Oklahoma is hunting for back-to-back-to-back top 10 classes in the On3 Industry Football Team Recruiting Rankings under Brent Venables. After finishing No. 9 in 2024, the Sooners are looking to top that this cycle, led by a bumper crop inside their own state. Six of the top 10 players in the Sooner State are already committed — all of them to OU.
Venables and Co. are looking to lock in at least three more in-state targets, and they’re also going after some of the top recruits around the country. Early in the cycle, the Sooners are trending for a few major targets in the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM), outlined below:
4-star CB Trystan Haynes
School: Midwest City (Okla.) Carl Albert
On3 Industry Ranking: No. 148
On3 RPM: Oklahoma 93.3%, Notre Dame 1.7%
Intel: “The race for Trystan Haynes starts with Oklahoma. He is expected back at the in-state school this weekend for the spring game and he is coveted by the staff in Norman. Haynes had a nice visit to Notre Dame last weekend and he will be back for an official visit in June. Texas A&M is in this race too. Georgia and Miami round out his top five, but Haynes has two teammates committed to the Sooners and brent Venables would love to add a third star out of Carl Alberts High.” — Chad Simmons, On3 Director of Recruiting
4-star ATH CJ Nickson
School: Weatherford (Okla.)
On3 Industry Ranking: No. 127
On3 RPM: Oklahoma 99.1%, Auburn <1%
The Skinny: As the top uncommitted recruit in the Sooner State, there’s few bigger targets right now for OU than CJ Nickson. The jumbo athlete, who stands at 6’5 and 220 pounds, likely projects as an edge rusher at the next level, but put up strong numbers on both sides of the ball. In three varsity seasons, he has totaled 94 catches for 1,535 yards and 18 touchdowns. And on the defensive side, he notched 54 total tackles and four tackles for loss.
Auburn and a handful of other schools are in the mix, but the Sooners look to be the heavy favorite as it stands today.
4-star IOL Antoni Kade Ogumoro
School: Elgin (Okla.)
On3 Industry Ranking: No. 371
On3 RPM: Oklahoma 87.8%, Kansas State 4.8%
Intel: “The big blocker, who hails from Saipan, made his third trip to Norman in a little over a month. And in doing so became the earliest official visit of the Brent Venables era. The family hit Norman on Friday and made sure to maximize their time on campus on Sunday. Though his brother and father had to return home on Sunday morning, Antoni Kade Ogumoro and his mother remained through the the day.
As for Ogumoro himself, the visit seems to be a continuation of the Sooners momentum. The Sooners continue to make a positive impact on his recruitment and it’s enough that the Scoop staff has decided to put in a prediction for Oklahoma with him.” — Josh McCuistion, SoonerScoop.com
3-star IOL Darius Afalava
School: Lehi (Utah) Skyridge
On3 Industry Ranking: No. 455
On3 RPM: Oklahoma 83.3%, UCLA 3.7%, Washington 3.2%
Intel: “Oklahoma through the years has worked hard in Utah and in the class of 2023 nearly had the commitment of Lehi Skyridge EDGE Tausili Akana who eventually chose Texas on National Signing Day. Well the Sooners are now back in at Skyridge with a Red-White game offer going out to offensive lineman Darius Afalava.
And the early word from Afalava was that things went quite well during his time in Norman, even beyond the offer. But the Sooners have stayed hard after Afalava, who has landed offers from LSU, UCLA, Washington, and Tennessee among others, and seem to be continuing to progress with him.” — Josh McCuistion, SoonerScoop.com
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