physical presence on the edge. I’m told that not only is Jones physical on the edge but also he’s extremely fluid (no surprise given he played safety in high school). A source added, “he’s got that ‘it’ ability as an edge rusher.

***Was told the staff really likes freshman DB Delarrin Turner-Yell. One source said DTY is exceptional fast, “he looks like a 10.5 guy”.

For additional sourced team notes, click the Donor link!

 

 

Update | 2019 Defensive Back Target Isaiah Rutherford 
– Charlie S

– With the news of Dax Hill and the Sooners seemingly going in different directions, I reached out to 2019 defensive back Isaiah Rutherford out of Carmichael (CA) Jesuit High School to check in on where things stand between him and the Sooners.

If you recall, Isaiah took an unofficial visit to Norman for the spring game and he enjoyed that experience so much, that initially, he was making plans to be back at OU for the ChampU BBQ. That trip didn’t materialize, in part for reasons we will discuss at a later time, but it was not for his lack of interest or the Sooners lack of interest.

We have thoroughly documented the relationship between Rutherford and the Sooners and when I spoke to him, I asked him if he has seen any change in the communication of late and he replied: “Honestly, they have been recruiting me extremely hard for a while now”.

Previously, he mentioned to me that he would be taking an official visit to Norman for the UCLA game. That visit is no longer taking place as he has a game that weekend and the travel just wouldn’t work out. He told me he is looking at several other dates for the official.

Recently, you may have seen this tweet from him…

…shortly after I posted this thread last night on the Donor board, Isaiah did drop an announcement. He revealed his top four: OU, Oregon, Cal, and LSU.

Rutherford is a 6’2″ corner in high school. Those measurements play right into Coach Cooks preferences as he cherishes having athletes in the secondary who are multiple and can excel at several positions.

I will keep in regular contact with Isaiah and bring you any updates.