Tag: recruiting rankings

Where ESPN ranks the Oklahoma Sooners’ 2022 recruiting class

ESPN released their updated team recruiting rankings for the 2022 cycle. Where do the Oklahoma Sooners fall this early?

The Oklahoma Sooners got off to a hot start in the 2022 recruiting cycle with the additions of Luther Burden, Talyn Shettron, and Jordan Hudson at wide receiver. Their lone defensive commit coming from Lubbock Cooper’s Kobie McKinzie. More recently they added Mater Dei’s Raleek Brown at running back and Aledo tight end, Jason Llewellyn.

According to the 247Sports composite team rankings, this puts OU at No. 7 in the country after finishing 2021 at No. 11 overall. However, other recruiting platforms have different viewpoints based on their own rankings. Rivals see Oklahoma at No. 5 overall and ESPN agrees with their team rankings as well.

According to ESPN (subscription required), the Sooners have a top-five class at this point in the cycle.

No. 5 Oklahoma Sooners

(Doug Hoke/The Oklahoman)

ESPN 300 Commits: 5

Top Offensive Commit: Talyn Shettron (No. 13)

Top Defensive Commit: Kobe McKinzie (No. 81)

Lincoln Riley may need to figure out a way to incorporate a second football into his offensive attack with the depth of playmakers he is amassing. The Sooners signed one of the best wide receiver classes in the 2021 cycle, and several more top offensive weapons are on board for 2022.

The class includes three ESPN Jr. 300 top-10 wide receivers: in-state prospect Shettron, Jordan Hudson out of Texas and Luther Burden, a fast and smooth target out of Illinois. Adding to the offensive firepower is top-three RB Raleek Brown, a sudden and speedy scatback-type who can be dangerous in space.

At this point to see the Sooners in the top five without a quarterback commit in the class or many defenders has to feel like a huge win for Lincoln Riley and company. It remains to be seen as to who the Sooners might add next. The offensive line, quarterback, and defense still have plenty of room to add top prospects.

As it currently sits, Oklahoma will have no shortage of top wide receivers for their quarterbacks to target on the football field. One shouldn’t expect a top quarterback to be targeted in the 2022 class and look at the 2023 class with Los Alamitos’ Malachi Nelson to lead the way.

Oklahoma leads the Big 12 Conference’s 2021 recruiting rankings

With the 2021 recruiting cycle coming to a close on Wednesday, Sooners Wire takes a look at where Oklahoma finished among their peers.

The Oklahoma Sooners finished out their 2021 recruiting class with 16 signees. Each of which signed back in December during the early signing period. The team would also add five players through the transfer portal. Due to the activity in the portal, head coach Lincoln Riley stated that they didn’t send any National Letters of Intent to prospective recruits to sign.

After the early signing period started in December, along with the additions they made through the transfer portal, the Sooners didn’t feel a need to add any more scholarship high school players today. – Josh Callaway’s five takeaways from the Riley Press Conference

The Sooners ended the 2021 cycle with a total of 21 players added through high school recruiting and the portal. I guess you could say it really was LincUpXXI.

Oklahoma has the No. 11 class according to 247Sports composite team rankings. They finish with the No. 1 class in the Big 12 Conference. Using the 247Sports rankings, Sooners Wire lists the rankings for each Big 12 member. We start with Oklahoma.

Recruiting 2021: 5 Teams Crushing It This Recruiting Season

Who’s having a big recruiting season? Here are five teams and head coaches doing a fantastic job in 2021 after a mediocre 2020.

Who’s having a big recruiting season? Here are five teams and head coaches doing a fantastic job in 2021 after a mediocre 2020.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

You know who has the top 2021 recruiting classes without even looking.

If you guessed Alabama, Ohio State, Clemson, and a whole slew of SEC schools, you’re right. But there are always schools who surprise in the process and come up with big, important classes that can shape a program and future conference races.

Sometimes the class looks good because of bulk signings, sometimes it’s talent, and sometimes it’s a good blend of both.

Here are five programs bringing in somewhat surprising classes to be among the best – even if they aren’t pushing Alabama – of the 2021 recruiting season.

[jwplayer cmV7bq8V]

5. Pitt Panthers

The ACC is Clemson’s show and everyone else is a guest – especially with Florida State having a rough time getting this recruiting thing going again – but North Carolina has been excellent with Mack Brown back and Miami is putting together a fantastic 2021 haul.

Suddenly, Pitt is right there knocking on the door with a potential top 5 – or better – ACC class.

Pitt usually comes up with decent classes, but it almost never gets the top tier talents who have their choice of any program. However, when you have one of the most devastating pass rushes in college football over the last few years, top defensive linemen will notice you.

– 2021 Pitt Schedule Analysis, Best & Worst Scenarios

It helps to pump up that Pitt is Aaron Donald’s school, and it doesn’t hurt a class when his nephew – Elliot Donald – signs on. He’s not alone with a few other fantastic prospects coming in for the D line to go along with talent for the offensive front.

Depth and bulk play a factor here. Pitt needed to load up on recruits, but there’s quality to go along with the quantity.

