Tag: Trevon West

Sooners extend offer to Lousiana Tech transfer WR Tre Harris

With the departure of multiple receivers to the portal, Oklahoma sends out an offer to LA Tech receiver Tre Harris.

While the portal casualties for Oklahoma have risen into the double digits, it opens the door for Oklahoma to upgrade the talent that will don the Crimson and Cream.

After submitting offers to Ra Ra Thomas and Dante Cephas, the Sooners are targeting another wide receiver. This time, it’s Louisiana Tech’s Tre Harris.

At 6-foot-2, Harris had 65 receptions for 935 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2022. He was a first-team All-Conference USA selection in 2022 after earning honorable mention honors in 2021.

He ranks fourth nationally in scrimmage plays over 40 yards (6), and fifth in plays over 30 yards (9). Simply put, Harris is one of the best receivers in the portal, regardless of his former school. He’s a big play waiting to happen and would be a nice addition should the Sooners land him.

The Sooners have lost three wide receivers to the portal: Theo Wease, Brian Darby, and Trevon West. Wease is the only notable contributor from the bunch and based on Harris’ stats, he could very easily fill that void.

Harris has also received offers from Mississippi State and West Virginia.

Here are a few of his catches below.

There’s no timetable for a decision yet but expect things to move along fairly quickly as transfers typically would prefer to get to their newest destination as fast as possible in time for winter workouts and the new semester that starts in January.

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5 positions the Oklahoma Sooners should target in the transfer portal

The Oklahoma Sooners have some roster reconfiguration to accomplish and will look at the transfer portal to complete it. From @thatmanbryant

Oklahoma’s season is down to one last game against the Florida State Seminoles in the Cheez-It Bowl in Orlando, Florida. However, their preparation for Team 129 has already begun.

Numerous players have already entered the transfer portal or declared for the 2023 NFL draft.

Players like left tackle [autotag]Anton Harrison[/autotag], running back [autotag]Eric Gray[/autotag], defensive tackle [autotag]Jalen Redmond[/autotag], and right tackle [autotag]Wanya Morris[/autotag] were starters on this year’s squad and have already declared their intention to go to the NFL. Oklahoma will have to fill those voids for next season. Their replacements may be on the team already, but there’s a real possibility they aren’t.

The losses have left a hefty amount of bodies missing from the program right now, and while the recruiting class will fill some of them, the Sooners would love to have immediate answers via the transfer portal by guys with collegiate experience.

As Oklahoma looks to retool its roster for 2023, here are a few positions they should look to add talent to via the transfer portal. 

Oklahoma Sooners targeting a pair of wide receivers in the transfer portal

Oklahoma is looking to add to their wide receiver ranks with offers to a couple of transfer portal wideouts, RaRa Thomas and Dante Cephas. From @john9williams

As the transfer portal officially opened on Monday, the Oklahoma Sooners saw some depth walk out the door. Mostly, it’s been players that saw little to no playing time for Oklahoma in 2022, but at wide receiver, they’ve seen a bit more attrition.

[autotag]Theo Wease[/autotag] made it known last week he’d be entering the portal, and on Monday, [autotag]Brian Darby[/autotag] and [autotag]Trevon West[/autotag] also put their names in the transfer portal.

With the college football world doing some portal shopping, it looks like the Sooners are targeting a couple of wide receivers early in the process. Oklahoma offered Mississippi State transfer wide receiver [autotag]RaRa Thomas[/autotag] and Kent State wideout [autotag]Dante Cephas[/autotag].

Thomas was a three-star prospect in the 2021 cycle and put up 44 receptions for 626 yards and seven touchdowns for the Bulldogs in 2022. Cephas was also a three-star player in the 2019 class and recorded 48 receptions for 744 yards and three touchdowns.

Cephas had four receptions for 50 yards against Oklahoma in week two of the season, but his high moment came against Ohio, where he posted 13 receptions for 246 yards and a touchdown.

