Tag: Rutgers University

Oklahoma offers 2024 Notre Dame commit Owen Wafle

Oklahoma Sooners extend an offer to 2024 four-star defensive lineman Owen Wafle. From @thatmanbryant

Oklahoma’s exploits up and down the east coast continue as one of their newest offers goes out to New Jersey, where they offered four-star 2024 Notre Dame commit Owen Wafle. Wafle is a heavier EDGE than most as he sits at 6-foot-3 and around 270 pounds, according to 247Sports.

With that size and how physical he plays, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Wafle wouldn’t slide inside if he became a Sooner. His primary recruiter is defensive tackles coach Todd Bates, so interior defensive line could be his home

Brian Doh of 247Sports had this to say about Wafle.

Thick build with plus length and has frame to add 20 to 30 pounds and remain effective with speed and agility. Has versatility to play on edge or increase size and move inside on defensive line of scrimmage. Has low center of gravity and plays low to win leverage. Has snaps on both sides of ball as fullback and defensive lineman. Strong, physical, hard-nosed player with strong work ethic. Showed ability to bend during spring workout. Ferocious style of play evident during in-game eval in fall 2021. Gets off quickly at snap and covers ground well in first three steps. Shows stack-and-shed ability. Relies heavily on power and strength and often wins leverage by sinking hips. Plays with high effort and has strong work ethic.  Multi-year starter at high-level program. Has late round NFL draft potential. – Dohn, 247 National Recruiting Analyst

Wafle shows athletic ability as he has played fullback and tight end along with his defensive duties. Wafle’s commitment to the Fighting Irish came in May, and has also added an offer from Duke.

There’s a long way to go before signing day for the class of 2024, which gives Oklahoma a bit of an opening to try and work itself into the picture.

Owen Wafle’s Recruiting Profile

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Oklahoma sends an offer to the Empire State for four-star athlete Josiah Brown

Oklahoma offers Josiah Brown, a four-star athlete and the number one 2024 prospect in New York.

Oklahoma’s commitment to recruiting the east coast is living up to its billing. While most assumed they’d recruit the American southeast harder than they had before, Brent Venables and the former Clemson coaches he brought with him also recruited the entire eastern seaboard. It’s why the Sooners reached out to 2023 commit [autotag]Phil Picciotti[/autotag] from Pennsylvania in the first place.

They continued recruiting the northeast, and it helped land them three-star offensive tackle [autotag]Logan Howland[/autotag] out of New Jersey.  They look to continue recruiting the northeast, offering 2024 four-star athlete Josiah Brown out of the state of New York. Brown, listed as an athlete, is being recruited by Brandon Hall, which should indicate that Oklahoma is recruiting him as a defensive back.

Brown is listed as the number one player in the state of New York in the 247Sports rankings.

Brown looks like a player that should be well within the top 100 prospects in the country, and ultimately, it’s safe to assume that’s where he lands. He makes plays offensively, defensively, and as a kick returner. He ran a 6.38 indoor 55-meter dash as a sophomore. Brown looks like a player who can really rise in the rankings.

With the Sooners getting an offer in relatively early, they should be able to make some splashes in his recruitment and set themselves up nicely going forward.

Josiah Brown’s Recruiting Profile

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Elite linebacker Troy Bowles has Sooners in his top 3 as recruitment winds down

Oklahoma finds itself in the top 3 for elite linebacker prospect Troy Bowles.

The Oklahoma Sooners have had a productive July on the recruiting trail and it’s going to be even more so in the coming days. Oklahoma has many notable targets committing soon and some other noteworthy targets are winding their recruitments down.

One of those prospects is elite linebacker prospect Troy Bowles, son of NFL head coach Todd Bowles. Bowles’ recruitment has largely featured teams in the southeast region of the United States. His Top eight reflected that.

