Tag: Jeremiah Hall

State of Oklahoma’s top running back officially signs with the Sooners

The state’s top running back is officially apart of the Oklahoma Sooners football team.

Running back was an up-and-down group in 2023 for the Oklahoma Sooners. But [autotag]DeMarco Murray[/autotag] proved how good he was as a recruiter with the class of 2024.

One of those guys who committed and now has signed is the state of Oklahoma’s top-ranked running back, [autotag]Xavier Robinson[/autotag]. The Carl Albert Titan is built like a titan, standing 6 feet, 2 inches and weighing 220 pounds.

He burst on the scene after an incredible junior season in which he rushed for 2,594 yards and 39 TDs on 9.4 yards per carry. He had another fantastic season in 2023, securing Max Preps Oklahoma Prep Player of the Year. After receiving substantial interest nationally, he committed to the Sooners.

As far as his role for 2024, that is unclear. The Sooners return a great deal in the running back room. It’s unclear if new offensive coordinators [autotag]Seth Littrell[/autotag] and [autotag]Joe Jon Finley[/autotag] will use an H-back or fullback in their offense.

If they do, I can see a world where Robinson makes an immediate impact playing that [autotag]Trey Millard[/autotag], [autotag]Dimitri Flowers[/autotag] or [autotag]Jeremiah Hall[/autotag] type of role.

More from the [autotag]2024 Early Signing Period[/autotag]

 

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Oklahoma Sooners tight end Brayden Willis declares for the NFL Draft

After a breakout season in 2022, Oklahoma Sooners tight end Brayden Willis declares for the NFL Draft.

This time of the year is always the hardest as beloved players decide to take their talents to the next level. Several key starters have already made their intentions known, and now [autotag]Brayden Willis[/autotag] joins the list of those heading to the NFL. With a Senior Bowl invite in hand, it was inevitable.

Willis experienced a breakout campaign in 2022 after sharing the tight end/H-Back role with [autotag]Jeremiah Hall[/autotag] and [autotag]Austin Stogner[/autotag] the previous two seasons. In 2022, Willis led the Oklahoma Sooners in touchdown receptions and was second in receiving yards. His 39 receptions tied with Drake Stoops for second on the team behind Marvin Mims’ 54.

It was a career year in the passing game for Willis, who’s certainly caught the eye of NFL scouts and general managers. Coming into the season, Willis had already established himself as one of the best blocking tight ends in the country. His work as a blocker in both the run and pass game was invaluable for the Oklahoma Sooners.

As the tight end becomes more passing game-focused, it’s difficult to find tight ends that are NFL-ready because their blocking needs work. Willis will be able to step in and help whichever team drafts him right away.

As the college football season comes to an end, Willis will have an opportunity to showcase his talents in front of NFL personnel at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala.

Willis will be missed for his leadership, work ethic, and do it all ability. He’s an example to younger players of the importance of doing the work and biding your time. He could have transferred and found more playing time elsewhere, but he didn’t. And when his number was called to play a significant role in the offense, he performed. Now, Brayden Willis is going to get drafted because of it.

Here are some of the best plays from Brayden Willis’ career as an Oklahoma Sooner.

Oklahoma to debut ‘UNITY’ alternate uniforms this weekend vs. Kansas

Oklahoma will be wearing new digs on Saturday versus Kansas.

Oklahoma will have a different look Saturday when they take the field versus the Kansas Jayhawks.

Saturday represents the first time we’ll see Oklahoma dawn their newest alternate when they take the field wearing their Unity uniforms. The jerseys were designed to emphasize the importance of togetherness and building relationships to better society.

The Unity uniform, which has been in the making since 2020, will also honor former running back Prentice Gautt, who was the first black football player at Oklahoma on scholarship.

Gautt played under legendary Oklahoma coach Bud Wilkinson and exemplified the true meaning of student-athlete while also breaking down barriers and paving the way for the Sooner athletes of today.

