With the Early Signing Period beginning this Wednesday, here’s a quick rundown of some recent commits and remaining prospects.

With the Early Signing Period beginning this Wednesday, here’s a quick rundown of recent commits and remaining prospects for the Oklahoma Sooners:

Nick Evers – With Malachi Nelson off-the- board, Brent Venables and assumed offensive coordinator, Jeff Lebby have moved quickly to get a QB a part of this 2022 class. For that, look no further than 4-Star QB, Nick Evers who announced his commitment to the Sooners early Monday morning. There is history between Oklahoma’s new commit and their new staff. Evers was offered by Lebby back in March while he served as offensive coordinator at Ole Miss but soon after committed to the Florida Gators. The emerging dual-threat QB is an ideal fit for Jeff Lebby’s offense with impressive arm strength and ability to hurt opposing defenses on the ground.

Jayden Gibson – Another recent Florida Gators decommit who took an official visit to Oklahoma this weekend is 2022 4-Star WR, Jayden Gibson out of Winter Garden, FL. Not hard to see what Oklahoma likes in Gibson who stands at a rangey 6’5” with skilled hands and impressive speed for his size. An obvious fit for Lebby’s offense as a guy that can win the 50/50 balls and exploits zone coverages over the middle. With Evers committed to Oklahoma, it’s not inconceivable that Gibson is soon to follow.

Kobie McKinzie – Looking for one of the more rollercoaster recruitments? Kobie McKinzie, who had flipped his commitment from Oklahoma to Texas just over a week ago, has flipped back to the Sooners. McKinzie was close with former Oklahoma linebackers coach Brian Odom, and when it was apparent that he would not be retained by Brent Venables, it threw his recruitment into question. Credit Venables for taking the lead to repair that bridge between McKinzie and Oklahoma and get the highly-touted LB out of Lubbock, TX back on board. (Update: since his commitment yesterday, Kobie McKinzie tweeted out “oh, and I’m not coming back by myself!”, so… that opens up a conversation for another Oklahoma decommit)

Gabe Dindy – Going to go ahead and include this since it’s bound to be a topic. There is some speculation as to what’s happening with 5-Star DL, Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy since Mike Elko’s departure from Texas A&M. Plenty of turmoil here for the Dindy family over the past couple weeks so it stands to reason that Oklahoma fans would be interested in what’s going on. Kobie McKinzie’s tweet will no-doubt lead some to think something is going on there. Is there substance to it or is it simply an attempt to recruit or even re-recruit certain prospects? I tend to lean toward the latter; don’t get too invested.

Jihaad Campbell – Another big name back on the market due to the coaching changes: 4-Star Edge, Jihaad Campbell. The highly sought after pass rusher from IMG Academy had been committed to Clemson since June with his primary recruiter being Brent Venables. Since BV’s departure for Norman, Campbell has lined up visits with Alabama and Texas A&M. This feels like a long shot for Oklahoma, but if Alabama lands 5-Star Edge Marvin Jones Jr., maybe BV can make it a race between the Sooners and Aggies.

Chris McClellan – Maybe one of the more interesting developments since the coaching staff changes is the recruitment of OkPreps 4-Star DL, Chris McClellan. McClellan – who’s communication with the previous staff was dubious at best – has reportedly opened up to the new coaching staff. Venables values position versatility and McClellan offers that along the defensive front. Just based on that aspect alone, he’ll be high up on Venables recruiting priorities. The Sooners will, however, be playing catch-up and even more so with McClellan coming off a visit to Gainesville. Nothing is impossible, but Oklahoma has a hill to climb here.

Ahmad Moten – A “late-riser” in this recruiting cycle is Ahmad Moten, the 6’3”, 290-pound defensive lineman out of Fort Lauderdale, FL. Moten has garnered offers from Oklahoma, LSU, North Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, and Miami over the past few weeks. New Sooners defensive ends coach Miguel Chavis had an in-home visit to meet with Moten and family. However the Oklahoma staff will have their work cutout for the South Florida native who is fresh off an official visit to Iowa State and an emerging Miami program under Mario Christobal will undoubtedly give him something to think about. With all the new offers and expected visits Moten will take, it’s not surprising this recruitment will play out through the new year.

