Weekend Open Post | April 17th – 19th
Posted on: April 17, 2026
Sourced Team Notes | Sunday April 12th
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 12, 2026
Sounds like the Sooners had a substantial live period late in the week as they turn the corner and head down the home stretch of Spring Ball.
***Source said it was not a full scrimmage, but it was about 45 minutes of ‘Good on good.”.
***Was told the offense once again had a solid outing, but this time, the defense would have been considered the “winner” as they made some key plays.
***Was told the interior defensive line had a much better outing against the OL than they did in the scrimmage and Kenny Ozowalu had multiple flashes while playing on the inside which were credited as sacks.
***Source said Trent Wilson continues to shine and he has gotten really good with his hand usage, which can be pointed to as one of the most significant occurrences of the spring, as Wilson has always had the drive and the physique to be a good one, but now he is using his hands much better.
***Was told Dane Bathurst was the flavor of the week at LB as the coaches have ramped up what they are putting on his plate with the depth concerns at LB following Heim and Curry being removed from the equation at different points this spring. Source said Bathurst is making gains and is eager to grow and learn, but the source also noted that they would feel much more comfortable about the LB room should Owen Heinecke successfully regain his eligibility.
***Was told Dakoda Fields had a couple picks this week and he has really been coming on as he settles in with the team. Fields is thought to be battling Trystan Haynes for CB4 and then one of those guys will set their sights on pushing up at Jacobe Johnson. I was told that Fields is starting to take any and all reps available to the DBs, which includes some time at safety if there is a need during certain situations and drills. I liked hearing that.
***Offensively, it sounds like OU was running with the youngsters and less experienced guys at WR again and that resulted in Jacob Jordan and Jahsiear Rogers getting a lot of targets. Manny Choice is basically the old head of the group on the outside and he is having a really nice camp while Harris, Livingstone, and Thomas are not doing much in camp due to injury and precaution.
***Source said OU ran a lot of two TE sets, sometimes even 30 personnel, and their takeaway was that the TE room ‘gets it’ and they are very much a different group with an entirely different mindset. Source said, “The TE room is just changing everything for this offense with the way they are attacking”. Source noted that everyone is benefiting from the way the group has worked this spring. Source said “It’s night and day for the OL and John, it’s like they are re-learning football and how it is supposed to be played”. I asked for clarity about that and source explained that the OL and QB are a lot more focused on their jobs now and less on looking over their shoulders with one eye while tryig to do their job…so it was a good thing.
***Overall, good stuff and most importantly, there were no new injuries during that live period.
Recruiting Notes | OU Staying on In State Linebacker
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 13, 2026
Oklahoma’s pursuit of in-state 2027 linebacker Case Alexander is starting to feel like one that could swing back the Sooners’ way.
The Washington, Oklahoma standout has been a consistent presence in Norman, including a recent spring visit (last week), and there’s an expectation he’ll be back on campus multiple times moving forward (chance he will be back this week), including for an official visit. That continued willingness to get to OU matters.
What’s notable here is that, despite already building the top linebacker group in the 2027 class on the backs of Tavan Epps and Cooper Witten, Oklahoma has made it clear to Alexander that he remains a priority target. He’s not just another name on the board, and the entire staff continues to push.
Penn State still holds momentum and is widely viewed as the team to beat outside of Norman, but OU is far from out of it. The combination of proximity, frequent visits, and the opportunity to play linebacker under Brent Venables continues to carry real weight in this recruitment.
If those visits keep stacking up, don’t be surprised if Oklahoma starts to close the gap and make this one much more competitive down the stretch.
I’m moving a bit off of him being a Penn State lock at this point, and I’d call him a PSU lean, but OU is making progress here for sure.
Bag to the Future Part II
– Super K – Posted on: April 14, 2026
I want to follow up on Charlie’s recent post, creatively titled, Bag to the Future.
***Essentially what Charlie and I have heard is that once players have committed, some schools are paying them an under the table monthly stipend to keep the kids committed.
***Our sourcing on this is really strong. Both Charlie and I heard these independently through unrelated sources. That tells me that not only is it happening but it’s fairly widespread.
***I’ve heard the standard monthly pay is between two and ten thousand per month with most kids getting closer to the lower side of that range.
***I think what staffs are looking for is stability. They’re trying to lock in their classes and obviously that is based heavily on making the financials work. So trying to Tetris this thing is hard enough without having a bunch of kids committing and decommitting…
***My guess is some rule is coming to create a mechanism for that to happen without the need for under the table payments. Charlie and I both have good sourcing around the country but if we are hearing about this this much then it seems this might one of those happenings that everyone knows is happening but aren’t bothering with.