Thomas posted 5 receptions for 134 yards and a touchdown in a win against Texas A&M, went for 8 and 73 against Alabama, and recorded six catches for 84 yards and two touchdowns against Auburn.

Though [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag] is playing in the bowl game, there’s a strong possibility that’s his last for the Sooners with an NFL draft decision looming. If Mims were to declare for the draft, that would leave Oklahoma with [autotag]Jalil Faroo[/autotag]q and [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] as the only Sooners wide receivers to play significant snaps in Norman.

The Sooners added [autotag]J.J. Hester[/autotag] and [autotag]L.V. Bunkley-Shelton[/autotag] in the portal late last spring, but they didn’t see the field much, so it’s difficult to know where they stand with the coaching staff. Both have experience from their previous stops and have playmaking ability, but Oklahoma would be wise to add some more depth.

Oklahoma will have quite a few young guys competing for snaps, like [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag], [autotag]Jayden Gibson[/autotag], and Freeman, along with incoming freshmen [autotag]Keyon Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Jaquaize Pettaway[/autotag] (assuming they sign).

We’ll see if Oklahoma’s able to close on either Cephas or Thomas, but it’s clear they believe they need to add some wide receiver depth in the portal this offseason to put them in a better position to contend in 2023.

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2022-2023 Oklahoma Football Transfer Portal Tracker

What’s happened in the transfer portal for the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2022-2023 offseason?

The 2022 regular season is behind us, leaving the Oklahoma Sooners eagerly awaiting their bowl destination with one last chance to close a disappointing season in Norman above .500.

While the Sooners wait to find out their bowl location and matchup, they’ll be working to secure their 2023 recruiting class and retool the roster through veteran transfers. They’ve already added to their interior defensive line depth with the addition of [autotag]Jacob Lacey[/autotag] and will probably add more depth on a defense that wasn’t good enough in 2022.

While the portal giveth, it also taketh. In just a few days since the end of the regular season, Oklahoma has lost Theo Wease, Jordan Mukes and Joshua Eaton to the portal. While Mukes and Eaton didn’t play much for the Sooners, the loss of Wease will be felt.

In his last hurrah as an Oklahoma Sooner, Wease posted a career-best 123 yards on just three receptions and had a big-time touchdown for the Sooners.

There will be much more activity on the transfer portal horizon over the next few months, and we’ll keep track of all the comings and goings with our handy-dandy transfer portal tracker.

Updated Dec. 12 at 8 p.m. CT

Sophomore WR Cody Jackson has opted to enter the transfer portal

After finishing spring ball, the Sooners see wide receiver Cody Jackson enter the transfer portal.

Much of the news after the spring game has been extremely positive in for the Oklahoma Sooners football program. However, the harsh reality of the transfer portal has led to a wide receiver deciding to move on. Wide receiver [autotag]Cody Jackson[/autotag] entered his name in the transfer portal Monday and it looks like he’ll find a new place to play in 2022.

This is similar to last spring when [autotag]Mike Woods[/autotag] played in Arkansas’ spring game only to transfer to Oklahoma shortly thereafter.

Jackson, who caught just five passes for 45 yards in his freshman season enters the portal with three years of eligibility remaining. He was one of the earliest commitments to the Sooners’ 2021 recruiting class. He committed nearly 2 years before signing with the Sooners and remained steadfast to his commitment the whole process.

He was a four-star recruit out of Foster, Texas (the same high school where Sooners legend [autotag]CeeDee Lamb[/autotag] came from) and only saw action in two games last year. He played in the Sooners’ wins in Norman against Western Carolina and Nebraska.

 

 

Jackson looked prime for more of an opportunity under offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby with several receivers departing via the transfer portal or to the NFL. But after sticking with the Sooners through the spring Jackson appears will be looking for a new home.

