Tag: 2021 early signing period

Clemson insider puts in Crystal ball for four-star Tigers commit to land at Oklahoma

Four-Star athlete Jaren Kanak is predicted to land in Oklahoma according to a crystal ball prediction by Clemson insider.

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While the early signing period may be coming to a close soon, the Oklahoma Sooners are far from done. We chronicled some names that remain as possible targets for Oklahoma as they now focus their recruiting efforts on the official national signing day in February.

One of those names is Jaren Kanak, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound athlete out of Hays, Kansas. Since the summer, Kanak is rated as a four-star player with 247Sports and has been a Clemson commit. He committed to Clemson when Venables was there and planned to play linebacker. A lot of things have changed since the summer, with Venables making the move to Oklahoma.

The speculation that Kanak would follow Venables to Oklahoma has ramped up since Venables’ official introduction as the Sooners head coach. The first crystal ball projecting Kanak’s flip to the Sooners came in a day later and the rest has been hushed whispers of not why or how but when would Kanak take the leap.

Venables loosely mentioned in a press conference after the Sooners signed all but two of their commits that there were still some signees to come.

To add even more fuel to the fire, Anna Hickey of Clemson Insider put in a crystal ball of 7/10 confidence in Kanak to Oklahoma. That brings six total predictions that he will flip from Clemson to Oklahoma.

Oklahoma seems to be trending in the right direction for a talented kid with a very high ceiling and an athletic profile to match.

Given Venables’ track record of linebackers and molding them into sideline to sideline playmaking machines, adding a guy like Kanak to a room already filled with David Ugwoegbu, Danny Stutsman, DaShaun White, Shane Whitter, and soon to be Kip Lewis, and Kobie McKinzie could turn Oklahoma’s linebacker unit to one of the best position groups on the entire team.

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How do the Big 12 2022 recruiting classes stack up a couple of days into the early signing period?

Now that the first couple of days of the early signing period has passed, how does the Big 12 stack up in team recruiting rankings?

The early signing period is underway and there are just under two months until national signing day. The Oklahoma Sooners have done a nice job recovering a recruiting class that was in flux after the departure of Lincoln Riley to the USC Trojans.

What was once the 27th ranked recruiting class in college football for 2022, the Sooners have climbed back into the top 10 thanks to the hard work of Bob Stoops, the assistant coaches on the offensive side of the ball, and new hires Brent Venables, Jeff Lebby, and Miguel Chavis.

And the Sooners aren’t done yet. With time for players to sign their letters of intent, Oklahoma can still get commitments from several big-name players. Devon Campbell recently narrowed his list to two schools, with Oklahoma and the Texas Longhorns taking the prominent places for the five-star offensive lineman’s services.

Jaren Kanak, out of Kansas, who remains committed to the Clemson Tigers, has seen crystal ball projections from local and national analysts at 247Sports flip their projections from the Tigers to the Sooners.

With only 16 players committed (Gentry Williams still needs to sign his letter of intent), the Sooners have room to add several more players to this recruiting class.

As the signing period continues, let’s take a look at how the Big 12’s recruiting classes stack up via On3 Recruiting’s and 247Sports’ team rankings for the 2022 recruiting cycle.

What does new QB recruit Nick Evers bring to the Sooners?

A look at new 2022 quarterback commit Nick Evers and what the Sooners can expect from him early.

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After losing their prized 2023 quarterback of the future when Malachi Nelson flipped his commitment from Oklahoma to USC to follow Lincoln Riley, there was a lot of angst about the future of the QB position in Norman.

The Sooners didn’t have a head coach or offensive coordinator either so things were up in the air. There was, and still is the trepidation about whether impact true freshman quarterback Caleb Williams would stay or go since Riley has left for sunny southern California.

The question remains about Caleb Williams’ future but over the last two weeks, things have stabilized in Norman. A new head coach is in the building and for the first time in six years, the Sooners will have a new play-caller not named Lincoln Riley.

Jeff Lebby, the up-and-coming offensive coordinator who led multiple top-five offenses while at Ole Miss came back to his alma mater to lead the Sooners offense. His first order of business? Secure a commitment from 2022 QB Nick Evers.

Evers had been recruited by Lebby at Ole Miss and although Evers originally committed to Florida, his relationship with Lebby stood firm and helped open the doorway to him becoming a Sooner.

But what are the Sooners getting with Nick Evers?