The uniform, released Wednesday afternoon, was accompanied by a video with an explanation for the origin of the uniform from former Sooners’ captain and S.O.U.L. team member Caleb Kelly. Kelly is one of the major figures behind the design and inspiration of the jersey.

Former Sooner football players Jeremiah Hall, Pat Fields and Creed Humphrey joined Caleb Kelly and Chanse Sylvie to spearhead the project. The football program joins the softball team, and the men’s and women’s basketball teams on Oklahoma’s campus with an anthracite-colored alternate uniform.

The idea has been brewing since 2020, which likely came about during college football’s deeper commitment to using its platform to highlight racial injustices and support a more inclusive environment in the sport.

The Sooners will don the anthracite-colored jerseys, pants and helmets with crimson trim and lettering, the word “together” sewn on the collar, the word “unity” on the back-of-the-jersey nameplate and a patch of the state of Oklahoma on the sleeves. It’s the first new jersey combo for Oklahoma since it debuted the “Roughrider” uniforms.

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After being underutilized at the end of 2021, Marvin Mims off to a hot start to begin 2022

After a frustrating end to the 2021 season, Marvin Mims is showing why he needs to be targeted early and often for the Oklahoma Sooners through two games in 2022.

The last month of the 2021 season was frustrating for a lot of reasons. The Oklahoma Sooners lost games to Baylor and Oklahoma State to knock them out of Big 12 and College Football Playoff contention. Those losses sandwiched a disappointing day offensively in a win over Iowa State.

Among the frustrations was the lack of targets directed toward wide receiver Marvin Mims. Mims, who led the Sooners in receiving yards for the second straight season, received just eight targets against Baylor, Iowa State, and Oklahoma State; combined.

Eight. Targets.

Here’s how the targets were distributed over the final three weeks of the season to Oklahoma’s top five receivers in that three-game stretch.

Targets Receptions Yards Touchdowns
Michael Woods 14 7 87 0
Jadon Haselwood 12 6 83 0
Jeremiah Hall 9 8 113 0
Mario Williams 8 4 28 1
Marvin Mims 8 4 43 0

Mims tied for fourth in targets over the last three weeks of the regular season. Some of that was due to the way defenses were playing Mims, as they were looking to take away the deep ball. But there were zero adjustments made by Lincoln Riley to find other ways to get Mims the ball. Riley failed to get his best playmaker the football in a stretch of games where the Oklahoma Sooners were struggling to move the ball.

It was a stretch of games that had Marvin Mims on the verge of transferring had Riley stayed at Oklahoma.

“There wasn’t as many targets as I was looking for, nowhere near it,” Mims said told 247Sports’ Chris Hummer at Big 12 Media Days in July. “It was kind of a letdown, but at the end of the day I had to just keep battling through it. There were times where I was really unhappy about it with both the receiver coach and the offensive coordinator, but it was what it was.”

But with the coaching change that brought Jeff Lebby in to coordinate the offense, Marvin Mims is showing why that frustration was warranted.

Through two games, Marvin Mims has been targeted 12 times. He’s turned those 12 targets into an incredibly efficient 10 receptions for 244 yards and two touchdowns. He’s on pace to shatter his career-best numbers and is still averaging 24.4 yards per reception on the season.

Though he was targeted once in the first 29:24 of game time, Marvin Mims made his final three targets of the first half count. On three straight plays, Dillon Gabriel looked Mims’ way and the two connected for gains of 13, 14, and 36 yards, culminating in a touchdown.

Better late than never.

His performance on Saturday helped spark an Oklahoma Sooners’ offense that struggled for nearly 29 minutes of the first half. From the final drive of the half through the third quarter, the offense erupted for 31 points. It was his 36-yard touchdown reception at the end of the first half that got the Sooners on the board.

“… he ran by the guy in half-field coverage, and Dillon (Gabriel) makes a great throw,” Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables said “And Marvin makes a great play right over the shoulder, and, you know, good competitive play there when it counted the most. And it was, what a great play that was by both of them.”