The Sooners’ receiver room looks pretty thin all things considered with [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag], [autotag]Theo Wease[/autotag], [autotag]Jalil Farooq[/autotag], and [autotag]Drake Stoops[/autotag] at the top of the depth chart. [autotag]Brian Darby[/autotag] and [autotag]Trevon West[/autotag] will figure into the rotation as well, while [autotag]Jayden Gibson[/autotag] and [autotag]Nic Anderson[/autotag] have the potential to contribute in year one.

There is a good chance the Sooners will use the portal as a means to get one or two more receivers into the room if nothing else for depth purposes.

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Oklahoma Sooners 6th in ESPN’s future offense power rankings

The Oklahoma Sooners land at No. 6 in ESPN’s future offense power rankings.

As spring practice rages on for the Oklahoma Sooners, they’re in the midst of a turnover in the offensive system. Coming from Ole Miss, Jeff Lebby’s installing his up-tempo offense that has typically been in the top five in plays ran during his tenures with the Rebels and UCF.

Even with the turnover that Oklahoma experienced, they remain in great shape in 2022 and in the future on the offensive side of the football.

Adam Rittenberg of ESPN released his future offense power rankings for 2022. In 2021, the Oklahoma Sooners were first in the country, buoyed by former top quarterbacks Spencer Rattler and Caleb Williams and a host of talented players. A third-place finish in the Big 12, a coaching change, and a transfer portal cycle later, the Oklahoma Sooners are now sixth in the updated rankings for 2022, just one spot behind the USC Trojans.

Let’s explore what Rittenberg had to say about the Oklahoma Sooners offense and its future.

2022 spring preview: How does wide receiver look for Oklahoma?

Oklahoma replaces three of its top four wide receivers entering 2022. How does the position group look heading into the spring?

As spring practices for Oklahoma get underway on March 22, it’s time to begin taking stock of what the Sooners have on campus in each respective position group. At wide receiver, OU is replacing three of its top four receiving yardage leaders.

With that said, there’s plenty of talent returning for Oklahoma and the Sooners added a pair of talented pass catchers in their 2022 signing class. Let’s take a look at Oklahoma’s wide receivers entering the spring.

Theo Wease pondered transfer to Ole Miss to join Jeff Lebby

Oklahoma wide receiver Theo Wease said on “The Podcast on the Prairie” that he thought about transferring to Ole Miss to join Jeff Lebby.

Several days after Lincoln Riley left Oklahoma to become USC’s head coach, junior wide receiver Theo Wease put his name into the transfer portal. At the time, there was a fear that the Sooners might be in store for an exodus of mass proportions and it appeared as though Wease would be part of that.

Instead, Wease removed his name from the transfer portal several weeks later and announced his “unfinished business” with Oklahoma. What nobody knew at the time was where Wease was considering.

“I entered the portal because…it was actually, I was going to hit the portal before the coaching staff change happened, if I’m being honest. And then, it’s crazy, so I’m going to take you up through my process. I was interested in going to Ole Miss and playing for [Jeff] Lebby. So, like we talked about me going out there. Come to find out, he gets a job at Oklahoma. Of course, I never wanted to leave Oklahoma, but you know just how certain stuff plays out, stuff happens.

Once I heard about Linc getting the new job, blah blah blah. I’m like, okay, maybe the new coach, maybe this is just my blessing in disguise. Come to find out, I see Lebby gets the job. I’m like, I was just talking to this guy. Why would I leave now? In Lebby we trust. In BV, trust me. They’re cooking up something special and they’re not wasting their time with it. It’s fast changes happening and I’m loving it. I’m excited for it all,” Wease said in an appearance on “The Podcast on the Prairie” with hosts Brayden Willis and Jeremiah Hall.

Given that he was prepared to perhaps join the Ole Miss Rebels, it’s obvious the impression that new OU offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby made on Wease. Brent Venables is drawing rave reviews from Wease as well.

“Man, I’ve been enjoying it a 100 percent. BV, it’s just his whole mentality, just the swagger behind him that he brings to the team. The energy is just like, it’s contagious literally. We really feed off that energy,” Wease said.

