Tag: Jaxson Dart

Sooners deemed ‘losers’ of the College Football Transfer Portal per Bleacher Report

After a crazy start to the offseason, the Sooners have been deemed losers of the transfer portal so far per Bleacher Report.

Over the years the transfer portal has become a weapon for the Oklahoma Sooners. Under Lincoln Riley, the Sooners were able to land quarterbacks that turned into top picks in the NFL draft. Though they continue to be the beneficiary of the portal, with Riley’s departure, the Sooners have seen some of their talents walk out the door this offseason.

The Sooners lost double-digit starters to the NFL draft or the transfer portal. While Brent Venables and his staff have rebounded mightily through the portal, some still view it as a net loss. Bleacher Report had this to say about the Sooners in their piece outlining the winners and losers of the transfer Portal:

Lincoln Riley’s departure to USC both hammered the recruiting class and sparked a wave of transfers.

Along with Haselwood’s flight for Arkansas, breakout quarterback Caleb Williams entered the portal. Though it’s still possible he returns to Oklahoma, the most likely outcome is he plays elsewhere in 2022. Even though OU swiped UCF transfer Dillon Gabriel from UCLA, Williams would be a significant loss.

And that’s merely the beginning.

Former starting QB Spencer Rattler and tight end Austin Stogner both left for South Carolina. Longtime safety Patrick Fields went to Stanford, and two promising freshmen—wideout Mario Williams (USC) and cornerback Latrell McCutchin (undecided)—also decided to transfer.

Oklahoma picked up some impactful transfers, including Cal guard McKade Mettauer, Hawaii D-lineman Jonah La’ulu and Appalachian State linebacker T.D. Roof. But that’s a long list of key departures. – David Kenyon, Bleacher Report

Losing a quarterback like Rattler, who was bound for the transfer portal the moment Caleb Williams showed what he could do against Texas, is hardly a blow. Not because Rattler isn’t talented but because there was no chance he would stay as long as Williams was here. At the moment, we’re still awaiting news on Williams’ next destination. The odds-on favorite is USC, but reportedly LSU is in the mix as well for the former Sooners starting quarterback. Shouldering the blow, the Sooners added Dillon Gabriel to the quarterback depth chart immediately after Williams entered his name into the portal and they are still in the mix for Jaxson Dart.

Defensively, the Sooners lost a couple of defensive backs but bring in equally seasoned and productive defensive backs in UNC transfer Trey Morrison, Wyoming DB C.J. Coldon, and Louisville DB Kani Walker to replace them. Only time will tell how well they perform for the Oklahoma Sooners. They’ve also brought in defensive linemen Jonah Laulu and Jeffrey Johnson to help bolster a defensive front that lost Perrion Winfrey, Isaiah Thomas, and Nik Bonitto to the NFL draft.

Ultimately, the Sooners won’t know how this transfer portal treats them until the impending decisions of Jaxson Dart and Caleb Williams are announced. It’s likely Williams is gone, but Dart combined with Dillon make the losses on the offensive side of the ball much more manageable.

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Pro Football Focus ranks Marvin Mims as the No. 8 returning wide receiver in college football

Oklahoma wide receiver Marvin Mims was ranked as college football’s No. 8 returning wide receiver by Pro Football Focus.

In some ways, it seems like ages ago when Oklahoma wide receiver Marvin Mims addressed his future with OU. Two days before Oklahoma’s bowl game versus the Ducks, Mims indicated that he planned on returning to Oklahoma, but that an official decision hadn’t been made yet.

“I definitely want to be here. I haven’t made that much of a decision yet, but I still want to be here. I’m pretty sure that everyone playing in this bowl game still wants to be here, too. There have been some departures to go to other schools and stuff like that, but me being here, I definitely want to be in the crimson and cream next season,” Mims said on Dec. 27.

Mims was his typical explosive self against Oregon. The Frisco, Texas, native hauled in a 55-yard touchdown grab to put OU in front 23-3 and the Sooners would go on to top the Ducks 47-32.

Obviously, much has changed since then. True freshman quarterback Caleb Williams entered the transfer portal and OU has brought in UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel. The Sooners also hosted USC transfer quarterback Jaxson Dart and USC transfer tight end Michael Trigg on recent visits, though that pair is yet to make a decision on their future.