It was a clutch play at a time when the Sooners needed someone to come through for them. The Sooners’ leading receiver for the 2020 and 2021 seasons came through with a big-time play to prevent Oklahoma from possibly trailing Kent State going into halftime. That was part of a career-high performance for the third-year Sooners wide receiver.

“And super proud of Marvin Mims, man, and what a display he put on tonight,” Venables said. “He’s my player of the game. Again, 203 all-purpose yards or whatever he does when he touches that ball, man. It’s electric. So 163 career yards receiving 36-yard touchdown, the 41-yard punt return, longest punt return we’ve had in three years.”

Only one other time in Marvin Mims career did he have seven receptions. The 2020 Big 12 title game win over Iowa State. On that day, he had seven receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown to help Oklahoma capture their sixth straight Big 12 title.

The Oklahoma Sooners need to feature Mims more moving forward. Seven to ten targets a game should be the goal because when he gets targeted, he produces. If Saturday against Kent State is any indication, Mims may see all the targets he wants and then some.

Offensive Coordinator Jeff Lebby said after the game, “Wanted to force the ball to him to give him the opportunity to go make plays and get us down the field. And it worked out the way we wanted.”

As the Sooners prepare to take on Nebraska, they must look to Marvin Mims early and often. He’s the type of player that can suck the air out of a hostile road crowd with his big play ability. While Jeff Lebby wants the Sooners to have a dominant running game, perhaps the clearest path to making that happen might be to air it out to his best offensive weapon.

As Mims makes plays down the field, he forces teams to commit more personnel to slow Oklahoma’s passing attack, leaving fewer defenders available around the line of scrimmage to stop the run. Tradition would argue that teams use the run to set up the pass, but times have changed. In modern college football, where passing attacks are so efficient, and good pass defenders are hard to come by, establishing your passing attack can open the ground game, as we saw on Saturday against Kent State.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers rank 113th in the NCAA in passing yards allowed. Oklahoma’s road trip could feature another opportunity to air it out with Dillon Gabriel and Marvin Mims leading the way. And it could mean another career day for the Sooners’ talented wide receiver.

But only if they make it a point to get him the football.

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‘Loves to compete’: Jalil Farooq slated to start for the Oklahoma Sooners

After providing a glimpse of his ability in the Alamo Bowl, Jalil Farooq is set to make the first start of his career against the UTEP Miners.

In the aftermath of the 2021 season, the Oklahoma Sooners lost the top four players in receptions. [autotag]Michael Woods[/autotag] and [autotag]Jeremiah Hall[/autotag] left for the NFL, while [autotag]Jadon Haselwood[/autotag] and [autotag]Mario Williams[/autotag] found new opportunities via the transfer portal.

But that doesn’t mean the Oklahoma Sooners don’t have talent in their wide receiver room. Oklahoma brings back its leader in receiving yards from the last two seasons, [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag]. Mims was underutilized by the previous coaching staff, especially in the second half of the season.

Returning to the field after missing nearly all of 2021 is the guy that tied with Mims for the team lead in receptions in 2020, [autotag]Theo Wease[/autotag]. Wease brings back his dynamic yards after the catch ability that helps turn short receptions into big gains.

But the receiving talent doesn’t stop there.

One of the big takeaways from the Oklahoma Sooners Alamo Bowl win over Oregon was the performance of [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag]. Farooq, who had played sparingly during his freshman season, had a memorable performance that provided a glimpse of his future with the Sooners.

Against the Ducks, Farooq had three receptions for 64 yards, including a total of 48 yards after the catch.

He’s carried that over into a fabulous spring and fall camp and has earned an opportunity to start for the Sooners in Week 1 vs. UTEP.

“I think the thing with ‘Lil, man, is he’s continued to mature, one,” Lebby said in his week on media availability. “He’s been the same guy in the building every single day. He’s got this huge future, and I think he’s just now starting to figure it out. And the guy loves to compete. He loves to play football. And, to me, he’s shown what we’re all about as a unit, as a team. He’s worked incredibly hard. He’s been the same guy. He’s been accountable. He’s been dependable. He’s been tough. And so those things have put him in a position to go do some fun things this fall.”

