Tag: Brandon Hall

Sooners offer the nation’s top safety of the 2023 recruiting class, Caleb Downs

Caleb Downs, the consensus No. 1 safety in the 2023 class, received an offer from Oklahoma.

With national signing day quickly approaching on Feb. 2, Oklahoma’s 2022 signing class will officially be finished up soon. The Sooners have already signed 15 players and linebacker Jaren Kanak arrived on campus this weekend as well.

There’s been several transfer portal additions for Oklahoma, too, and OU isn’t done adding from the transfer portal.

Still, it’s just about time for the Sooners to turn their collective attention to the 2023 class.

Oklahoma has a pair of commitments in its 2023 recruiting class. Four-star wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. from Los Alamitos High School and three-star interior offensive lineman Joshua Bates out of Durango High School.

On Sunday morning, class of 2023 safety Caleb Downs announced he has received an offer from Oklahoma.

Downs is the consensus No. 1 safety nationally across each of the four major recruiting services. The 6-foot, 185 pound defensive back is regarded as one of the best players overall in the 2023 cycle.

247Sports ranks the Hoschton, Ga., native as its No. 8 player overall in 2023, On3 rates Downs No. 11, Rivals has him No. 24 and ESPN places Downs at No. 31 nationally.

In the On3 consensus rankings, the Mill Creek High School product is No. 9 nationally and he’s ranked No. 12 in the 247Sports composite rankings.

Caleb Downs’ Recruiting Profile

Rating

Stars Overall State Position
247Sports 4 8 2 1
Rivals 4 24 3 1
ESPN 4 31 2 1
247 Composite 5 12 2 1
On3 Recruiting 5 11 2 1
On3 Consensus 5 9 2 1

Here’s what 247Sports’ Southeast recruiting analyst Andrew Ivins wrote about Downs in his scouting report.

An elite safety prospect and one that should star on Saturdays before eventually lacing up the cleats on Sundays. Simply moves different than others as he’s fluid in almost everything he does and always seems to be in control of his body. Plays with a vigorous demeanor and likes to hit people. Built like more of an in-the-box safety, but has the speed and range to cover the deepest parts of the field. Quick to trigger and react to what’s going on in front of him. Takes strong angles in run support, almost always arriving with the intentions of leveling someone. Uses leverage and his core strength to to drop ball carriers of all different sizes. Excels as a defensive back, but has also been featured as a running back and wide receiver at the high school level. Could honestly play both positions in college if he wanted to. Totaled 57 tackles, 14 pass break ups and four interceptions as a sophomore playing in the Peach State’s highest classification. Continued to make shine on both sides of the ball as a junior. Comes from a football family as his father was an NFL running back while his brother was an All-American wide receiver that signed with North Carolina. Should be viewed as a future impact player for a Top 25 program. – Ivins, 247Sports.

According to On3’s director of recruiting Chad Simmons, new Oklahoma cornerbacks coach Jay Valai had a strong relationship with Downs while he was at Alabama.

That’s a relationship that OU will be counting upon to win out against an offers list that includes a cluster of the country’s top programs. Alabama, Arkansas, Clemson, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Georgia, Michigan and plenty of others are all in the mix for Downs.

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Oklahoma Sooners re-offers class of 2023 DB Jayvon Thomas

With a new coaching staff in place, the Sooners re-offered class of 2023, four-star defensive back Jayvon Thomas.

There’s plenty happening for Oklahoma with potential transfer portal additions and OU welcomed some 2022 recruits this weekend as well.

The Sooners’ coaching staff hasn’t forgotten about the 2023 class either, though.

Oklahoma extended an offer to four-star defensive lineman Kelby Collins. Four-star defensive back Jayvon Thomas said he has been re-offered by OU, too.

Thomas tagged a pair of Oklahoma coaches in his tweet, safeties coach Brandon Hall and cornerbacks coach Jay Valai. According to 247Sports’ timeline, the Sooners were one of the first schools to offer Thomas.

OU offered Thomas in March of 2021. Of course, that was with a different head coach and defensive coaching staff.

The South Oak Cliff High School standout in Dallas, Texas, is a consensus four-star defensive back. ESPN ranks Thomas No. 85 player overall in its class of 2023 player rankings and the No. 7 athlete.

247Sports ranks the 5-foot-11, 170-pound recruit as the No. 113 player nationally and the No. 12 cornerback. On3 places Thomas No. 124 nationally and No. 14 among cornerbacks. Rivals rates Thomas as the No. 36 cornerback.

In the On3 consensus rankings, Thomas is No. 119 nationally and the 14th-best cornerback. 247Sports’ composite rankings has Thomas No. 133 nationally and the country’s No. 11 cornerback.

