Brent Venables’ reputation is still revered amongst recruits despite the 6-7 season Oklahoma experienced in 2022.
There’s no better proof than by looking at the two recruiting classes Oklahoma has brought in with Venables. In 2022, he finished with the No. 8 recruiting class in the cycle after just two months on the job. In 2023, the Sooners landed the No. 4 class in his first year on the recruiting trail for the Sooners.
Enter Sammy Brown, the nation’s No. 1 linebacker in the 2024 class and No. 2 player in the state of Georgia.
Brown spoke with 247Sports’ Steve Wiltfong regarding his recruitment. He doesn’t know where else he’ll visit this spring and summer, but there’s one place he’s sure of; The University of Oklahoma.
“We’re definitely going to take that trip,” Brown’s father, Mike, tells 247Sports.
With Oklahoma slated to get an unofficial visit in April during his spring break, it solidifies the Sooners still have a puncher’s chance for the top 10 ten prospect.
Venables and Brown have had a long-standing relationship. Brown went to football camp with Clemson when he was coming up as a younger player. The Tigers’ defensive staff, then led by Brent Venables, extended an offer. Brown received an offer from Oklahoma, and Venables and Ted Roof have been on top of this recruitment.
Sammy’s father Mike believes that the younger Brown knows who his top five are and could see that list coming out in the near future. Along with Oklahoma’s recruiting efforts, the other contenders look to be Clemson, Georgia, and Ohio State.
Oklahoma will have to turn up the pressure, especially with the back-to-back national champions in the race. They have the recent national success and the development pipeline working in tandem. Being the hometown team certainly works in the Bulldogs favor as well. It’s an enticing sell, and one Oklahoma will have to overcome in order to land one of the nation’s best defenders.
Will the move to the SEC and the relationship with Venables be enough to sway Brown away from Georgia and Clemson to don Crimson and Cream? Receiving that unofficial visit will give Oklahoma significant momentum to stay in the hunt.
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