Tag: demarco murray

Where five-star Raleek Brown fits in with top RB recruits in Oklahoma history

We took a look back at Oklahoma’s running back recruits since 2000 to see where five-star commit Raleek Brown fits in all time.

Oklahoma scored one of the biggest recruiting gets of the offseason last week when class of 2022 five-star running back Raleek Brown committed to join the Sooners. The California product had several big-name programs chasing him, including LSU, Oregon, Alabama and Michigan.

Getting him is an obvious huge addition to the team in the years ahead for Lincoln Riley and running backs coach DeMarco Murray. The ability to pair him with incumbent quarterback Caleb Williams will be a sight to behold, and one that has rightfully gotten Oklahoma fans extremely excited.

The Sooners have had no shortage of success at the running back position over the years, featuring some of the greatest of all-time over the illustrious history of the program. One of those greats is, in fact, Murray, who begins his second season as the coach of the unit in 2021 after serving as a player from 2007-2010.

His first year saw Rhamondre Stevenson have so much success he felt comfortable declaring for the NFL draft early despite missing half of the season due to suspension. Now, he has landed his first big fish with Brown.

So, just how good of a recruiting pickup is this for Murray and Oklahoma? We took a look back at all the running back recruits’ ratings for the Sooners dating back to 2000 in 247Sports’ composite rankings to see just how far up the leader board Brown lands.

Five-star running back Raleek Brown commits to Oklahoma

The Oklahoma Sooners got a big win on the recruiting trail as Raleek Brown commits to OU over Alabama, Michigan, and USC.

No time to rest in the world of college football recruiting. The Oklahoma Sooners just wrapped up the 2021 recruiting cycle, but in the words of Bill Belichick, we’re on to 2022. Continue reading “Five-star running back Raleek Brown commits to Oklahoma”

A top running back target for Oklahoma sets commitment date

A top running back target for the Oklahoma Sooners 2022 recruiting class sets his commitment date for Feb. 5. Raleek Brown is No. 3 of 2022.

During National Signing Day week, the Oklahoma Sooners are already keeping their eyes on the 2021 class as well as a commitment announcement from 2022 five-star defensive tackle Bear Alexander. Just a couple of days following the signing day, another top recruit and Oklahoma target will also be announcing his commitment.

Five-star running back and 2022 target, Raleek Brown of Mater Dei is announcing his school on Feb. 5. Brown is the No. 3 ranked running back of the class and No. 25 overall recruit according to the 247Sports composite ranking. He is the No. 1 running back in the state of California. The Sooners also have their sites set on the No. 2 running back in Gavin Sawchuk of Colorado.

Provided that Lincoln Riley and running backs coach DeMarco Murray can land this recruit, he would a great building block for the class. OU currently has three wide receivers committed. The quartet would be quite the corps of weapons for Caleb Williams when he takes over as the quarterback in Norman.

The Sooners are the only Big 12 school in the running for Brown. The other schools hail from the Pac-12, SEC, and Big Ten Conferences. Circle Friday on your calenders.

Rating

Stars Overall State Position
247 4 33 3 2
Rivals 4 31 4 1
ESPN 4 43 3 3
247 Composite 5 25 3 3

Vitals

Hometown Santa Ana, CA
Projected Position Running Back
Height 5-8
Weight 185

Recruitment

  • Offered on May 14, 2019
  • No visits during NCAA dead period

Offers

Crystal Ball

Film

Hudl

Twitter

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Oklahoma has busy week sending out new offers, including 13 over last three days

The Oklahoma Sooners staff was busy on Friday as they extended 13 offers to recruits in the 2022 and 2023 recruiting classes.

The second National Signing Day is approaching for Lincoln Riley and the Oklahoma Sooners staff. Continue reading “Oklahoma has busy week sending out new offers, including 13 over last three days”

DeMarcus Cousins on James Harden: ‘The disrespect started way before any interview’

Good thing Harden didn’t come to practice Wednesday.

It’s probably a good thing James Harden didn’t come to Rockets practice on Wednesday. That was probably the only way to keep the peace.

There are clearly some players unhappy with Harden after his press conference on Tuesday night where he said the team just didn’t have enough talent and that there was nothing more he could do for them.

One of those players is very obviously DeMarcus Cousins.