Evers is a true dual-threat quarterback much like Caleb Williams. However, his skills may not look the same as Caleb Williams.

Evers stands tall at 6-foot-3 and has the frame to add about 10 pounds if needed. While being a bit taller than some of the other Oklahoma quarterbacks of late, Evers runs with long strides on the field to the point it doesn’t look like he’s running all that fast.

He’s quite proficient running with the ball, totaling 894 yards rushing the last two years of high school. His arm is lively and he’s not afraid to throw over the middle of the field. If you’re going to do that you need accuracy, some velocity, and some major confidence to do so. And Evers has all three.

Evers is far from a finished product and will need some seasoning in this offense and processing at much faster speeds. The best thing going for him is the fact that Lebby’s offense is similar in ways to what his high school offense looked like but obviously highly more nuanced. It should help on a concept level and the more reps he gets at practice in this system the better off he’ll be.

There’s some serious upside in Nick Evers and while he’s not the five-star QB recruit the Sooners had grown accustomed to, he’s plenty talented to make a major name for himself in Norman, Oklahoma.

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Brent Venables makes first offer as Oklahoma head coach to 2022 defensive tackle

Getting the party started, new head coach Brent Venables sends a scholarship offer to 2022 defensive tackle prospect out of Florida.

The Brent Venables era is off and running on the recruiting trail. After yesterday’s introductory event in Norman, Venables hit the road and has been visiting with players to continue to bolster the 2022 recruiting class.

In the wake of Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy’s de-commitment and flip to Texas A&M, Venables, and the Oklahoma Sooners sent out their first official offer to Ahmad Moten, a three-star defensive tackle from Florida.

According to 247Sports, Moten is a 6-3, 290-pound defensive tackle who helped Cardinal Gibbons win a 4A state title in 2020.

Yesterday, in his first press conference as head coach, Venables hammered home the idea that he wants the offers that Oklahoma sends out to mean something, to have value. They aren’t planning to offer kids just to give offers and want the players they offer scholarships to be team-first players who aren’t simply looking for individual accolades.

Venables defenses are physical at the point of attack, and that starts with interior defensive linemen that can disrupt the running game and crash the pocket in the passing game. Moten has the size and length to be able to do both.

It’s still early in Brent Venables’ tenure as head coach, but it’s no coincidence that the first official scholarship offer he made was to an interior defensive lineman. That’s where Venables wants to set the tone defensively. With the early signing period right around the corner, Moten would provide a boost to a recruiting class that needs some players on the defensive line.

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Kaden Helms, Jason Llewellyn still all-in on commitments to Oklahoma

Three-star tight ends Kaden Helms and Jason Llewellyn both confirmed they are sticking with their commitments to Oklahoma.

Kaden Helms and Jason Llewellyn gave Oklahoma fans good news to start the week. After the hiring of new head coach Brent Venables had Sooner Nation feeling the warm and fuzzies, Helms and Llewellyn shared that they are sticking with their commitments to Oklahoma’s 2022 recruiting class.

Helms, a product of Bellevue West High School in Nebraska, had some fun with his announcement, too.

Helms is rated as a three-star tight end according to the 247Sports composite rankings. The 6-foot-5 tight end actually checks in as a four-star in 247Sports’ own rankings and the site has him as the nation’s No. 16 tight end.

Llewellyn out of Aledo High School in Aledo, Texas, ranks as the nation’s No. 18 tight end according the 247Sports composite rankings.

It helps with Helms and Llewellyn’s recruitments that tight ends and H-Backs coach Joe Jon Finley looks like he’s one of the assistant coaches being retained.

In his introductory press conference, Venables discussed how he plans to sell recruits on sticking with OU.

“Well, I have a career of almost 30 years of being loyal. Just look at my career. If I’ve been something, I’ve been loyal. And so, I haven’t been a coach that’s jumped all over. Taken this job to take this job to take this job. I think that that speaks for itself. Again, it’s not an easy thing to sell, but I do think that they chose Oklahoma for a reason and we always challenge recruits to take the recruiting coach out of it. And just what a wonderful place it is to chase your dreams, to get a great, quality education, to develop holistically. It’s much more than just one person. I recognize that being the head coach has a very important place in all of that. But, again if they’re looking for…again, for me for example, if they’re looking for a program with stability, a program of success. This is a program first of all that’s displayed that on its own and then my career has been exactly that as well. On the biggest stages in the biggest games and have that kind of experience to sell,” Venables said.