Alton Tarber – A name that Oklahoma was quick to offer is 2022 3-Star DL, Alton Tarber out of Deerfield Beach, FL. Put the rankings aside for a minute… Deerfield Beach has produced college prospects like Jerry Jeudy, Jaylan Knighton, Riley Ridley, and Jason Pierre-Paul – not a bad list of alumni. Tarber received an Oklahoma offer on Dec. 9th, took an OV to Norman this past weekend, and announced his decommitment from Georgia Tech on Sunday. This one isn’t hard to put together, as it seems to be trending the right way for Oklahoma.

DeSean Brown – A name that Oklahoma fans had been waiting to see get an offer was in-state 2022 EDGE DeSean Brown, and it finally happened Saturday. Brown flew under the radar of the previous staff with their efforts focused on Marvin Jones Jr. If you ever got a chance to see Brown play at Choctaw High School or even just seen his film, it’s hard not to get excited about what he could do in a Venables defense. Brown is a big-bodied, explosive and physical pass rusher that has tremendous upside at the next level. When the offer went out, it was hard not to like Oklahoma’s chances here being the in-state powerhouse program with a brillant defensive minded head coach. However, things have cooled down between the two parties since the offer was extended, and a match is seeming less and less likely.

Jaren Kanak – Something to keep an eye on here is Clemson linebacker commit, Jaren Kanak. The 2022 4-Star ATH had been committed to the Tigers since July and has a strong relationship with now Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables. Is that enough to pull Kanak away from Clemson? Is Venables going to recruit against his former school? This is one to watch if only to see how Venables handles this situation.

Jovante Barnes – Throughout the coaching changes, the one major constant has been DeMarco Murray, who has been as active as anyone on the recruiting trail. With that, Oklahoma looks to be the leader for 4-Star RB Jovante Barnes out of Murray’s hometown Las Vegas, Nevada. Oklahoma will have to hold off efforts by Alabama, Florida State, and yes… USC, as all seem to remain in contention for this powerful, between-the-tackles rusher. Oklahoma has the familiarity advantage and now adds the appeal of Jeff Lebby’s running back-friendly offense, which led the SEC in rushing this season. Because of those two factors, this seems to be only a matter of time for Oklahoma.

The former Florida commit is now pledged to the Sooners, which should help give OU plenty of momentum for the early signing period.

With the Brent Venables Era now in full swing, the Oklahoma Sooners have found a signal caller for the 2022 class by securing a commitment from former Florida pledge Nick Evers . With new offensive coordinator in Norman — Jeff Lebby — Evers found a comfortability with the Sooners staff because Lebby had recruited him at Ole Miss. He has announced his intention to play at OU over other programs such as Auburn, Cincinnati, Penn State and more.

Evers comes from a familiar area for the Sooners in Flower Mound, Texas, which is a school that has produced quite a bit of talent for the college football world as of late. Evers is a big quarterback, standing at a frame of 6’3 and about 190 lbs., but his skill set is interesting. One might think he’s prepared to be a big bodied QB that’s able to run the ball on QB draws or designed power plays, but that’s not the kind of signal caller that Evers is. Is he athletic and does he have some speed? Yes. Would Evers rather stay in the pocket and only use his mobility whenever it’s in dire need? Also yes. His ability to throw on the run and have the ball on a frozen rope is very impressive when you look at his highlights below. He caught the eye of scouts early last year and every time he was visited, he impressed even more.

With the uncertainty around the program regarding the offense in particular, getting Evers into the fold is huge for Venables, Lebby, and Co. He is currently Oklahoma’s 13th commitment for the 2022 recruiting cycle and the only QB of the class. According to 247Sports Composite, he is the No. 10 QB in the US, the No. 26 player in the state of Texas, and the No. 156 overall prospect in the country. Oklahoma will certainly lose more players to the transfer portal just as much as they may gain transfers and late commitments – it’s just the nature of the business after a head coach leaves. The Sooners will grin and bear it, but will be more SEC ready after a retooling year in the 2022-23 football season.

As far as the 2022 class is concerned, watch for plenty more dominoes to fall between now and Wednesday’s Early Signing Period commencement.