All of this meant Mims’ future could still be up in the air.

Oklahoma’s first workouts with Jerry Schmidt, the Sooners’ new director of sports enhancement and strength and conditioning, began this week and Mims was in attendance.

That indicates Mims is here to stay at Oklahoma. It’s huge news for Oklahoma offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby as he looks to tailor his first offense in Norman around Mims’ talents.

Pro Football Focus ranked Mims as college football’s No. 8 returning wide receiver. Here’s what Pro Football Focus had to say about Mims.

Mims has yet to be a full-time starter, but his skill set and level of production as a true freshman and sophomore were too good to ignore. He owns an 86.5 receiving grade, 19.1 yards per catch, 3.14 yards per route run and a 143.8 passer rating when targeted since 2020.

Over that span, Mims has turned 34.4% of his targets into a gain of 15 or more yards, the third-highest rate in the Power Five. He should be a vital piece to Jeff Lebby’s offense in 2022. – Pro Football Focus.

Over the course of his OU career, Mims has caught 69 passes for 1,315 receiving yards. Mims was Oklahoma’s leading receiver each of the past two seasons and he finished the 2021 season with 705 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

The 5-foot-11, 177-pound wide receiver was named an All-Big 12 honorable mention choice by the league’s head coaches for his work this past season.

During the 2020 season, Mims tied the Big 12 true freshman record and set the OU freshman record with nine touchdown receptions. He earned freshman All-America honors from The Athletic and ESPN and was selected second-team All-Big 12 by the Big 12’s head coaches and media.

According to Pro Football Focus, Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy checked in as college football’s No. 4 returning wide receiver, former OU wide receiver Mario Williams is No. 6 and TCU’s Quentin Johnston is No. 9.

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What will ‘make or break’ the Oklahoma Sooners’ 2022 season?

247Sports reporter Marsdale touched on what will “make or break” Oklahoma’s 2022 season.

Oklahoma was ranked No. 12 in 247Sports reporter Brad Crawford’s “way-too-early” preseason top 25. That was the second-highest ranking for any Big 12 team, trailing only No. 10 Baylor.

Crawford also ranked fellow Big 12 members Oklahoma State No. 15 and Texas No. 19 in his first preseason top 25.

Using Crawford’s “way-too-early” top 25 rankings, 247Sports’ Sam Marsdale broke down what will make or break each top 25 team’s 2022 season.

Marsdale said that “being able to build an identity under Brent Venables” was the Sooners’ biggest key for 2022. Here’s what Marsdale wrote about Oklahoma.

There’s not a preseason top-15 team that will look more different than the Sooners roster-wise next season under first-year coach Brent Venables. He has watched several top-end playmakers enter the transfer portal since arriving last month, including a couple play-making wide receivers and Heisman candidate Caleb Williams at quarterback. Establishing an early identity on both sides of the football is priority No. 1 for Venables as a first-time head coach at a program expected to win big annually. – Marsdale, 247Sports.

It’s hard to argue with any of that. Whether or not USC transfer Jaxson Dart winds up picking Oklahoma or not, the Sooners appear set to have a new signal-caller in 2022 in the form of UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel or Dart if he does choose OU.

The Sooners also saw wide receivers Jadon Haselwood and Mario Williams enter the transfer portal. Also, wide receiver Mike Woods announced that he is declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft.

Running back Kennedy Brooks, tight end Jeremiah Hall and offensive linemen Marquis Hayes and Tyrese Robinson also declared for the 2022 NFL Draft.

On the defensive side of the football, OU will be replacing six starters. That list includes linebacker Brian Asamoah, outside linebacker Nik Bonitto, defensive linemen Isaiah Thomas and Perrion Winfrey and safety Delarrin Turner-Yell who all declared for the 2022 NFL Draft.

Safety Pat Fields left for Stanford on a full academic scholarship to continue his academic career where he will have one year of eligibility remaining.

Of course, Oklahoma has been active adding talent out of the transfer portal to help replace those losses. Plus, the Sooners are bringing in a talented 2022 signing class.

So, despite all of the attrition on both sides of the football, it’s not as if Oklahoma will suddenly be devoid of talent in 2022. While expectations are always high within Sooner Nation, it’s hard to disagree with Marsdale that how Venables and his staff build their identity in year one will be the most important factor during the 2022 season and beyond.

