Dean's Summary Of OU's 2016 Recruiting Class
<p>Dean's summary of the Sooners' 2016 recruiting class.</p>
Wednesday, February 3rd 2016, 3:44 pm
- Sooners get Kelly. They really needed it for multiple reasons. It leaves a sweet taste in their mouths after an up and down close to the final days of the 2016 recruiting process. Not to mention that by all accounts the five-star LB can flat-out play. Mike Stoops gets most of the credit for being a bulldog in the process. ND came on very strong in the final days and some were suggesting the Fresno phenom was seriously considering pulling the old switcheroo that OU saw with a couple of other key commits.
- OU picked up a couple of 4-star national recruits in the last few days, but overall, the losses on a half dozen or so prominent players gives the impression the Sooners didn’t close as well as they have in most years. But in reality, OU lost multiple players to Alabama which is more understandable and the price you pay for going after a higher quality of recruit than ever before.
- Losing two four-star DB late has to be a major blow to the defensive staff — particularly with Cobb de-commititng and signing with Baylor.
- OU gets a major boost that does not show up in the recruiting rankings with the addition of two potential special players. Five-star transfer QB Kyler Murray has the tools to be the future of the program. And McAlester’s Dalton Wood, who has big upside after not showing up with the 2015 class, has the makings of a fullback type player who I believe has a strong chance to make a major impact.
- Stoops has consistently spoken glowingly about Tulsa Victory Christian LB Jon-Michael Terry believing that he was actually recruited by “everyone” making him more of a player OU would grade closer to a 5-star than the 2/3-star he rated.
- The Sooners don’t have the numbers to rank as high as fans would like — and they lost on talent that would have significantly boosted their rating along with the bump Kelly would give them if he signs tonight — and the current national rankings aren’t flattering. Currently fourth in the Big 12 and 23rd nationally.
- Currently, here’s where things sit based on 247Sports Composite team rankings: Texas No. 10, Baylor 17, Texas A&M 18, TCU 22, OU 23, Texas Tech 44, OSU 48.
- As I tweeted earlier today after hearing constant moaning: For all those journalists and fans who buy into coaches who rationalize that the “star” system is irrelevant, here’s all you need to know. Alabama has its ninth-straight Top 3 class. They have more 5-stars on their roster than most schools have in decades.
Thanks for checking in. I will be updating this blog as the process closes out.