Tag: Daeh McCullough

Oklahoma Sooners earn commitment from 2023 4-star S Daeh McCullough

The Sooners earned a commitment from 2023 four-star safety Daeh McCullough. From @john9williams

The Oklahoma Sooners 2023 recruiting class received a boost on Monday night with the commitment of four-star safety [autotag]Daeh McCullough[/autotag].

McCullough flips from the Cincinnati Bearcats, with whom he’d been committed since August. With Luke Fickell leaving Cincinnati for Wisconsin, the opportunity arose for the Sooners to add an impact safety to the 2023 class.

McCullough ranks as a top 35 safety in the On3 consensus and 247Sports composite and a top five player in the state of Indiana. McCullough joins his brother Dasan McCullough in Norman. The older McCullough committed to the Sooners out of the transfer portal.

The McCullough brothers are the sons of Deland McCullough, who currently coaches running backs at Notre Dame. Prior to landing his gig with the Fighting Irish, Deland was the running backs coach with Indiana. No longer there, the McCulloughs sought opportunities elsewhere, and Oklahoma was able to add two talented defenders.

Here’s what “Locked On Hoosiers” Jacob Rude and Sports Illustrated’s John Garcia had to say about the younger McCullough following his decommitment from Indiana this summer. There are some thoughts on the older McCullough from the two as well.

Just last week, the Sooners were projected to flip Daeh McCullough from the Bearcats. Now those projections have become a reality. Here’s what I had to say about what he brings to Brent Venables’ defense when the projections first hit.

On Daeh, the four-star safety brings good size at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds. McCullough plays fast, coming downhill in a hurry in run support from single-high safety looks. Playing both ways for St. Joseph’s High School, Daeh shows off good ball skills, attacking the ball in the air and knows what to do with it when he has it in his hands. He times his blitzes well as both a pass rusher and run defender. He’s sticky in man coverage and able to carry players across the formation.

With the early signing period less than two weeks away, Oklahoma looks to close the 2023 recruiting class in a big way. Peyton Bowen and David Hicks are the big names the Sooners remain in contention for, but there will likely be a few surprises as well.

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Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. Let us know your thoughts, and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today. You can also follow John on Twitter @john9williams.

Oklahoma Sooners offer 2023 Arkansas commit Quincy Rhodes, Jr.

Looking to close the 2023 recruiting cycle strong, the Oklahoma Sooners offered 2023 EDGE and Arkansas commit Quincy Rhodes. From @john9williams

As we inch closer to the early signing period and national signing day, the Oklahoma Sooners are attempting to put a bow on their 2023 recruiting class.

[autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] and his staff are looking to turn the holiday season into Flipmas with a late push for Notre Dame commit [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag], Texas A&M commit [autotag]David Hicks[/autotag], Cincinnati commit [autotag]Daeh McCullough[/autotag], and their latest 2023 offer goes out to Arkansas commit Quincy Rhodes.

Rhodes committed to Arkansas back in February but has seen his recruitment gain some steam in the last week. In addition to grabbing an Oklahoma offer, Missouri, Tulane, and Arizona issued offers to the talented Little Rock native.

Rhodes, a four-star EDGE in the 247Sports composite, is the No. 2 player in the state of Arkansas and ranks No. 41 at his position. At 6-foot-7, he possesses incredibly disruptive length at the point of attack.

Despite his height, Rhodes does a nice job playing with leverage and is assignment-sound as a two-gap edge in the run game. He does well setting the edge to help string run plays wide and displays good closing speed to the ball carrier.

As a pass rusher, Rhodes’ long-arm rush allows him to keep the offensive lineman’s hands from engaging their blocks and displays an effective shoulder dip that allows him to corner the offensive tackle and close on the quarterback.

As a late offer in the cycle, the Sooners hope to add the strong-side defensive end to their 2023 EDGE group that includes five-star prospect [autotag]Adepoju Adebawore[/autotag] and three-star [autotag]Taylor Wein[/autotag].

Quincy Rhodes’ Recruiting Profile

Projections

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5 lingering questions about the Oklahoma Sooners 2023 recruiting class

We are in the stretch run of the 2023 recruiting cycle, and the Oklahoma Sooners are looking to close strong. From @thatmanbryant

We are exactly two weeks away from the first day of the early signing period. Though a only added to the calendar in recent years, it’s provided another element of excitement and intrigue to the recruiting process.

Oklahoma, as it stands, owns the No. 7 ranked class in the nation. They are headlined by consensus five-star QB Jackson Arnold, who has blown everyone away with his senior season. He and his Denton Guyer team look for a state title at Texas’ highest classification.

While Oklahoma sits inside the top 10, there is room to move up, and Brent Venables and Co. are road-tripping across the country to improve the class.

Oklahoma has several high-profile targets in its sights and they’re well within reach. However, recruiting is about closing. It’s never how you start but how you finish.

Here are five lingering questions about the Sooners’ 2023 recruiting class as we sprint to the finish line for this recruiting cycle.