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USC transfer target TE Michael Trigg shares video alongside QB Jaxson Dart from Oklahoma visit

Tight end Michael Trigg and quarterback Jaxson Dart, a pair of USC transfer targets, were in Norman yesterday for a visit.

Oklahoma hosted USC transfer targets tight end Michael Trigg and quarterback Jaxson Dart on Friday. The duo is reportedly set to visit Ole Miss over the weekend and make a final decision on what’s next for their respective futures.

Trigg excited the OU fan base on Saturday morning when he shared video of himself alongside Dart donning the crimson and cream during the visit.

Dart is the No. 3 player available in 247Sports’ transfer portal player rankings. Trigg isn’t listed in 247Sports’ transfer portal player rankings, but both were consensus four-star prospects coming out of high school.

Dart was the nation’s No. 45 player and No. 7 quarterback in the On3 consensus rankings for the 2021 recruiting class. 247Sports‘ composite placed Dart as the No. 69 player overall and No. 10 quarterback in the 2021 class.

Meanwhile, Trigg was ranked as the country’s fourth-best tight end and No. 154 player nationally by the On3 consensus. 247Sports‘ composite also rated Trigg as the nation’s No. 4 tight end in the 2021 class, but he was ranked a little higher overall as the No. 130 player nationally.

Dart saw action in six games for USC this past season. As a true freshman, the Kaysville, Utah, native completed 117-of-189 passes for 1,353 passing yards with nine passing touchdowns against five interceptions. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound quarterback also started each of the Trojans’ final three games of 2021.

Trigg caught seven passes for 109 yards with USC. His best games of the 2021 season came against Oregon State and Colorado. Against the Beavers, Trigg hauled in three grabs for 44 yards.

Then, against the Buffaloes, Trigg showcased his potential with a 46-yard touchdown reception.

If the Sooners win this recruiting battle, Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables and offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby would be adding a highly sought-after quarterback, Dart, to battle UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

OU would also bolster a tight end group that saw the return of Brayden Willis, added Missouri transfer Daniel Parker Jr. and signed Kaden Helms and Jason Llewellyn in its 2022 class.

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The Sooners join two other teams in pursuit of Jaxson Dart; What does each offer?

Oklahoma is currently in a significant transfer portal recruiting battle with the Ole Miss Rebels and TCU Horned Frogs for QB Jaxson Dart.

Oklahoma and USC have been intertwined so much in the last two or three months you may have thought they were the fiercest of rivals. The reality is that one singular man’s decision married the programs in a way that neither probably wanted.

Lincoln Riley’s departure from Oklahoma had college landscape changing effects. Outside of the out of nowhere coaching search the Sooners undertook, the most significant ripple has been the departures each team has seen since that fateful day in November. The Sooners and Trojans’ have experienced so much player personnel coming and going that it is enough to make the calmest individual anxious and confused.

The biggest domino in this: Sooners QB Caleb Williams entered the portal and it led to Dillon Gabriel coming to Oklahoma to reunite with his former UCF coordinator in Jeff Lebby. Williams and his family were seemingly in LA visiting both UCLA and USC. Visits by Caleb and Mario Williams(also entered the transfer portal) led to folks closest to the program that there is significant reason to believe both could end up there.

On the USC side, things weren’t smooth sailing as former four-star QB Jaxson Dart, who performed admirably in the absence of Kedon Slovis with 1,353 yards and nine touchdowns against five interceptions while completing 61.9% of his throws, also entered the transfer portal.

Dart’s entry into the portal only gained traction as reports of Caleb Williams and USC uniting became a well-discussed topic amongst major college football media. As it stands both are the number one and two overall player available in 247’s transfer portal player rankings.

Oklahoma has shown Dart interest and Dart has an interest in them. According to a report from ESPN, Dart is also looking at Ole Miss and TCU

With that in mind and assuming Dart picks from one of those three let’s take a look at what each school has that could appeal most to Dart.

TCU Horned Frogs

The Horned Frogs may not be the sexy option that Oklahoma is but there’s a real reason to believe that Dart could go there, compete and be a successful quarterback. Why? The head coach has done it before with another transfer and at another school already.