And this is part of the fun that Farooq provides on the field. His speed and ability to break tackles in the open field give Oklahoma another playmaker in the passing game.

A trio of Theo Wease, Marvin Mims and Jalil Farooq are going to put a lot of pressure on opposing secondaries. While Mims and Wease are more established names, it will not be long before defenses will have to account for Farooq as well. And that will open things up even more for the Sooners’ passing attack.

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Giants trim roster to 85 by waiving Jeremiah Hall, two others

The New York Giants waived TE Jeremiah Hall and two others on Tuesday, trimming their roster to the league-mandated 85.

The New York Giants had to trim their roster down to 85 by the close of business on Tuesday, but they didn’t wait that long.

Just prior to the start of practice, the team announced that tight end Jeremiah Hall and defensive back Gavin Heslop had been waived. Wide receiver Austin Proehl was also waived/injured.

Hall, who had been receiving first-team reps at times, is the biggest surprise among those waived. It’s especially surprising given the team’s lacking depth at the tight end position. He had also been receiving snaps at fullback/H-back in the absence of Andre Miller (forearm).

The Giants now have just four healthy tight ends on the roster: rookies Daniel Bellinger and Austin Allen, Chris Myarick and Jordan Akins.

Heslop and Proehl were deep down on the depth chart.

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Undrafted rookie Andre Miller impressing Giants early in camp

Undrafted rookie Andre Miller (Maine) has made an early impression at New York Giants training camp and may earn himself a roster spot.

During Friday night’s Blue & White scrimmage at MetLife Stadium, undrafted rookie tight end Andre Miller hauled in a touchdown much to the delight of his New York Giants teammates.

But that wasn’t the first time Miller’s name popped up this summer. In fact, he’s made his presence felt with impressive frequency.

Whether Miller, who spent four college seasons at Maine, is playing tight end, fullback of H-back, he consistently stands out and makes plays. That trend continued during Sunday’s practice when Miller made a few nice blocks from the fullback position.

“He has some good quickness, and he’s got good ball skills. He was a receiver at Maine. So, to come in here and switch positions, it’s not the easiest thing,” head coach Brian Daboll told reporters of Miller. “I was around a fullback by the name of James Develin, who was one of the all-time great players to be around — smart, tough, dependable — was a defensive end. Went through all of these different leagues. And he learned to play that position at a high level, but it was a work in progress.

“I’d say that’s where Andre is. He does some things well. Some of the things he’s doing for the first time ever. It’s such a different game when you’re in the backfield and looking to block guys in the box rather than outside running against the corner, whoever it may be. So, he’s studying hard. He’s got a long way to go to continue to improve, but he has a skillset that he’s done a good job with it so far.”

Miller’s multi-positional development has been aided by veteran tight end Ricky Seals-Jones missing practice. That has allowed the rookie to receive more reps at tight end while still working at H-back and fullback alongside Jeremiah Hall.

There’s obviously a ways to go in Miller’s progression but his versatility, coachability and willingness to move around will serve him well. He’s making a strong case for a spot on the 53-man roster.

Update: Miller has suffered a broken arm and is expected to miss some time.

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2022 Giants training camp preview: Fullback

The New York Giants have only one fullback listed on their roster but they could use other in a similar role — or use none at all.

The New York Giants will have a new look to their offense this year under new head coach Brian Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka.

Everyone knows about their past histories. Daboll is responsible for the ascent of Josh Allen as a star in Buffalo while Kafka gets much credit as Patrick Mahomes’ quarterback coach in Kansas City.

One thing that isn’t mentioned much is the running game. The Giants have questionable stable of running backs led by the often-injured Saquon Barkley and it is still unknown how the unit will be used.

There is also no dedicated fullback on the roster. Here is how they will likely deploy that position this year.

