Open Post | Weekend, March 22nd – 24th
Posted on: March 22, 2019
Trending | 2020 DB Ryan Watts
– Super K
As you know 2020 CB, Ryan Watts (Little Elm, TX) made his way down to Norman for a return visit last week.
Watts took the unofficial visit with his mother and his father.
I spoke with Watts over the phone and I can tell you the visit went very well.
Among the schools in the mix for Watts are Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M, Arkansas and Notre Dame.
Going into the visit I had Watts trending towards Texas.
He still has some official visits to take which I’ll detail in a forthcoming write up but for right now I want to pass along that I believe this one is now trending…
Oklahoma.
Mookie Cooper Set to Visit
– Super K
As you all know, elite 2020 WR, Mookie Cooper (Trinity Catholic), recently decommitted from Texas.
I’ve spoken to folks around Cooper including one of his coaches and I was told that Cooper just felt like he made the commitment too early in the process and was still wanting to take visits.
Now, the interesting thing is that we were told Texas really didn’t have any problem with him taking visits to most of the schools he wanted to visit like Tennessee, Ohio State, Illinois and LSU.
But, not surprisingly, given the rival status, they didn’t seem to keen on Mookie visiting Oklahoma.
And, while this is speculation, I get the sense that it’s the Oklahoma visit and the heavy recruitment by Oklahoma that may have prompted Mookie to open things up in order to feel comfortable taking a closer look at more schools, including OU.
That theory seems to be corroborated by the fact that soon after the decommitment, Mookie set up an unofficial visit to…you guessed it…Oklahoma.
Cooper tells me that he plans to be down in Norman in a couple weeks on April 6th. Gundy has been pushing hard in this one and with Cooper coming on campus, OU has some absolutely elite slot guys they are in on including Gary Bryant and Marvin Mims.
I’ve seen all three of these guys in person and they are extremely talented. Mookie is a guy that makes things very easy. His awareness of his spacing and the football and the ease with which he manipulates his movement through the route, made him nearly ungradable at the UA Future 50.
I still believe Texas leads in this one, especially because of Cooper’s connection with 2019 Texas WR signee, Marcus Washington. Cooper and Washington are best friends.
But we’ll know a lot more after Cooper visits Norman. I will not be surprised at all to see Cooper take a number of visits before ultimately narrowing things down to the Red River Rivals.
Fast Five | Sourced Spring Team & Practice Notebook
– Super K
***Again, last week the Sooners had their first two fully padded sessions. I had mentioned prior to the pads coming on that the turnover rate (something Grinch makes absolutely central to his defensive philosophy) had gone up. But how did they fare with the pads on?
***Was told there are a lot of interceptions! And they are coming from a lot of different people. Heard both Pat Fields and Tre Brown had two each. Also heard guys like Motley, Broiles, Sylvie and others had intereceptions. So, everyone is getting in on the action.
***With the new quarterbacks though, I, again, asked for a the reason behind the INTs. Is it something the defense is doing right or is it something the offense is doing wrong?
***One source attributed it to the fact that the defense as a whole is running to the ball so much harder than the past and because many of the INTs come off of tipped passes, defenders running to the ball means a defender is in the area to intercept the tip.
***Another reason I heard mentioned was just the sheer emphasis on it and the fact that, as one source said, “the DBs have someone they want to play for and you can tell”. Grinch’s culture is showing up.
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2020 4-Star OL Geirean Hatchett | Visit Update
– Super K
A name you probably haven’t heard much lately but isn’t new to the OU fan base is that of 4-star offensive lineman, Geirean Hatchett (Ferndale, WA).
Hatchett has already visited Oklahoma on numerous occasions. Part of the reason for that is the fact that Hatchett’s grandfather is originally from Oklahoma and Geirean still has family in the Sooner state.
In terms of a commitment date, Hatchett is nearing one as he says, “I’m looking to be committed somewhere before next season starts”. As such, he says he will take his official visits in the spring and summer period before making his decision.