Florida, Alabama, Clemson, Auburn, and Rutgers joined the Oklahoma Sooners, Georgia Bulldogs, and Ohio State Buckeyes in his top eight released in May. However, in the time since then, Bowles has gone on official visits to the latter three schools, which makes sense as to why they’d be his top three as well.

With his official visits behind him and a final three decided on, Bowles is ready to make his decision and that will come on July 16th. Georgia currently has all three crystal ball predictions in their favor on 247Sports right now so it may seem that Oklahoma ultimately may end up on the outside looking in here.

No one knows for certain but considering how hot Oklahoma has been on the recruiting trail over the last few weeks nothing is completely off the table. Given Brent Venables knack for recruiting the linebacker position, Oklahoma could still very much be in the race for Bowles.

Should the Sooners miss out on Bowles, they’ll turn their attention to another Tampa, Fla. linebacker to round out their collection of linebacker prospects for the 2023 class in four-star Lewis Carter.

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Report: Rutgers earmarked for massive athletic department funding

Yesterday, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy earmarked $100 million for Rutgers University athletics in the proposed budget for the state according to reporting from NJ Advance Media

Major funding for improvements to facilities for the Rutgers basketball and football programs are coming soon. Yesterday, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (D) earmarked $100 million for Rutgers University athletics in the proposed budget for the state according to reporting from NJ Advance Media.

The money is specifically earmarked to be used for renovating Jersey Mike’s Arena and for the building of a proposed indoor practice facility for football.

Part of the deal in hiring football’s head coach [autotag]Greg Schiano[/autotag] was a commitment toward building an indoor practice facility. While a formal fundraising campaign should be announced soon, receiving some state funding is a major first step. The budget is expected to be passed on Wednesday and signed into law by Murphy on Thursday, per the report.

Also included in the budget is a commitment of $150 million additional to the Rutgers medical schools and $50 million for a research complex to be built in downtown New Brunswick.

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Peter McDonough Jr., the university’s senior vice president for external affairs spoke to Brent Johnson and Ted Sherman about the $300 million dollar investment in the university:

“The investments that the proposed budget makes in Rutgers University will help the state establish its role as a global leader in the innovation economy, will provide several hundred million dollars for aid to students and for making improvements to essential academic facilities in New Brunswick, Newark and Camden, and will provide seed money for enhancements to athletics facilities that will be overwhelmingly funded through private donations.”

After Rutgers athletics had a strong 2021-2022 season across the board, Tuesday’s news of the impending funding for the athletic department and the state university as a whole, better days continue to be on the horizon for all Scarlet Knights.

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Free agent CB Logan Ryan: Jets make sense, but ‘I’m open for business’

Logan Ryan went on Good Morning Football to express a mutual interest between himself and the Jets, but that he’s also open for business.

After a few days of rumors and rumblings revolving around Logan Ryan and the Jets, the cornerback went on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football to address his free agency.

In the appearance, Ryan admitted that a pairing between him and Gang Green “makes a lot of sense.” However, he’s not shutting the door on other opportunities.

“I’m completely open for business,” Ryan said at the end of the interview.

Ryan played his college football at Rutgers and is a New Jersey native, so he’s familiar with the area and said he’s heard from plenty of Jets fans on Twitter.

The Jets, meanwhile, have rebuilt their secondary this offseason. Ryan’s versatility and leadership would be a welcomed addition to Gregg Williams’ defense, but it isn’t that simple. Although the Jets have begun contract talks with Ryan’s representatives, no formal offer is on the table, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post.

Right now, Ryan is looking for the best deal possible. He has ruled out a return to the Tennessee Titans, but no one else. The Dolphins are another AFC East team reportedly in play for Ryan’s services.

“I’m trying to do what’s best for my family and everything like that,” Ryan said. “There are a lot of rumors out there. I can’t confirm any of it because I’m obviously still not signed yet. So, we’ll see. I obviously want to get a deal done whenever and I’m open to it. We’ll see what happens there.”