Oklahoma tight end Brayden Willis named to Mackey Award watch list for 2022

On the verge of a breakout season, Oklahoma Sooners tight end Brayden Willis was named to the Mackey Award watch list for 2022.

One of the players that has the chance to benefit the most from an offseason of turnover and draft declarations is tight end Brayden Willis.

Willis split time at H-back/tight end with [autotag]Jeremiah Hall[/autotag] and [autotag]Austin Stogner[/autotag] as part of a platoon that [autotag]Lincoln Riley[/autotag] would roll out in 2021. With Hall now in the NFL and Stogner with South Carolina, a huge opportunity has presented itself to the senior tight end.

Following [autotag]Dillon Gabriel[/autotag], [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag], and [autotag]Eric Gray[/autotag]’s additions to preseason watch lists, [autotag]Brayden Willis[/autotag] was named to the [autotag]Mackey Award[/autotag] watch list for 2022. [autotag]Mark Andrews[/autotag] is the only Oklahoma Sooners tight end to win the annual award.

Willis received just 20 targets in 2021 but turned that into 14 receptions for 166 yards and two touchdowns. No reception was bigger than this one just before halftime in Bedlam.

With the Sooners trailing by seven with under a minute to play in the first half, Willis got one-on-one coverage on the outside and beat his man into the end zone on the fade route for the touchdown. It was a beautiful throw by [autotag]Caleb Williams[/autotag] and a beautiful catch by Willis for the touchdown.

He’s shown to be an impact blocker in the running game and has the hands to be a fantastic weapon in the passing game. If he and Dillon Gabriel can build off of this highlight from spring practice, Brayden Willis will be one of the breakout stars for the 2022 Oklahoma Sooners.

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Running wild: Oklahoma keeps up their recruiting momentum landing 4-star running back Daylan Smothers

After releasing his top four featuring Oklahoma, Alabama, NC State, and Florida State, four-star RB Daylan Smothers picks OU.

The Sooners have broken into a full-out sprint on the recruiting trail in the month of July after getting their legs under them in June. Their recruiting exploits have taken them to the Pacific Northwest through the midwest and to the northeast.

These aren’t places a team like Oklahoma typically ventures into to find talent.

Another part of the country that is relatively untapped for Oklahoma is the state of North Carolina. The Oklahoma Sooners have had a bit more of a presence here in the last few years, with former Sooners like [autotag]Austin Kendall[/autotag], [autotag]Ryan Jones[/autotag], and most recently, [autotag]Jeremiah Hall[/autotag] all hailing from the N.C. Adding to that list is another Sooner, as the North Carolina High School Player of the Year by the Charlotte Observer and News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) [autotag]Daylan Smothers[/autotag] committed to Oklahoma on Thursday afternoon.

Smothers, a do-it-all four-star running back hoping to play his final year of high school ball at West Charlotte High School, received an offer from Oklahoma in March when he shined the brightest at the Rivals camp held in Charlotte, NC. Standing front and center was the trio of DeMarco Murray, Brent Venables, and offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby. They extended the offer and then proceeded to put the full court press on Smothers, who was considering Alabama, Florida State, and in-state school N.C. State. Smothers is the 15th commitment for the Sooners.

 

Projections came in fast and furious in favor of Oklahoma for the running back when he dropped his top four a few weeks ago, and that was the precursor to letting the recruiting world know who was the overwhelming favorite with a commitment imminent.

His combination of speed, power, and vision made him a coveted prospect by many teams on the east coast, and he’s now a Sooner. He pairs with Kalib Hicks, another four-star running back, to round out the Sooners’ recruiting efforts in the backfield. With Hicks and Smothers, the Sooners get dynamic playmakers with track backgrounds. Both have some legitimate acceleration and top-end speed and will only add to the running back room when they team with guys like Jovantae Barnes and Gavin Sawchuk upon arriving on campus next year.

With recruiting all but done for 2023, DeMarco Murray can now look forward to 2024 as he seeks to build on this year’s work. Names to watch early on include four-stars Stacy Gage and Tovani Mizell.

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