Venables was asked if he planned on retaining any of the coaches on the current staff.

“Obviously, you prepare yourself for a long time way before. Every battle is won before it’s fought. That’s the same kind of mindset when it comes to staffing. We’re working through that right now. The same with our current staff. There’s some terrific options right here at home and we’re looking at everything. Obviously, we want to do it sooner rather than later and we’re working aggressively on both fronts,” Venables said.

Venables also said it’s his intention to hire a defensive coordinator. OU has already seen outside linebackers and defensive ends coach Jamar Cain announce his intentions to join the USC staff and it’s fair to expect other changes to be on the way.

Those staffing changes will have a direct impact on Oklahoma’s 2022 recruiting class between now and when the upcoming Early Signing Period begins on Dec. 15.

In the meantime, here’s a comprehensive list of recruits that have announced their intentions to remain with the Sooners.

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Scouts view: Newest flip and sign running back Audric Estime

A look at what to expect from the second flip of the day for Notre Dame, running back Audric Estime.

As Ice Cube once said, ‘today is a good day.’ That’s exactly what the Irish are feeling after securing their second flip of the day, first Khari Gee from LSU and now running back Audric Estime from Michigan State. (Check out what to expect from Gee here)

Although Notre Dame has to wait until February to find out if Logan Diggs will be a member of the 2021 class, Brian Kelly has now secured at least one running back in the class. Let’s take a look at what to expect out of the newest Irish commit, Audric Estime.

In just eight games, Estime totaled 1,862 rushing yards along with 24 touchdowns, huge numbers in such a short season. His first three touches on his highlight reel, Estime is barely touched while taking those carries for long touchdowns, showcasing his speed and vision. He’s not extremely shifty, but has enough wiggle to make defenders miss. Estime is more of a north/south runner, who is hard to take down, arm tackles he runs right through.

Estime shows good hands in the passing game, enough to keep a defense honest. His high school offense uses a variety of sets, from an offset I-formation to zone read plays from the shotgun. The versatility is impressive, for the six-foot-one-inch and 215-pound back.

The running back room is now absolutely loaded, with Kyren Williams and Chris Tyree leading the charge and Estime coming to join them. Kelly and running back coach Lance Taylor should be ecstatic about the commitment and signing of Audric Estime.

Scouts view: Newest Notre Dame signee safety Khari Gee

What should Notre Dame fans expect then they see newest Irish commit Khari Gee on the field in South Bend.

Brian Kelly wasn’t messing around when he told us that the 2021 recruiting class was not done. This morning the Irish got a letter of intent from Georgia safety Khari Gee.

The Irish flipped Gee from LSU’s grasp on the final day of the early signing period. Let’s take a look at what to expect out of the newest Notre Dame commit.

What first jumps out from Gee is his willingness to come up and makes plays, with his impressive speed. The way he is able to flip his hips without losing speed is extremely impressive, he even lined up as an outside linebacker in some situations for his high school. Gee reads plays extremely well, his instincts are top of the line.

Over and over again, Gee’s speed shows, never giving up on plays. Although he stands six-feet-three-inches and 185-pounds, Gee could eventually grow out of the safety position and end up as a linebacker. He very well could just add on a few pounds and end up as a massive cornerback, Gee certainly has the skill set to play on an island.

I absolutely love this pickup and the new defensive coordinator is going to have a very good athlete to deploy Gee’s ranking isn’t what you’d expect from a player of his caliber, the Irish are getting a diamond in the rough.

Notre Dame could be getting a big addition to the 2021 class tomorrow

With the final day of the early signing period coming, Notre Dame could be making an addition to their 2021 recruiting class.

The Notre Dame recruiting class might not be finished just yet. While Brian Kelly and his staff are awaiting the final decision from Louisiana running back Logan Diggs, they could be getting a running back in the class before February, when Diggs will make his final decision.

Although New Jersey running back Audric Estime is currently committed to Michigan State, he opted not to signed yesterday and will make his official decision tomorrow. The Irish offered him a scholarship Monday and obviously made him think about his commitment to the Spartans.

The talented running back stands six-foot-one-inch and weights 215-pounds and is ranked as one of the best in the country. Rivals lists him as the 132nd best player in the nation, while 247Sports has Estime ranked as the 244th. Either way the Jersey native is a big time player.

The Irish could be making a late, early-signing period addition to their 2021 recruiting class.