Yes, that would be Ted Roof.

Brent Venables announced the first major hires of his tenure as head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners Friday. As expected, Ole Miss offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby is returning to his alma mater to fill the same role at OU. Not so expected: the well-traveled Ted Roof is taking over as defensive coordinator.

Hiring Lebby to oversee the OU offense has been one of the worst-kept secrets in college football for more than a week. He already started recruiting for the Sooners in the last few days and said his goodbyes to the Rebels earlier this week. As Venables noted in his announcement, Lebby is “maybe the hottest offensive coordinator in college football.” He served as the architect of an offense that finished the 2021 season ranked 11th in Offensive SP+.

We’ve previously discussed Lebby’s troubling ties to Baylor during the sexual assault scandal under coach Art Briles in the mid-2010s. OU athletic director Joe Castiglione spoke to those issues in a statement released Friday:

“Like with all potential coaching staff, we vetted [Lebby] from every angle, on and off the field. We understand why additional questions have been raised around his candidacy, which is why we did our due diligence, completed a thorough review and background check, and spoke to his previous employers throughout the process. The reports we received from Baylor, UCF and Ole Miss were consistent – they spoke highly of him as a person, his relationships within the programs as well as how he develops his players, his recruiting ability and, of course, his football acumen. At every turn throughout our review, we received assurance of the content of his character, his commitment to compliance and safety, and his desire to contribute to the development of winning programs in the manner we expect of all our staff. In speaking with Jeff, it is abundantly clear that he also knows and will embrace OU’s expectations of him both on and off the field. We’re glad to welcome him aboard.”

Lebby also addressed the questions that have been raised about his time at Baylor, albeit indirectly:

“My experiences at Baylor will inform my perspective for the rest of my life, on and off the field. It will be a privilege to work with Coach Venables and Joe Castiglione. These are two men I believe in and have the greatest respect for — I have the utmost confidence in their administrative leadership. OU’s athletics programs have always demanded the best and I will work every day to earn the trust they have placed in me to represent this institution.”

In terms of Lebby’s on-field track record, his offenses at UCF and Ole Miss lit up scoreboards. However, the fact that he was coaching alongside Josh Heupel with the Golden Knights and Lane Kiffin in Oxford leaves room for doubt about his chops as a play caller. As quarterbacks coach, Lebby will also be responsible for either guiding the development of OU’s star prospect Caleb Williams or identifying a suitable replacement in the transfer portal.

Roof is on fire

Mark Zaleski / For The Tennessean, The Tennessean via Imagn Content Services, LLC

On the other side of the ball, rumors that Venables had targeted Roof as defensive coordinator turned out to be more than that. The 57-year-old Roof worked with Venables as an analyst this season at Clemson. (He turns 58 on Saturday, which makes this one hell of a birthday present from a colleague.)

The word “seasoned” comes to mind when talking about Roof’s career. OU will be his 11th employer since 2004. That includes a stint as defensive coordinator at Auburn from 2009 to 2011 during which the Tigers won a national championship in 2010. Most of the other stops didn’t work quite so well, such as the time Duke went 6-45 with Roof as head coach from 2004 to 2007. His most recent experience as a defensive coordinator came at Vanderbilt in 2020, an 0-9 season in which the Commodores finished 13th in the SEC in scoring defense and last in defensive yards per play. To be fair, we’re also talking about Vanderbilt.

Frankly, this hire won’t get fans’ blood pumping around Norman. It is worth noting that even if Venables isn’t calling the defense this year, the head coach will be the de facto defensive coordinator for this team in 2022. This decision simply confirms that. On the plus side, Roof also brings ample experience as a recruiter across the Southeast. When it comes to his responsibilities as linebackers coach, Roof will have to answer to one of the top teachers of the position in the business.

Other staff members announced

Little surprise, but Venables is retaining four assistants from the previous staff: running backs coach Demarco Murray, offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh, tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley and receivers coach Cale Gundy. That leaves openings for new assistants for the defensive line and secondary.