Sonny Dykes has developed names like Jared Goff into the NFL and he also can boast that he helped Shane Buechele and Tanner Mordecai revitalize their careers at SMU. He knows and gets quarterbacks. That’s an undeniable fact.

He also stated that the TCU job is up for grabs this offseason. While Zack Evans transferred to Ole Miss, the Horned Frogs have a talented playmaker out wide in junior Quentin Johnston and incoming freshman Jordan Hudson as weapons for Dart. One would imagine TCU isn’t the betting favorite but they present some real opportunity.

Ole Miss Rebels

In Mississippi, Lane Kiffin waits and hopes he can do whatever he can to get Jaxson Dart on campus. Dart would immediately be the guy at Ole Miss as likely first-rounder Matt Corral is headed to the NFL Draft and John Rhys Plumlee to the transfer portal.

Currently, the only quarterback the Rebels have with any meaningful game action is like Altymer, who saw time in the Rebels Sugar Bowl loss to Baylor.

The aforementioned Zach Evans from TCU transferred to Ole Miss and it’s very plausible that Ole Miss brings in Michael Trigg, another USC transfer and supposedly a very close friend of Dart’s for a visit as well.

With Kiffin’s offensive acumen, recent film of Matt Corral success, and the path of least resistance to a starting quarterback job, the Rebels look firmly entrenched in this race.

Oklahoma Sooners

Last but certainly not least, the Oklahoma Sooners are the third team that figures to be a major factor in the race for Jaxson Dart.

Oklahoma probably has the most to offer but also probably poses Dart with the biggest obstacles to immediate playing time. However, that doesn’t seem to matter as Dart signed to play at USC despite Slovis’ presence and Miller Moss also signed. Competition doesn’t look like it scares him and if not, joining Oklahoma would be a great move.

He’d compete with Dillon Gabriel all spring and summer and assuming Gabriel won out due to familiarity and comfort in Lebby’s offensive system, Dart would be the number two guy. He would only be a play away from seeing the field and we know that he’s comfortable coming off the bench and producing. Assuming Gabriel makes it through the season with a clean bill of health, he’d then go into 2023 with four-star commit Nick Evers as his only real competition.

Lebby’s track record of developing and getting the best out of his quarterbacks speaks for itself and Oklahoma’s offensive weapons with Marvin Mims, Eric Gray, Brayden Willis, Jalil Farooq, Theo Wease, and the incoming freshmen plus the possibilities of his friend and former Trojan Michael Trigg being able to play here have to seem doubly exciting.

All told, this is a fascinating situation that has a very interesting conclusion one way or another. Does Dart presumably switch places with Caleb Williams and head for the Palace on the Prairie? Does he go to Ole Miss and try and forge something with Lane Kiffin? Or does he join the Big 12 and head to Fort Worth to do battle with Max Duggan and Chandler Morris to see who Sonny Dykes’ QB to start his tenure at TCU?

Either way, whatever happens, we’ll keep you updated here on Sooners Wire.

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ESPN tabs quarterback Dillon Gabriel as the Sooners’ top ‘instant-impact newcomer’

ESPN listed Oklahoma quarterback Dillon Gabriel as its “instant-impact newcomer” for the Sooners.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach already released his “way-too-early” top 25 rankings for the 2022 college football season where the Sooners checked in at No. 17.

Now, ESPN’s Tom VanHaaren shared which players are the biggest instant-impact newcomers for each of Schlabach’s “way-too-early” top-25 teams.

His pick for Oklahoma was UCF transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel. The 6-foot, 186 pound signal-caller has thrown for 8,037 yards and 70 passing touchdowns during his three years with the Knights.

Gabriel was injured at the end of UCF’s third game of this past season against Louisville. He finished his 2021 season with 814 passing yards, nine passing touchdowns and a 68.6 completion percentage.

In 2020, Gabriel had 32 passing touchdowns against just four interceptions and 3,570 passing yards. With Jeff Lebby as his offensive coordinator in 2019, Gabriel recorded 3,653 passing yards and 29 passing touchdowns against seven interceptions.

Gabriel will reunite with Lebby at Oklahoma and he arrives in Norman as someone who has been an established starter in college football for the Sooners.

Here’s what VanHaaren had to say about the type of impact Gabriel will have on OU.

