A 2022 quarterback target off the board, where do Sooners look next?

On Thursday, Oklahoma Sooners’ target Conner Weigman committed to Texas A&M. With only one other offer on the board, what is the 2022 plan?

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The Oklahoma Sooners are one of the more quarterback rich teams in all of college football. They may not have as many arms as say the Ohio State Buckeyes beyond Justin Fields, but they do have options. Oklahoma signed Caleb Williams in the 2021 recruiting class. The No. 1 quarterback and No. 6 overall prospect on the 247Sports composite board is the future quarterback for Oklahoma.

Williams will take over for the No. 1 quarterback of the 2019 class, Spencer Rattler when he decides to move on to the NFL. Conventional thinking would lead you to believe that 2021 might be Rattler’s last in Norman. He will have finished his three years after graduating high school, which is the requirement to enter the NFL draft. Rattler was a redshirt freshman and appeared in just three games in 2019. This past season was the first year for Rattler as the starter.

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Given that Lincoln Riley has two No. 1 quarterbacks on his roster, the position isn’t exactly a huge priority. They have also added a few arms as preferred walk-ons, and a transfer in Penn State’s Micah Bowen. Given the passers on the roster, they still should be proactive in their search for quarterback recruits rather than reactive.

For the 2022 class, the Sooners have offered just three quarterbacks. The top target being Southlake Carroll’s Quinn Ewers. Ewers initially pledged to the Texas Longhorns before flipping to the Ohio State Buckeyes. The other Texas arm that was being targeted was Conner Weigman. You can likely scratch that name off the list as he committed to Texas A&M on Thursday.

The third prospect that holds an offer is Ty Simpson of Westview in Martin, Tennessee. He is set to announce his commitment on Feb. 19, but Oklahoma doesn’t seem to be among the top choices for his recruitment. Should the Sooners be worried about a quarterback recruit in the 2022 recruiting cycle? The quick answer is no.

The plan in 2021 is to have Rattler as the starter. Then starting in 2022 you have Williams as the starting quarterback for two seasons before he jumps to the NFL. At least that could be the plan as of this moment. Essentially looking at 2023 recruiting class to really make a push for the next quarterback at the University of Oklahoma. The Sooners have an offer to Malachi Nelson of Los Alamitos.

One name to watch for that 2023 class might be Arch Manning. Yes, that would be the nephew of Super Bowl winning quarterbacks, Peyton and Eli. The list of suitors is likely to be a long one. Provided that you are a young quarterback that wants to win a Heisman and get to the NFL, Lincoln Riley might be your best mentor.