It’s not just a new look at head coach and offensive coordinator. Oklahoma will have a new starting quarterback in 2022. The 6-foot-2, 200 pound receiver discussed what transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel has already added to the program.

“DG’s a great leader. He’s like a people person. He’s just fun to be around. You can’t dislike him. Friendly to everybody, pretty sure he’s cool with everybody. Texts everybody on the team every day, and that’s just him. It’s not fake at all. His arm talent is… trust me. Dime time. That first one not going to come out soft, it’s going to come out hot,” Wease said.

Of course, Wease missed this past season due to injury. Before his podcast appearance, it was unclear what exactly the ailment was. Based on his comments, it was some sort of foot injury.

“It was different, because I’ve never really had a foot injury before. It was just different, you know, just the certain types of ways I’ve got to retrain my body, retrain these muscles how to balance. Like at one point, I was picking up marbles and putting them in cups with my toes. It was crazy just thinking of doing stuff like that. It was I wouldn’t say easy. There was definitely some setbacks, but I had a good recovery,” Wease said.

Sooner fans are more than familiar with the type of playmaker Wease is when healthy. As a sophomore, Wease tied for the team lead with 37 receptions and finished as Oklahoma’s second-leading receiving yardage leader with 530 yards. He had four touchdowns that season.

“Always, always want more. I didn’t really go into the season expecting nothing. I just wanted to do, just go out there and do my thing, play my game, try not to think too much of it. I definitely would say I don’t think I had the season that I’m capable of. We’re going to save that for another. We got the 2022 season coming up, so you know how excited we is, you know how ready we are for that,” Wease said.

Wease joins a group of returning Oklahoma wide receivers that features Marvin Mims, Drake Stoops, Brian Darby, Trevon West, Jalil Farooq and Cody Jackson. OU also signed Nic Anderson and Jayden Gibson in its 2022 class. He has a message for those that wonder how Oklahoma will handle the defections of Mario Williams, Mike Woods and Jadon Haselwood from the wide receivers room at OU.

“Yeah, I definitely think it’s a special group for sure. I don’t think everybody realized how deep we actually were. Losing the guys, it hurt, but we got young guys, we got more guys. It’s OU. We’re just going to reload and we’re just going to go play ball,” Wease said.

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Oklahoma’s Jalil Farooq among Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded wide receivers during bowl season

Oklahoma wide receiver Jalil Farooq was one of Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded Power Five wide receivers during bowl season.

Oklahoma freshman wide receiver Jalil Farooq enjoyed his best performance of the season in the Sooners’ 47-32 win over Oregon in the Valero Alamo Bowl.

Farooq led the Sooners in receiving yardage versus the Ducks with three receptions for 64 yards. The Landham, Md., native played in eight games this season.

Most of his work came on special teams, though. Prior to the Oregon game, Farooq’s only grab was against Kansas on Oct. 23 when he caught one pass for five yards.

Farooq was the second-highest graded Power Five wide receiver during bowl season with an offensive grade of 90.7 according to Pro Football Focus. That was also the highest grade any Sooner received from PFF against Oregon.

Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba earned the highest offensive grade among Power Five wide receivers during bowl season with a grade of 91.6 after his record-setting Rose Bowl performance against Utah.

Smith-Njigba hauled in a school-record 15 receptions for an FBS bowl game record 347 receiving yards. The sophomore also had three touchdown grabs in Ohio State’s 48-45 win over Utah.

Kentucky’s Wan’Dale Robinson earned an offensive grade of 90.0 from PFF after nabbing 10 grabs for 170 yards in the Wildcats’ 20-17 Citrus Bowl win over Iowa.

With Oklahoma true freshman quarterback Caleb Williams’ decision to enter the NCAA’s transfer portal, what the Sooners’ wide receivers will look like entering 2022 has been a primary topic of conversation.