The Rockets center spoke with the media on Wednesday and was asked about what Harden said. To say he wasn’t thrilled with it would be an understatement. But he also wasn’t surprised.

This, apparently, was a long time coming.

 “Me, personally, I don’t feel betrayed at all. My interest was playing with John Wall to be brutally honest. With that being said, the disrespect started way before any interview. Just the approach to training camp, showing up the way he did, the answers off the court. I mean, the disrespect started way before.” 

Whew. On one hand, it’s probably great for everyone Harden didn’t show up for practice today. On another? We just probably missed out on one of the most legendary practice stories ever.

Either way, this will all probably come to an end soon.

Looking back at the 2009 Oklahoma-Florida National Championship Game

A look back at the 2009 FedEx BCS National Championship game between Oklahoma and Florida.

Oklahoma is set to conclude their season on Wednesday night when they square off with Florida in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl.

Largely considered among the very best bowl matchups of the non-College Football Playoff games, this meeting of historic Big 12 and SEC programs has lots of intrigue baked into it. An element that certainly excites fans about the matchup is that it is the first time the two teams have played since they met in the 2009 FedEx BCS National Championship Game.

That matchup was the first, and still only, meeting between the Sooners and the Gators. It was a game loaded with talent all over the field and truly a matchup of two great teams.

Both teams provided Heisman-winning quarterbacks in Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow, and both had head coaches who had already won a national title previously in Bob Stoops and Urban Meyer.

Florida struck first on a Tebow touchdown pass to Louis Murphy to grab a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter, but Bradford found Jermaine Gresham for a touchdown of their own to have things square at 7-7 at the half.

The Gators would take a 14-7 lead into the fourth frame after a touchdown run from Percy Harvin had them retake the lead. Oklahoma would then tie it again on a touchdown from Bradford to Gresham to even things at 14-14, but that would be the last time they would score. After a Florida field goal, Tebow would later ice the game on a jump pass touchdown to David Nelson to put them up ahead 24-14 in what would go on to be the final score.

Both teams have current pieces of their team who were involved in the game in one way or another. Sooners current running backs coach DeMarco Murray was on that team but missed the game due to injury – a fact that many Oklahoma fans hold onto as a reason for the loss. Meanwhile for the Gators, their current head coach Dan Mullen was the offensive coordinator at the time.

Murray and the Sooners will look to get some form of revenge when these two blue-bloods collide for the second time ever on Wednesday night at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

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Former Oklahoma RB DeMarco Murray making immediate impact as RBs coach at OU

There were a lot of questions about DeMarco Murray upon his return to Oklahoma. He, though, is already making an immediate impact.

There were a lot of questions about DeMarco Murray upon his return to Oklahoma.

The Sooners let former running backs coach Jay Boulware walk down to Texas as its new tight ends coach. He was at Oklahoma from 2013-2019, spending the last five years as the Sooners’ running backs coach.

The running backs Boulware signed during that time were great, but none of them became elite. Insert Murray, who was one of the best running backs in Oklahoma history.

However, he only had one year of coaching running backs under his belt. That hasn’t stopped Murray from making an immediate impact.

“Juice,” said T.J. Pledger on Tuesday about what Murray has brought to Oklahoma. “He’s brought everything to the table, honestly. It’s been a blessing to have him as our coach. Every day we come in and learn something new, we learn about the game of football outside of just the running back area, but defenses and different positions. He’s opened our eyes up to a lot of different aspects of the game of football that has been a pleasure to be a part of so far.”

Oklahoma’s running game has yet to get going in 2020, but not all of that is on the running backs. The Sooners’ offensive line hasn’t been up to par quite yet despite positive performances out of true freshman Seth McGowan and T.J. Pledger.

Pass blocking has definitely been a skill most Oklahoma running backs have excelled in, but it seems to have taken even more of an uptick in 2020. It’s something Murray has put a major focus on.

“Definitely—Coach Murray has really honed in on pass protection and how important it is to protect Spencer (Rattler),” Pledger said. “Just different fundamentals, he and coach (Bedenbaugh), and I think coach Murray plays a big part in our success in the pass pro area right now.”

As long as the offensive line continues to allow pressure in the backfield, especially from the interior offensive line, picking up rushers is going to be paramount for the running backs. Spencer Rattler has all-world talent, but that all-world talent can’t reach its potential if its not being protected.

