Jalil Farooq among honorable mentions in College Football Wire’s Big 12 WR rankings

College Sports Wire ranked the top 12 Big 12 wide receivers and Oklahoma Sooners’ Jalil Farooq was among the honorable mentions for 2023.

With the departure of Marvin Mims, Jalil Farooq has a huge opportunity to be the No. 1 wide receiver for the Oklahoma Sooners this season. Going into his third year in Norman, Farooq was included as an honorable mention in College Sports Wire’s Patrick Conn’s Big 12 wide receiver rankings for 2023.

Farooq had a strong season in his first extended run of playing time in 2022. He caught 37 passes for 466 yards and five touchdowns. Farooq also added 140 yards on 15 carries in Jeff Lebby’s offense.

For a player getting his first extended look at the college football level, it was a strong performance. He showed that he’s a fantastic fit for Lebby’s offense that asks the wide receiver to be multi-dimensional.

The Sooners gave 36 carries to wide receivers last season, and Farooq proved to be the most effective. His physical running style made him a terror on the outside with the ball in his hands. He didn’t make anything easy for opposing cornerbacks last year.

In addition to his running ability, Farooq proved to be effective at all levels of the passing game in 2022. He could take a screen pass and make something happen after the catch, could win in the intermediate part of the field and could also beat teams deep like he did here against Nebraska.

Farooq’s ability to win in a variety of ways gives him a huge opportunity in 2023. There’s a good chance he sees more than 100 touches this year. Marvin Mims saw 87 targets, according to Pro Football Focus last season. If Farooq gets a bump in targets to that number and continues to get the football in the wide receiver running game, Farooq will push for 1,000 total yards and double-digit touchdowns as Oklahoma’s No. 1 wide receiver this season.

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