Jayvon Thomas’ Recruiting Profile

Rating

Stars Overall State Position
247Sports 4 113 23 12
Rivals 4 N/A 63 36
ESPN 4 85 15 7
247 Composite 4 133 25 11
On3 Recruiting 4 124 19 14
On3 Composite 4 119 22 14

The Sooners are starting fresh in Thomas’ recruitment as Hall and Valai hadn’t offered Thomas while at Troy and Alabama, respectively. Oklahoma can sell Thomas on proximity to Dallas, playing at the Cotton Bowl and the opportunity to play in the SEC.

Currently, the Sooners have a pair of commitments from four-star wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. and three-star interior offensive lineman Joshua Bates in the 2023 class.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions.

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Sooners signee Robert Spears-Jennings Stock Rising after Impressive week at Under Armour All-America Week

247Sports reporter Gabe Brooks says OU signee Robert Spears-Jennings’ stock is rising following the Under Armour All-America week.

Oklahoma signee Robert Spears-Jennings turned some heads with his performance throughout the Under Armour All-America week.

247Sports reporter Gabe Brooks listed Spears-Jennings as one of the players whose stock was rising following the Under Armour All-America Game.

Oklahoma signee Robert Spears-Jennings, a high three-star 88, could be on Top247 watch after his stellar Under Armour All-America week. The 6-foot-1, 192-pounder out of Broken Arrow (Okla.) High School has tested in the 4.5s in the past and put together a well-rounded UA performance that included not only winning the fastest man competition — beating Texas A&M four-star safety signee Bryce Anderson, owner of a 10.48 100 — but encouraging lateral and in-space movement abilities as well.

247Sports national analyst Chris Singletary noted that Spears-Jennings, who owns snaps on both sides of the ball, “has a body type that can see him play in the back end or linebacker positions.” That is particularly valuable given the style of today’s game, which should play to Spears-Jennings’ strengths. – Brooks, 247Sports.

Spears-Jennings is rated as a four-star signee by ESPN and On3, while 247Sports and Rivals rank him as a three-star signee.

ESPN rates Spears-Jennings as the nation’s No. 132 player overall in the 2022 class and the country’s No. 12 athlete. On3 ranks the Broken Arrow product as the nation’s 15th-best safety and No. 173 player overall.

Meanwhile, 247Sports has Spears-Jennings as the nation’s 42-best safety and Rivals ranks him as the country’s No. 36 safety in the 2022 class.

Robert Spears Jennings’ Recruiting Profile

Rating

Stars Overall State Position
247Sports 3 N/A 9 42
Rivals 3 N/A 13 36
ESPN 4 132 4 12
247 Composite 4 266 6 24
On3 Recruiting 4 173 4 15
On3 Composite 4 238 5 20

Spears-Jennings was joined by several other Oklahoma signees at the Under Armour All-America Game. Wide receiver Jayden Gibson, running back Jovantae Barnes and linebacker Kobie McKinzie also took part in the game.

Spears-Jennings will be an interesting piece for Oklahoma head football coach Brent Venables and his staff. As 247Sports reporters Gabe Brooks and Chris Singletary noted, the Sooner signee is versatile enough to play a variety of different positions at Oklahoma.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions.

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Booker T. Washington’s Micah Tease ‘re-offered’ by the Oklahoma Sooners

Class of 2023 four-star athlete Micah Tease announced he has been “re-offered” by the Oklahoma Sooners.

Brent Venables and Oklahoma want to keep all of the homegrown talent in the Sooner State. That includes Booker T. Washington’s Micah Tease.

The class of 2023 four-star athlete announced today that he has been “re-offered” by Oklahoma.

“After a great talk with (Coach Venables) and (Coach Hall), I am HONORED to be re-offered by the UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA! #BoomerSooner,” Tease tweeted.

247Sports has Tease ranked as the nation’s No. 122 player overall and the 15th-highest rated athlete. In 247Sports’ composite player rankings, Tease checks in as the nation’s No. 163 player overall in the 2023 class.

Rivals has Tease ranked as the nation’s No. 210 player overall and No. 10 athlete. On3 rates Tease as the nation’s No. 125 player overall and the country’s 18th-best wide receiver. Tease is listed as a three-star recruit by ESPN.

OUInsider’s Brandon Drumm and Parker Thune both have put in crystal ball projections for Tease to wind up at Oklahoma. Those crystal-ball predictions came last summer on July 9 and Aug. 3, respectively.

According to MaxPreps, Tease hauled in 31 receptions for 618 receiving yards and had nine touchdowns during his 2021 season with the Booker T. Washington Hornets.