Additionally, Venables has lured away a key cog in the Clemson machine to join the Sooners. Thad Turnipseed is leaving his job as director of recruiting and external affairs at Clemson for what sounds like a gig as Venables’ chief of staff with the Sooners. In addition to playing a vital role in operations, Turnipseed will have the best name in the program.

OU’s new head coach is a welcome sight around Norman.

I spent Sunday night watching a livestream of people disembarking from a private jet at a regional airfield in Oklahoma. I wasn’t alone – hundreds of others had gathered there, and who knows how many were following online like me.

It was one of those moments when you step outside yourself and realize the absurdity of some things that mean so much to you. You may be fighting to the death over whether Panic’s best performance of “Love Tractor” was Raleigh in ‘07 or Cain’s Ballroom in ‘96. Suddenly it hits you that you’re overly invested in arguing about the superiority of variations of a piece of work by artists you will never even meet.

The excitement surrounding the moment when Brent Venables stepped off that plane as Oklahoma’s head coach, grinning and pumping his fist, spoke to the psychic damage suffered by fans of the Sooners in recent weeks.

No one should fault Lincoln Riley for leaving to taking advantage of a great opportunity – the Trojans presented him with both a lucrative offer and a rewarding professional challenge. He’s going to live in Southern California and get paid a fortune to rouse one of college football’s sleeping giants.

But the Sooners have been awake for decades. OU football matters a lot to a lot of people. It’s better than it should be for that reason: Generations have taken great pains to cultivate a top-notch program despite lacking the advantages of other powerhouses. Other blue bloods would have scoffed at the idea of putting a 33-year-old assistant with no head coaching experience in charge, and Bob Stoops even orchestrated his retirement in 2017 to give Riley a shot to hit the ground running. It worked great for all parties involved for a few years.

Yet, knowing what we know now, Riley and his agent, Trace Armstrong, clearly spent Riley’s fifth season as OU’s head coach feathering his nest in Los Angeles. His team, meanwhile, played all season like the person in charge couldn’t wait to get out of town. When it came time to split, Riley had the gall to claim his involvement with USC started just hours before he accepted the job. He didn’t owe us loyalty, but he could have given us the courtesy of: a) actually doing the job he was getting paid (well) to do; and b) not treating us like idiots.

It may sound precious, but the way it went down felt like watching someone piss all over something special to you for nothing more than their own amusement. And like I said, all this matters a lot to a lot of people. After spending 12 years as an assistant in a former life at OU, Venables knows that as well as anyone.

Maybe that familiarity explains the elation around Venables’ return to Norman. He’s not Nick Saban or Urban Meyer – hall-of-famers hired by college football powerhouses to eliminate the already-tiny possibility that their teams might lose on Saturday. At least, not yet.

The truth is that most college football coaches end up unceremoniously escorted out of their offices a few years after they start, and no one can guarantee it will all work out in the end for the Venables and the Oklahoma Sooners. Venables didn’t even leave OU in 2011 under the best of circumstances.

However, Venables wants this opportunity. He burnished his credentials as possibly the best assistant coach in the country during his sojourn in South Carolina. He rebuffed the advances of an untold number of schools that tried to lure him away from Clemson. Venables waited for the right chance to come along for him instead. He picked this one.

CHRIS LANDSBERGER/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

Which brings us back to Sunday night, me watching on my laptop as hundreds of people celebrated someone moving halfway across the country to take a new job. Seeing Venables get a hero’s welcome as he stepped off that plane just hit different. Optimism tends to greet new beginnings, but not everyone would have received that kind of reception. There was just something gratifying about seeing the new coach embrace that moment.

After watching Venables play to the crowd for a few minutes, I shut my computer. A wave of self-consciousness washed over me as I realized how much the whole scene got to me. Once that passed, I thought about the fact that Venables will do something on a Saturday afternoon about nine months from now that will fire me and other fans up in a less complimentary fashion. It works that way with coaches, after all.

But as a fan, no amount of cursing Venables for what happens on the field will change what it felt like to see him emerge from that plane.

Kamiar and Stephen are joined by Payton Guthrie of the Through the Keyhole Podcast.