***On a somewhat related note, I feel like this pay to play world we’ve been in is making some staffs very lazy recruiters. I think part of the reason the Sooners are having so much success (money is certainly part of it) is that they never really got complacent in the same way some of the other well-to-do schools did.
***I’ve actually heard about a specific school upping their under-the-table monthly stipends which seems at least partly due to the staff having not really been putting in the recruiting hours for the past few years. And, they just appear not to want to do the work.
Predicting the Spring Game
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 14, 2026
Ok, so the spring game is this weekend, and it will be a watered-down version of what we see in the fall (for obvious reasons) and even more watered down due to OU holding a bunch of guys out/severely limiting their reps. Here are some predictions on what I think you WILL see and what I think you WANT to see.
What I think you WILL see:
***I think you will see the offense come out and run the ball right down the throats of the defense. Easy call here as the defensive scheme will be vanilla and the players will be 2nd/3rd string in many cases, particularly upfront in the middle and the Sooners staff and team has talked about a commitment to the run game all offseason…so, you’re gonna see it most likely.
***I think you will see the secondary make some big plays as the game goes on and you get a tired group of 2nd and 3rd string receivers paired with different QBs trying to move the ball through the air eventually. Would not be shocked at all to see multiple pass break ups/picks.
***Finally, I think you will see a very sound John Mateer out there. He knows he can’t be hit, he knows there will be large portions of the ‘game’ where he has to do nothing but successfully hand the ball off and chances are, when he gets to take his shots, the receivers will have plenty of room around them to make the catches due to the nature of the game. I believe you come out of this game with increased confidence about the QB position as a whole.
What I think you WANT to see:
***I think it would do everyone a lot of good if you see the defensive line get a couple stops early, and then eat later in the game. Even if the OU front can simply slow down some of the traditional running plays, thats a very good sign as you likely will not see 3 of the four starting DL out there (Stone, Jackson, Adebawore) and if they can get a few stops when the OU offense is intent on running right at them…that will say a lot about the depth.
***I think every Sooner fan would want to see Jonathan Hatton take over and have a big day on the ground. For years now the running back room has been a mystery wrapped in an enigma…Hatton is the most talented running back to arrive in Norman out of high school since Joe Mixon (in my opinion)…nothing wrong with getting a good main line drip of him breaking off some chunk plays and making people miss.
***I think the entire fan base would be overjoyed if all of the points scored involved the tight end room in some shape or form. What a time to be alive in Norman as the word is that the tight end room has been totally reformed and reshaped and getting to a spring game and seeing some big man touchdowns, nasty pancake blocks and no TE sweep/passes will go a long way toward confirming our reporting. Give me 30 personnel for multiple drives and I would be a happy man.
Most importantly:
Nobody wants to see any additional injuries. Period.
Tell me what you think you will see and what you want to see!
The Latest | 2027 DT Sione Felila
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 15, 2026
The Sooners are set to host priority interior defensive line target Sione Felila out of Hesperia, California, this weekend for the spring game festivities.
Nothing has changed with my position on him, which I most recently mentioned HERE where I stated “Sione Felila loves him some OU and I have the Sooners out front here.”
The one thing that has changed is that Felila has announced his commitment date, which is coming on April 27th.
I like the Sooners to add the 6’2 285 defender to the class and he would be joining Elija Harmon and Deven Robertson in Todd Bates room.
Defensive Line | Sourced
– Super K – Posted on: April 16, 2026
Last year, the Sooners fielded an exceptional and exceptionally deep defensive line. As we’ve noted previously, the Sooners are working to ensure that they maintain that depth.
The back ups are getting a lot of burn with while JJ and Stone are out. That, as I’ve noted is a good thing and would probably be the case even if the starters were available.
Sources indicate the Sooners are hoping that guys like Trent Wilson and Nigel Smith will come on to make sure there is talented depth.
I know Trent has been the talk of the town a bit this past week.
I am told that he has indeed flashed but source I spoke with said it is still too early to tell. There hasn’t been any consistency from the interior guys just yet. Source did not that some of that may very well be attributable to the improvement of the offensive line.
But the general sense I’m getting right now is the OL and the running backs are putting in on the interior front.
This isn’t meant to be doom and gloom – again it’s a good sign for the other side of the ball and these aren’t OU’s DL starters. Fully expect Stone to be AA level this year and anchor that front.
But right now just remaining cautious but optimistic about the development of depth.
Owen Heinecke = 2026 Oklahoma Sooners Linebacker
– Charlie S – Posted on: April 16, 2026
Big day for Oklahoma and linebacker Owen Heinecke, as a judge granted his request for an injunction, which clears a path for him to play for Oklahoma for the 2026 football season.