In addition to OU, Tease holds scholarship offers from Arkansas, Cal, Florida, Iowa State, Memphis, Missouri, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Pittsburgh, TCU, Texas Tech, Tulsa, USC, Washington, and Wisconsin.

With Tease’s versatility, it’s unclear where he would play on the next level, but just judging from Tease including OU safeties coach Brandon Hall and head coach Brent Venables’ names in his tweet, it appears OU might like Tease on the defensive side of the football.

Tease has taken unofficial visits to Arkansas, Alabama, and Oklahoma State. Tease went to Arkansas on Sept. 11, Alabama on Nov. 20, and Oklahoma State on Nov. 27.

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Oklahoma set to hire Clemson’s Todd Bates as co-defensive coordinator per report

Larry Williams of TigerIllustrated.com reported that OU will hire Clemson’s Todd Bates as its co-defensive coordinator.

Oklahoma is bringing in one of the nation’s top assistants as the Sooners’ new co-defensive coordinator and defensive tackles coach.

Larry Williams of Tigerillustrated.com reported that Clemson’s Todd Bates is joining Brent Venables’ staff at Oklahoma.

The news comes just several weeks removed from Bates receiving a $200,000 raise and promotion to the assistant head coach title at Clemson.

Bates joined the Clemson staff in January of 2017 as the Tigers’ defensive line coach. The Heflin, Ala., native was a part of four College Football Playoff appearances while at Clemson and helped direct the Tigers to a 44-16 win over Alabama in the 2019 CFP national championship game.

His 2017 Tigers finished second in the nation in scoring defense (13.6) and fourth in total defense (276.7).

Four defensive linemen were selected in the 2019 NFL Draft during Bates’ tenure at Clemson.

Defensive end Clelin Ferrell was taken fourth overall by the then-Oakland Raiders, defensive tackle Christian Wilkins was selected No. 13 overall by the Miami Dolphins, defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence was chosen No. 17 overall by the New York Giants and defensive end Austin Bryant was taken in the fourth round by the Detroit Lions.

Under Bates’ watch, Clemson finished tied for the national lead in sacks (46) and second in tackles for loss (109) during the 2020 season.

Bates has also been one of the nation’s top recruiters. After Clemson’s 2020 recruiting class ranked No. 1 according to ESPN, No. 2 according to Rivals and No. 3 according to the 247 Sports composite, Bates was named Rivals’ Recruiter of the Year for 2019.

Bates was promoted to Clemson’s recruiting coordinator following the 2019 season.

Bates joins an Oklahoma defensive staff that includes co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Ted Roof, defensive ends coach Miguel Chavis and safeties coach Brandon Hall.

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Oklahoma offers four-star safety Derek Williams Jr. out of Louisiana

Oklahoma offered consensus four-star safety Derek Williams Jr. from Westgate High School in New Iberia, La.

Oklahoma isn’t waiting on its official departure to the Southeastern Conference to go ahead and start planting its roots.

The Sooners’ Southeast recruiting push continued last night when Oklahoma offered consensus four-star safety Derek Williams Jr. out of Westgate High School in New Iberia, La.

The 6-foot-2, 185 pound safety is rated highest overall by 247Sports where the recruiting service has Williams Jr. ranked as the 45th-best player in the class of 2023 nationally.

Rivals has Williams Jr. rated as the nation’s No. 2 safety, while 247Sports has him ranked as the nation’s No. 3 safety. Both ESPN and On3 have Williams Jr. ranked as the nation’s No. 4 safety.

Williams Jr. holds offers from a bevy of other programs such as Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Texas and Texas A&M.

The Sooners’ 2023 class currently has a pair of players committed, four-star Los Alamitos, Calif., wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. and three-star Durango, Colo., interior offensive lineman Joshua Bates.

OU signed four-star safety Robert Spears-Jennings from Broken Arrow, Okla., on the first day of the Early Signing Period back on Dec. 15 in its 2022 class.

According to 247Sports, OU has offers out to 10 other safeties in the 2023 recruiting class: Joenel Aguero, Peyton Bowen, Braxton Myers, Jamel Johnson, Rahmir Stewart, Sylvester Smith, Elliot Washington, Deldrick Madison, Jordan Castell and Braylon Johnson.

Williams Jr. and the rest of these offers can expect to be hearing from the Sooners’ new safeties coach.

Oklahoma head football coach Brent Venables announced his hiring of new safeties coach Brandon Hall on Dec. 17.