Oklahoma’s running backs and the running game have a long way to go, but Murray knows his role to getting the Sooners over the hump and get back into the big game.

“There’s a standard, obviously being associated with this program and obviously Big 12 championship means a lot and playoff means a lot, but the ultimate goal, why you come here and why you play here and why you coach here is to be in the big on,” he said the day he was introduced as the running backs coach. “And by no means do I take that lightly and by no means does anyone in this program, that’s associated with this program takes it lightly. We know what our goals are. But at the same time, gotta take it one day at a time. Taking it one day at a time and working hard throughout the course of the week, throughout the course of off-season programs, mentally, physically, emotionally, it all plays a part.”

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Four-star RB Donovan Edwards talks recruiting, wants to visit Oklahoma

It’s no secret Oklahoma is after some of the top running backs in the country. The Sooners are still in it for four-star Donovan Edwards.

It’s no secret Oklahoma is after some of the top running backs in the country in 2020.

The Sooners made a run at four-star and Ohio State running back commit TreVeyon Henderson, are currently after Dallas-Fort Worth metro area five-star running back Camar Wheaton and, still, after Michigan native and four-star running backs Donovan Edwards.

“I’ll probably try to get out there unofficially,” Edwards told WolverinesWire a little over ten days ago. “If I can’t do an unofficial, I understand that. But Oklahoma is definitely a place of interest for me.”

The four-star running back is close to in-state school Michigan and is looking hard at Georgia, but the Sooners are still in the mix and Edwards mentioned them again on Friday night after his game.

“I didn’t even know — (the dead period ends) Jan. 1 now? I didn’t even know that,” Edwards told WolverinesWire. “It really doesn’t effect it. My option is my option. The way I feel comfortable around the team, if I feel comfortable. If I go to Norman, Oklahoma and I feel comfortable, who knows what will happen.”

Oklahoma’s running backs are now coached by former Sooners running back DeMarco Murray. The Sooners have yet to land a running back for the 2020 recruiting class.

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WATCH: Weekly Oklahoma football chat (July 19)

Here are 28 minutes from Sooners Wire managing editor Kegan Reneau talking everything Oklahoma football related from the last week.

Last week wasn’t a hard-hitting news week for Oklahoma football, but there was still plenty to talk about.

The Sooners and the Big 12 have yet to make a decision on an upcoming season. DeMarco Murray is a part of a group bidding to own the New York Mets. The Big 12 released its preseason all-Big 12 team and preseason media rankings for the 2020 season.

Oklahoma landed one commitment from three-star athlete Caleb Johnson, but everything else is in a standstill on the recruiting trail for the Sooners.

The Sooners are now working in an effective bubble with no new positive tests and no active cases of COVID-19. They are one of the few football programs in the country that have been successful in operating inside a bubble.

Here are 28 minutes from Sooners Wire managing editor Kegan Reneau talking everything Oklahoma football related from the last week. This is a weekly chat that takes place on Sundays.

Former Titans RB DeMarco Murray part of group trying to buy the Mets

The star-studded group is led by Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez.

After a deal to buy the New York Mets fell through earlier this year, another attempt is being made to buy the MLB franchise — and former Tennessee Titans running back DeMarco Murray is part of the group trying to do so.

According to ESPN’s Vaughn McClure, Murray is part of a star-studded cast of potential owners led by Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez that is looking to purchase the Mets.

Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher, Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce and 2014 NFL Offensive Player of the Year DeMarco Murray are part of a group of investors who have joined power couple Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez in a bid to buy the New York Mets.

There is some competition for Murray and Co., though.

Steve Cohen, the Hedge Fund billionaire who made the unsuccessful attempt to buy the team earlier this year, has reportedly submitted a $2 billion bid, which is more than the $1.7 billion bid from the Rodriguez-Lopez group.

However, it appears the Mets’ COO, Jeff Wilpon, would prefer to sell to the group led by Rodriguez and Lopez even if it doesn’t have the best offer on the table.

Along with Rodriguez, Lopez and Murray, other stars in on the bid include Brian Urlacher, Travis Kelce, Joe Thomas and Bradley Beal.

Murray, who spent two seasons with the Titans after being acquired in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles back in 2016, is currently serving as the running backs coach for his alma mater, Oklahoma.

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