Following the hiring of Brent Venables, Kamiar, Stephen and special guest Payton Guthrie of the Through the Keyhole Podcast are here to talk about the future of the Oklahoma Sooners in this week’s episode. They discuss the potential hiring of Jeff Lebby as OC (and their reservations about it), the importance of the DC and strength & conditioning hires.

Make sure to subscribe to the podcast on your platform of choice! We’re now on ITunes, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Google Play and Stitcher. If you enjoy the podcast, make sure to give us a five-star rating on ITunes, as it will help it reach more listeners.

Fair warning: As usual, this week’s podcast has some NSFW language.

The Clemson defensive coordinator and former OU assistant will replace Lincoln Riley.

The Oklahoma Sooners are changing course by bringing back a familiar face in Brent Venables as head coach.

Numerous media reports Sunday evening confirmed the hire, including Bruce Feldman of The Athletic and Pete Thamel of Yahoo! Sports:

After joining the OU staff when Bob Stoops was hired as head coach in 1999, Venables stayed with OU through the end of the 2011 season as defensive coordinator. Venables left for a the same position at Clemson in 2012 and played a vital role in a run of dominance that saw the Tigers win two national championships and six ACC titles. In total, he has been a part of coaching staffs that appeared in eight national championship games since 2000. He also oversaw defenses that helped Clemson blast the Sooners in head-to-head matchups in 2014 and 2015.

Venables was long viewed as the heir apparent to Stoops prior to his departure, and numerous programs came calling for him at Clemson during his tenure there. Ironically, he’s now replacing the up-and-coming assistant who did get that opportunity in Lincoln Riley. Riley took over the program when Stoops retired in 2017 and left last week for USC.

The move will likely mean a reset in terms of the identity of the program. While OU developed one of the most prolific offenses in college football in the last two decades, the play on the other side of the ball eroded significantly after Venables’ departure. The Sooners finished outside the top 15 nationally in Defensive S&P+ from 2005 to 2011; they made it back inside the top 15 two times – 2013 and 2020 – after he left.

Venables also brings a decade of experience hunting talent in the recruiting grounds of the Southeast. That seems like a must with OU preparing to transition to the SEC at some point in the near future.

The next offensive coodinator

Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

With Venables in the fold, the focus at OU now turns to his pick as offensive coordinator. Early signs point to Ole Miss assistant and OU alum Jeff Lebby as the pick:

Lebby is reportedly generating interest from a number of programs for his handiwork under Lane Kiffin in Oxford and experience as Josh Heupel’s offensive coordinator at Central Florida. He also coaches quarterbacks, meaning he’d essentially be filling two of Riley’s three vacant coaching roles at OU.

However, Lebby’s previous tenure at Baylor from 2008 to 2016 has presumably – hopefully? – raised concerns for the OU athletic department. He became an assistant coach under his father-in-law Art Briles in 2010 and was part of the Bears coaching staff until 2016. That was the height of a sexual assault scandal at the Baptist university involving a litany of allegations and convictions against Baylor football players. It resulted in the termination of Briles and high-level school officials, including university president and Clinton impeachment impresario Ken Starr.

Baylor’s coaching staff, including Lebby, came under fire for indignant displays of support for Briles up to and after his dismissal in 2016. A Baylor graduate has also alleged that Lebby responded inappropriately when she reported to him that a Bears football player assaulted her.

Additionally, Lebby was involved in an incident in which he was caught on the sideline at an OU-Tulsa game in 2015 while he was a coach at Baylor. The blatant NCAA violation earned Lebby a suspension for the first half of the meeting between the Sooners and Bears that season.

At minimum, OU athletic director Joe Castiglione needs to prepare to explai the vetting process behind hiring Lebby if the Sooners go that direction.

Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Joe Brady emerged on Sunday as another potential target for the opening at offensive coordinator. The winner of the 2019 Broyles Award as the top assistant coach in the nation received his walking papers from the Carolina Panthers. Brady was instrumental in building the LSU offense into one of the best in college football history during the Tigers’ run to a national championship in ‘19. He matched wits against Venables when LSU and Clemson met in the national time game that year.

Brady will be a hot commodity on the college coaching circuit should he want to take a step away from the NFL. Jason Kersey of The Athletic noted, though, that Brady has something of a connection to an important member of the OU team (at this moment):