As far as an official visit to Oklahoma, Hatchett said, “I talked to coach Riley and Bedenbaugh about taking an OV for the Spring Game but I’m unable to go anywhere that weekend because of my baseball schedule. So nothing is really set. I’m trying to figure out my spring schedule”.
Hatchett further noted though that while he’s waiting to see what dates work best, a May official visit to OU is “most likely”.
The schools I feel are the biggest threat are Ohio State, Michigan, and Stanford along with his in-state program, Washington.
Quick Hitter | 2020 OL Turner Corcoran To Visit
– Charlie S
Touched base with 2020 offensive tackle Turner Corcoran:
*** As I mentioned following his visit for the junior day back in February, Corcoran will not be in Norman for the Spring Game Weekend. He is set to make a trip to Ohio State for their game that weekend.
*** At that time I mentioned he planned on heading back to Norman to take in a practice and that date has now been set. Corcoran will be in Norman on April 5th.
*** The family has made numerous trips to Norman since the BBQ last summer and Turner is excited to be bringing his sister along on this trip.
If you would like to read Charlie’s ‘My Take’ addition to this article, please check the Donor Board!
Notebook | Noah Sewell, Joshua Eaton, Kelee Ringo & More
– Super K
***Noah Sewell is one of the best 2020 inside linebackers in the country.
6’2 and nearly 260 lbs but can absolutely move. I saw him at the LA Opening and you’d think a setting like that wouldn’t suit a big downhill guy like that. He was impressive.
I checked with Noah’s father about a possible visit date. He said that they are saving their official visits for the fall in order to get, “the whole game day experience”.
As for an unofficial visit, Sewell’s father said, “Not this spring but maybe in the summer. Well, at least not as of now (a visit in the spring). We’re still trying to figure out how to make this all work. All I can say with certainty is at some point between now and mid-season we will get to Oklahoma whether officially or unofficially”.
So, it may not be imminent but it seems Oklahoma is on their list of visits to make.
***Also, checked with 2020 CB, Joshua Eaton and he tells me that he is working on setting up a visit date to Oklahoma in April.
***To that point, I think April could end up being a pretty big month for the Sooners in terms of recruiting.
***Also, still no date set for 2020 RB Bijan Robinson to visit. His mother tells me that they absolutely plan on officially visiting and it should be this spring but no date set yet.
***Immediately after his unofficial visit for the Sooners most recent junior day, we mentioned that 2020 DB Jacobe Covington would be returning to Oklahoma for the Spring Game. He has announced it…
***Lastly, as you know, 2020 5-star CB Kelee Ringo didn’t end up making it to Oklahoma for spring break.
Instead, he spent the week in Austin visiting UT.
Needless to say, the Horns are out front in this one.
But, I am told that the Sooners are expecting Ringo in for the Spring Game. Assuming he does indeed make it in, this will be his first visit to Oklahoma.
It’s worth noting that Ringo’s mother works for an airline. So, travel isn’t an issue for him.
2020 ‘Rush’ Target Antwaun Powell Visiting
– Charlie S
*** Back in early February, the Sooners offered 2020 DE/OLB Antwaun Powell out of Portsmouth, VA.
Powell is a 6’3″ 225 lb. edge defender who currently holds offers from Michigan, TCU, Virginia Tech, and Nebraska. I touched base with him and he let me know that he will be taking an official visit to OU for the Spring Game weekend (April 12th-14th).
Antwaun told me that he is being recruited by Sooners defensive coordinator Alex Grinch as well as Special Teams and Tight Ends Coach Shane Beamer. I assumed Beamer would be his point of contact based on his location and the fact that Grinch is working on him says a little bit about how OU views him, in my opinion.
I asked Powell what he was looking for in regards to the visit being from the east coast and he said: “They are a great program, I wanna see how it is, how life goes over there.”
We spoke a bit more about where he fits in OU’s scheme and he was already familiar with ‘Grinch-speak’ as he said he is being recruited at the Rush Backer spot.
I included his film below and, man, after watching the first handful of plays…the dude is a flat out rocket. Definitely fits the ‘Speed-D” mantra.
I will have more on him prior to the visit and I hope to make it down to his school later in the spring.