The Sooners have had quarterbacks Spencer Rattler and Caleb Williams enter the transfer portal, leaving a clear path for Gabriel to start. New offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby coached Gabriel at UCF. Gabriel threw for 3,653 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2019 under Lebby, and now the two have a chance to put together an explosive offense once again. – VanHaaren, ESPN

Assuming Caleb Williams does in fact transfer away from Oklahoma, it essentially means the Sooners will have a different starting quarterback than the previous season for the sixth consecutive year.

Spencer Rattler technically bucked that trend last season, but, by the time the season ended, Williams had started the majority of Oklahoma’s games and finished the season as the Sooners’ unquestioned starting quarterback.

Gabriel isn’t just a plug-the-gap starter if he winds up winning the Sooners’ starting quarterback job. He’s someone that has started a lot of college football games, put up big numbers, has three years of eligibility remaining and ranks as 247Sports’ No. 15 transfer portal player in 2022.

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USC quarterback to transfer out, Caleb Williams next in?

Did Lincoln Riley then land Caleb Williams?

USC quarterback Jaxson Dart has entered the transfer portal.  Dart threw for over 1,300 yards and nine touchdowns in six games as a true freshman in 2021 after he enrolled early last January.

Dart enrolled at Southern California with high praise as he was graded by 247Sports as a top-10 quarterback in the 2021 recruiting cycle and the 69th overall player in the entire class.

Dart now joins former USC quarterback Kedon Slovis, who transferred to Pittsburgh earlier this off-season.

The recent entry of star Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams to the portal combined with the sudden opening for a starting quarterback at USC would make it appear that Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley may have gotten Williams to follow him.

Notre Dame will conclude the 2022 regular season at USC on November 26.

Related:

Notre Dame transfer portal tracker 2022

Early look at Notre Dame’s 2022 schedule

Know your foe, USC: Five Trojans who could give Notre Dame problems

The Irish will have to be aware of these 5 Trojans

As we all know, wide receiver Drake London has been getting a lot of publicity recently and rightfully so. He’s fourth in the NCAA in yardage, and has four straight 100-yard games. London is an absolute monster but the Trojan’s aren’t a one-trick pony. The have lot of talent and these are five other USC players who could give Notre Dame problems Saturday night.

Did Kedon Slovis just lose the starting QB job at USC?

USC quarterback Kedon Slovis left Saturday’s game with an injury, but he might not get his starting job back from Jaxson Dart

This week didn’t get off to a great start for one of the most historic programs in all of college football, as the USC Trojans fired head coach Clay Helton.

Early in Saturday night’s game against Washington State, they also lost starting quarterback Kedon Slovis to injury.

His replacement, Jaxson Dart, made the most of his chance to shine.

Dart threw four touchdown passes in relief of Slovis, leading the Trojans to a 45-14 win over the Cougars. He tossed a pair of interceptions, but completed 30 of his 46 pass attempts for 391 yards.

That might lead many to wonder why the Trojans would go back to Slovis, even if he’s fully healthy. After the game, interim head coach Donte Williams seemed to add fuel to that fire:

Coming into this year, Slovis was considered one of the better quarterback prospects in the 2020 NFL draft class, but it looks like he might have just lost his starting job just three weeks into the season.

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2021 QB Jaxson Dart fires 7 touchdown passes in dominant No. 10 Corner Canyon win

No. 10 Corner Canyon quarterback Jaxson Dart fired seven touchdown passes in a 56-17 No. 10 Corner Canyon win on Friday night.

Corner Canyon High School, ranked No. 10 in USA Today’s Super 25, has dominated the high school football scene in Utah this season, defeating opponents by an average margin of 34.25 points per game.

A big reason why is senior quarterback Jaxson Dart, whose ability was on full display in Corner Canyon’s 56-17 win over Westlake High School on Friday night. In only two and a half quarters of action, Dart tossed seven touchdown passes, breaking Corner Canyon’s program record for touchdown passes in a single game.

Dart holds offers from Arizona State, BYU, Fordham, Iowa State, Louisiana, UPenn, TCU, UCLA, Utah State and Yale. The Utah legacy’s 247Sports Crystal Ball currently reads 100% in favor of BYU, where former Corner Canyon quarterback Zach Wilson starts.