Oklahoma projected to land Indiana Hoosiers edge Dasan McCullough via the transfer portal

With the transfer portal officially open, the Oklahoma Sooners look to be the favorites to land Indiana Hoosiers transfer EDGE Dasan McCullough. From @john9williams

On the same day the Oklahoma Sooners received crystal ball projections flipping 2023 four-star safety Daeh McCullough from Cincinnati to Oklahoma, it looks like another McCullough may be joining the Sooners in 2023.

OUInsiders Brandon Drumm and Parker Thune issued crystal ball predictions for Indiana edge rusher [autotag]Dasan McCullough[/autotag] to land with the Oklahoma Sooners through the transfer portal.

Dasan and [autotag]Daeh McCullough[/autotag] are the sons of Notre Dame running backs coach Deland McCullough, who played alongside Sooners cornerbacks coach Jay Valai with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Dasan McCullough was a four-star edge in the 2022 recruiting class, ranking No. 75 in the nation in the 247Sports composite. He was the No. 9 edge in the class and the No. 2 player in the state of Indiana.

As a true freshman season, Dasan played in all 12 games for the Hoosiers and racked up 49 total tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and four sacks, which tied for the team lead. He was second among edge rushers in defensive snaps according to Pro Football Focus and finished third on the team with 19 total pressures. At 6-foot-5 and 235 pounds, McCullough would bring great size and athleticism to the defensive end room.

With pressure being an issue for the Sooners in 2022, adding a player that was able to make an immediate impact for the Hoosiers pass rush in his first season would be huge for the Oklahoma Sooners.

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Here’s what Jacob Rude of the “Locked On Hoosiers” podcast had to say about Dasan McCullough.

He’s a versatile, uber-athletic player. When John Garcia (Sports Illustrateds director of national recruiting) came on to talk about him, he called him a “monster back” which is a phrase I love. In high school, he played safety but I’m not sure he can do that in college. He split time between LB and as an edge rusher this year, mainly the latter. He played a LOT as a true freshman which is both an indictment on how bad IU is and how good he is. I’d say an edge rusher is probably his best fit long-term, but he’s athletic enough that I could see him playing more LB down the road and definitely in passing situations. He can get into the backfield and disrupt plays and pressure the QB. Really a special talent that is going to make an impact right away anywhere. – Rude, Locked On Hoosiers

Here’s the full episode from six months ago, where Rude and Garcia also discuss Daeh McCullough after his decommitment from the Hoosiers.

After a disappointing season, the Oklahoma Sooners need to significantly improve their pass rush. [autotag]Ethan Downs[/autotag] had a nice close to the season after [autotag]Reggie Grimes[/autotag] started fast but couldn’t keep the momentum. [autotag]R Mason Thomas[/autotag] flashed some and was one of the bright spots from the 2022 recruiting class, but Oklahoma could use some help generating pressure off the edge. If it can land Dasan McCullough, that would go a long way toward helping the pass rush in 2023 and beyond.

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Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. Let us know your thoughts, and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today. You can also follow John on Twitter @john9williams.

Sooners receive crystal ball flip for 4-star S Daeh McCullough from 247Sports’ Steve Wiltfong

The Oklahoma Sooners received a crystal ball from 247Sports Steve Wiltfong and Brandon Drumm to flip 2023 four-star safety Daeh McCullough from Cincinnati. From @john9williams

The Oklahoma Sooners are entering the stretch of the 2023 recruiting class. The early signing period is only a couple of weeks away, and Oklahoma looks to be closing in on top prospects from across the country.

As we eagerly away the decision of five-star safety [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag], the Oklahoma Sooners appear on the verge of flipping another safety. Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports flipped his previous crystal ball for 2023 four-star safety Daeh McCullough from the Cincinnati Bearcats to the Oklahoma Sooners. Since Wiltfong’s crystal ball flip, Brandon Drumm of OUInsider at 247Sports has also flipped his commitment from Cincinnati to the Sooners.

McCullough has been committed to the Bearcats since June, but the Sooners have made a late run on McCullough, issuing an offer in early November. With Luke Fickell making the move to Madison to take over the Wisconsin Badgers, Oklahoma looks to be in a prime position to add McCullough.

The South Bend, Indiana, native, is a top-five player in the state and ranks as the No. 34 safety in the 247Sports composite.

According to Drumm, the McCulloughs have a strong tie with Oklahoma cornerbacks coach Jay Valai. Deland McCullough, a running backs coach that was with Indiana and is now with Notre Dame played with Valai during their time with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Daeh’s older brother Dasan just entered the transfer portal after a strong season with the Indiana Hoosiers. Dasan, a defensive end, posted 6.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.

Could the McCullough brothers unite to play college ball for the Sooners? It looks like they’ll get the younger Daeh if the Steve Wiltfong prediction flip holds true.

On Daeh, the four-star safety brings good size at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds. McCullough plays fast, coming downhill in a hurry in run support from single-high safety looks. Playing both ways for St. Joseph’s High School, Daeh shows off good ball skills, attacking the ball in the air and knows what to do with it when he has it in his hands. He times his blitzes well as both a pass rusher and run defender. He’s sticky in man coverage and able to carry players across the formation.

Daeh McCullough’s Recruiting Profile

Crystal Ball

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