“Brandon is an Oklahoman and someone who worked with us for 10 years. He’s the epitome of what the coaching profession should be all about, as far as development, putting in the work, creating opportunities through relationships and sweat equity, figuring stuff out, being mentored, having humility and taking some chances. I’m really proud about his growth and development. He was one of the first people I met when I came to Oklahoma in 1999 when he was a student assistant. To see him continue to bloom at each of his stops has been really cool for me, all the way to being one of the best defensive coordinators in college football the last few years at Troy. He’s been a leader, he’s loyal, he’s tough, he’s smart, he’s really innovative and he connects well with the players. They’re in for a treat,” Venables said of Hall.

Hall also discussed his excitement to return to Oklahoma as the next OU safeties coach in a statement on Dec. 17.

“When people talk about ‘going home,’ this is actually true in my case. I was born in Norman, so Oklahoma is a special place for me. I started my career here under Coach (Bob) Stoops, and both he and Coach Venables took a chance on me. They’re a big reason I’m here. I’ve always believed that your identity as a coach is your foundation, and my foundation is Coach Stoops and Coach Venables. I’ve been able to go out and develop my own style and develop as a coach and person, but to be able to come back and be a part of the OU tradition is something I can’t describe. Who I am as a coach and as a person has really been impacted by those two and how they approach the game – their aggressiveness, their tenacity and their standards.

“Coach Venables to me has always been about, ‘OK, this is the standard; this is how we’re going to operate and this is how we’re going to live.’ It’s impacted me not only as a coach but in my personal life as well. When he called and asked me to join him at OU, it really wasn’t a question for me. It was, ‘I’m in.’ This place is special to me. I’m going to do everything I can each day to live up to those expectations and standards, because if there’s anybody who understands them, it’s me. I’m looking forward to growing and being a part of it all. There are great, great things ahead for this program,” Hall said in his statement.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions.

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Oklahoma announces three members of Brent Venables’ coaching staff

Oklahoma head football coach Brent Venables announced Miguel Chavis, Brandon Hall and Jerry Schmidt are joining the Sooners’ staff.

Oklahoma head football coach Brent Venables announced the hirings of Miguel Chavis, Brandon Hall and Jerry Schmidt to the OU coaching staff.

Chavis joins OU as the Sooners’ new defensive ends coach, Hall is Oklahoma’s new safeties coach and Schmidt returns to OU as director of sports enhancement and strength and conditioning.

Chavis served in a defensive player development role over the past five seasons at Clemson. During his tenure, Chavis helped develop 2019 NFL Draft picks Clelin Ferrell, Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence and Austin Bryant.

Ferrell (No. 4 overall), Wilkins (No. 13 overall) and Lawrence (No. 17 overall) were each first-round NFL Draft selections, while Bryant was taken in the fourth round.

“Miguel is a great story. He’s a former player at Clemson who was recruited by Coach (Dabo) Swinney and went on to play in the NFL, but he’d probably be the first to tell you he thought he would play there a lot longer. After going back to school, getting his degree and becoming an ordained minister, he found his calling in coaching. He was a real blessing to me at Clemson in our room as we built that program – on defense, in particular.

“He’s very passionate, he’s intense, players love him. He’s very gifted as a coach, as a communicator, teacher and mentor. And he’s high on life. We have a lot of similarities, even in our journeys. These players are really fortunate with what they’re getting. He’s genuine and authentic and will connect with them. He’s got a unique way of pulling the best out of people – adults and young people alike. He’ll be a dynamic recruiter and a tenacious coach who will demand perfection. But he leads with optimism and love. That’s what I love about him,” Venables said of Chavis.

Chavis described Oklahoma as a “dream job” and said he and his family are excited for the opportunity to come to OU.

“As a football fan, I’ve always looked at about four schools as the cream of the crop – Clemson, OU, Alabama and Ohio State. All I knew about OU is I thought they were at the top of college football and that my mentor Brent Venables came from there. This is what I’ve been preparing for, even back to my playing days at Clemson. I’ve always loved coaching – always wanted to know the ‘why’ behind what we were doing, loved preparing in the NFL and appreciated the different schemes and philosophies. The past five years I’ve been attending the Brent Venables school of defense, and I was getting a Ph. D.

“I’m excited to be with the guys and develop them on and off the field. That’s my passion – to develop defensive ends into great players, but also into great men, great husbands, fathers and neighbors. And I get to do that through football. The fan base here is amazing and they have great energy. And that’s perfect because I’m a passionate guy, an energy guy who will also bring knowledge, toughness and excitement. I can’t wait. My biggest message to our current players is, ‘You didn’t choose me, but I chose you. I chose to be here and this is my dream job. And I’m excited and I’m ready,” Chavis said.

Up next: The Sooners’ new safeties coach

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