And, yeah, it got another Donald at defensive tackle.

NEXT: Missouri Tigers

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

Recruiting 2021: 5 Teams Crushing It This Recruiting Season

Who’s having a big recruiting season? Here are five teams and head coaches doing a fantastic job in 2021 after a mediocre 2020.

Who’s having a big recruiting season? Here are five teams and head coaches doing a fantastic job in 2021 after a mediocre 2020.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

You know who has the top 2021 recruiting classes without even looking.

If you guessed Alabama, Ohio State, Clemson, and a whole slew of SEC schools, you’re right. But there are always schools who surprise in the process and come up with big, important classes that can shape a program and future conference races.

Sometimes the class looks good because of bulk signings, sometimes it’s talent, and sometimes it’s a good blend of both.

Here are five programs bringing in somewhat surprising classes to be among the best – even if they aren’t pushing Alabama – of the 2021 recruiting season.

[jwplayer cmV7bq8V]

5. Pitt Panthers

The ACC is Clemson’s show and everyone else is a guest – especially with Florida State having a rough time getting this recruiting thing going again – but North Carolina has been excellent with Mack Brown back and Miami is putting together a fantastic 2021 haul.

Suddenly, Pitt is right there knocking on the door with a potential top 5 – or better – ACC class.

Pitt usually comes up with decent classes, but it almost never gets the top tier talents who have their choice of any program. However, when you have one of the most devastating pass rushes in college football over the last few years, top defensive linemen will notice you.

– 2021 Pitt Schedule Analysis, Best & Worst Scenarios

It helps to pump up that Pitt is Aaron Donald’s school, and it doesn’t hurt a class when his nephew – Elliot Donald – signs on. He’s not alone with a few other fantastic prospects coming in for the D line to go along with talent for the offensive front.

Depth and bulk play a factor here. Pitt needed to load up on recruits, but there’s quality to go along with the quantity.

And, yeah, it got another Donald at defensive tackle.

NEXT: Missouri Tigers

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

Two Texas signees gain an extra star in latest 247 rankings

Running back Jonathon Brooks and versatile athlete Ja’Tavion Sanders each received an extra star in 247Sports updated 2021 rankings.

Two-way athlete Ja’Tavion Sanders and running back Jonathon Brooks have added an extra star next to their name. Continue reading “Two Texas signees gain an extra star in latest 247 rankings”

Where’s Georgia football? Taking a look at the updated 2021 recruiting class rankings

Where the Georgia football program stands after early signing day

Wednesday, the 2021 early signing period officially began across the country for NCAA Division 1 programs.

Although there seemed to be less drama than usual for a signing day, there were still plenty of commitments and letters of intent faxed in to colleges far and wide.

The Bulldogs filled plenty of needs on their recruiting big boards, so it would be safe to call the early signing period a success for Coach Kirby Smart and company after landing all 20 commits.

Now, let’s take a look at where the Bulldogs wound up in the rankings.

247Sports:

  1. Alabama – 319.23
  2. Ohio State – 310.39
  3. Georgia – 294.84
  4. LSU – 294.75
  5. Clemson – 282.31
  6. Oregon – 280.77
  7. Oklahoma – 268.07
  8. Florida – 267.27
  9. Notre Dame – 265.71
  10. Miami – 263.33

Rivals:

  1. Alabama – 3,239
  2. Ohio State – 3,005
  3. LSU – 2,739
  4. Georgia – 2,664
  5. Oregon – 2,639
  6. Clemson – 2,472
  7. Florida – 2,462
  8. USC – 2,334
  9. Miami – 2,327
  10. Notre Dame – 2,282

Notre Dame football adds yet another ‘21 commitment

It had been five days since anyone gave Notre Dame their commitment so local talent Jojo Johnson changed that on Tuesday.

It had been a while since Notre Dame last received a commitment to their 2021 recruiting class seeing as it’s been a whole five days.

That might not seem very long but considering the heater Notre Dame has been on in recruiting, it feels like a long time.  

The Irish received four commitments last week as their class ranking jumped into the top 10 nationally according to most outlets.

Tuesday saw them add yet another commitment, this one coming from a young man they only offered an official scholarship to days ago.

JoJo Johnson was offered by Notre Dame on Sunday and on Tuesday, the Merrillville, Indiana senior made his decision to play for Brian Kelly and the Fighting Irish official.

RELATED:  Meet Notre Dame’s entire 2021 recruiting class

Johnson becomes the 22nd commitment to Notre Dame’s class and will start his career in South Bend in the defensive backfield.

Johnson is rated as a three-star prospect by both 247Sports and Rivals and chose Notre Dame over offers from 17 other programs including Cincinnati, Purdue, Iowa, Michigan State and several MAC schools.

Johnson originally committed to Cincinnati on May 1 but reopened his recruitment by de-committing in mid-October.

Johnson is listed at 5-11, 180 pounds and becomes the fifth defensive back to join the 2021 recruiting class.