Freshman wide receiver Mario Williams also entered his name into the transfer portal following his starting quarterback’s decision. Former five-star recruit Jadon Haselwood has already transferred to Arkansas.

There’s been speculation that other wide receivers could follow suit.

Farooq came to Oklahoma as a consensus four-star recruit across the four recruiting services. The 6-foot-1, 203 pound freshman was rated as the nation’s No. 109 player overall by ESPN, No. 158 by Rivals, No. 174 by 247Sports and No. 238 by On3.

If Farooq chooses to stay, his performance against Oregon is an indicator that he’s ready to step into a primary pass-catching role for Oklahoma in 2022.

Oklahoma expects to return its leading receiver from the past two seasons in Marvin Mims.

Mims caught 32 passes for 705 yards with five touchdowns this season. In 2020, Mims recorded 37 receptions for 610 yards with nine touchdowns.

The Sooners are also set to return Drake Stoops who had 16 grabs for 191 yards and a pair of touchdown receptions in 2021. Oklahoma’s other wide receivers include Brian Darby, Cody Jackson and Trevon West.

It appears that former five-star Theo Wease plans to stay at Oklahoma as well. Wease didn’t play in a game this season and has battled injuries throughout his career. During his time at OU, Wease has 45 receptions, 666 receiving yards and six touchdowns.

OU has also signed four-star wide receivers Nicholas Anderson and Jayden Gibson in its 2022 signing class. Gibson is rated as the nation’s No. 49 player overall according to Rivals, while Anderson is listed as the nation’s No. 106 player by ESPN.

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Cowboys take advantage of Oklahoma miscues to beat Sooners 37-33 in Bedlam

The Oklahoma Sooners couldn’t recover from miscues and the Oklahoma State Cowboys win Bedlam 37-33 in Stillwater.

The Oklahoma Sooners were able to collect a 33-24 lead in the third quarter taking advantage of a great play by Perrion Winfrey to force a safety and a muffed punt that was recovered in the end zone for a touchdown, but that was all the scoring the Sooners would get in the second half.

After putting up 24 points in the first half against the vaunted Oklahoma State defense, the Sooners’ offense was shut out in the second half as penalties, mental miscues, and the Oklahoma State defense kept Caleb Williams and the offense at bay.

Oklahoma State scored 13 unanswered points after the Sooners took their lead.

The Cowboys brought the game to within two points after a Spencer Sanders option run that went for 37 yards. Oklahoma was forced to punt on their next possession and the Sooners defense made yet another stop.

On the Cowboys’ ensuing punt, Eric Gray drifted back to the five-yard line and attempted to make the fair catch. The ball slipped through his hands and the Cowboys recovered inside the five-yard line. Three plays later, Jaylen Warren would put Oklahoma State ahead for good with a one-yard touchdown drive.

The Sooners couldn’t get anything going offensively until their final two drives. However, both ended on downs as Oklahoma couldn’t convert on fourth down to extend the drive.

On Oklahoma’s final drive of the night, Caleb Williams put the Sooners in scoring range with a 56-yard run to get Oklahoma to the Cowboys’ 24 yard-line. After a first down throw to Jadon Haselwood that was broken up at the catch point, Williams then went to Trevon West in the end zone who couldn’t complete the catch as he was obstructed by the Oklahoma State defender.

Oklahoma couldn’t overcome the no-call as Caleb Williams struggled to find a receiver to throw to on third down and then was sacked on fourth down.

There were a lot of issues in this game and the Sooners compiled them with a sloppy second half of football.

Caleb Williams was 20 of 39 for 252 yards and three touchdowns. Kennedy Brooks led the Sooners’ ground attack with 139 yards on 22 carries.

With the loss, the Oklahoma Sooners drop to 10-2 and are eliminated from Big 12 contention. The Oklahoma State Cowboys (11-1) will take on the Baylor Bears (10-2) for the Big 12 championship next Saturday in Arlington.

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