Notre Dame football: red hot run continues as Caleb Johnson commits

Notre Dame football wins again during their bye week, this time flipping an Auburn football commitment to the Irish. Hello, Caleb Johnson!

One of the questions asked by some after Notre Dame upset Clemson less than two weeks ago wasn’t about what it meant for the Fighting Irish program on the field in 2020, but what it meant down the road, specifically in recruiting.

Just 13 days since the 47-40, two overtime classic that saw Notre Dame knock off No. 1 for the first time in 27 years, the returns are already massive.

Notre Dame has started turning that win and the successes of 2020 on the field onto victories in the recruiting world as Philip Riley, Jr. switched his commitment from USC to the Irish earlier this week and then the likes of kicker Josh Bryan and outside linebacker Kahanu Kia announced commitments as well.

Then on Thursday night Notre Dame saw another big-time prospect flip from a football powerhouse and commit to the Irish instead as offensive tackle Caleb Johnson became commitment number 23 in the 2021 recruiting class.

Johnson had committed to Auburn back in May but had a change of heart that will see him be another massive piece on what is an absolute haul of a recruiting class on the offensive line.

Johnson is listed at 6-7, 295 pounds, and comes from Trinity Catholic High School in Ocala, Florida.  He has a three-star grade according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

Related: Meet Notre Dame’s 2021 Recruiting Class

As well as Auburn, Johnson held offers from more than 35 programs including big-time programs like Alabama, LSU, Miami, Penn State and plenty of others.

Johnson joins an offensive line class that already includes five-star tackle Blake Fisher, four-star guard Rocco Splinder as well as Minneapolis tackle Joe Alt and Chicago guard Pat Coogan.

A look at where Georgia football ranks in the 2021 recruiting rankings

Where does Georgia football rank in the 2021 CFB recruiting rankings?

Despite what you may hear from Georgia fans, the Bulldogs are actually in great position for the 2021 recruiting class.

You can say what you want about Kirby Smart – he can’t coach quarterbacks, he’s wasting talent, etc. – but if there’s one thing you can’t say it’s that he does not know how to recruit.

Georgia has the No. 5 recruiting class in the country for the class 2021, trailing Alabama, Ohio State, LSU and Oregon.

On Wednesday, the Bulldogs picked up a five-star outside linebacker, Smael Mondon out of Paulding County.

Georgia’s class consists of three five-stars, 11 four-stars and 5 three-stars.

5 stars:

OT Amarius Mims

QB Brock Vandagriff

OLB Smael Mondon

4 stars:

OT Micah Morris

ATH David Daniel

OG Dylan Fairchild

TE Brock Bowers

RB Lovasea Carroll

SDE Jonathan Jefferson

DT Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins

ILB Jamon Dumas-Johnson

CB De’Jahn Warren

OLB Chaz Chambliss

CB Kamari Lassiter

3 stars:

WR Adonai Mitchell

OG Jared Wilson

DT Marlin Dean

CB Javon Bullard

WR Jackson Meeks

Massive Recruiting Weekend Awaits Notre Dame

Notre Dame’s football future will be largely shaped the next two days as a pair of priority recruits are set to announce their commitments..

The next roughly 48 hours will play a large role in shaping Notre Dame football in the years to come.

No, Notre Dame won’t be joining the ACC full-time, at least not yet, but perhaps their two most important remaining targets in the 2021 recruiting class will be announcing their college decisions.

Prince Kollie and Rocco Spindler are the two prized prospects and both will have announced their respective college decisions by Saturday afternoon.

Kollie is a four-star outside linebacker that is an extremely important potential get for Notre Dame.  Not only is Kollie incredibly skilled, he’s also appears to be the only real possibility of a linebacker in Notre Dame’s 2021 class, and this comes after the Irish were shutout at the position in their 2020 recruiting haul.

Kollie lists his top five but it appears it’s between Notre Dame and Louisville to land his commitment.  We’ll know at 7 p.m. ET on Friday who it ends up being for Kollie.

Related: Notre Dame Recruiting – 2021 Commitment List

Rocco Spindler is the other big-time target that’s set to announce his college decision this weekend and a commitment from the offensive guard could mean massive things for Notre Dame.

Spindler has long been a priority recruit for Notre Dame as their offensive line currently has currently has three commitments but adding Spindler at guard alongside having Fisher at tackle could mean big things for the Fighting Irish offensive line in the coming years.

Spindler is seen as one of the top five guards in the entire country in 2021 and although offensive lineman almost never see the field their freshman year at Notre Dame, he has the potential to be a difference maker fairly early on when he arrives on whichever college he ends up choosing.

Spindler has his list of potential schools down to five but most believe it’s between Notre Dame and home-state Michigan to land his commitment.

Spindler will announce his decision Saturday on CBS Sports HQ.

If Notre Dame lands neither of the two this weekend it’ll be a disaster for the 2021 recruiting class, if one of the two commit it’ll be good but not great based off positional need at both spots, but if both end up picking Notre Dame this will go down as a massive weekend in terms of building the 2021 class that would possibly be back on it’s way to being a top ten class nationally.