OU lands huge commit + Big 12 QB Tiers
OU lands huge commit + Big 12 QB Tiers
✌🏽 Happy Monday, friends. Let’s ride.
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🔒 Mustang to Norman
Jacobe Johnson always seemed destined for OU.
He still has a letter of intent to sign this December, but as of now, the pride of Mustang High School is committed to the Sooners.
Johnson, a blue-chip Class of 2023 receiver/defensive back, announced his commitment to OU over the weekend at a preseason event at his home high school football stadium.
Johnson picked the Sooners over four other finalists — Alabama, Michigan, Oklahoma State and Stanford.
The aforementioned inevitably of his commitment mostly stems from OU and Johnson circling each other for years. The Sooners offered Johnson during the spring of his freshman year of high school.
A different OU staff, of course, originally recruited Johnson. But after nine months on the job, Brent Venables and Co. were able to lock down the four-star prospect, who ranks No. 87 nationally among all Class of 2023 prospects.
Johnson is listed as an “athlete” by most recruiting services, but he is most likely to play at defensive back when he arrives at OU.
🏈 Preseason QB tiers
One of the worst things about projecting the Big 12 this upcoming season is we have absolutely no clue how good the quarterbacks will be.
For a league that once prided itself on offense and still gets (wrongly) labeled as a conference that doesn’t play defense, the 2022 group of Big 12 quarterbacks is … something.
So, rather than rank this year’s quarterbacks, we’re going with the trendy “tiers” format of list-making (yes, we’re alphabetizing the names in each group) and we’ll update at the end of September. Sound good?
Tier 1: We’ll call this the “proof of concept” group. It’s no guarantee they’ll be great, but they have at least shown a large sample size to be considered among the most proven.
Dillon Gabriel, Oklahoma: The former Central Florida quarterback has posted big numbers in the past and with the same offensive coordinator. Both Gabriel and his old coach, Jeff Lebby, are now in Norman and bring a wealth of in-game experience compared to the rest of the league.
Adrian Martinez, Kansas State: Getting out of Nebraska was the best thing for Martinez, who has a lot of flaws but he’s essentially modern-day Collin Klein, who just so happens to be Martinez’s offensive coordinator. That ought to be a good pairing, or at least one that understands one another.
Spencer Sanders, Oklahoma State: Sanders has the athleticism to keep defenses on their toes but the throwing ability that makes defenses salivate. He did lead Oklahoma State to a Big 12 title game last year and has steadily improved since first starting in 2019. Other than his arm, the biggest question that remains is can he stay healthy?
Tier 2: This is the “Blake Shapen” group. He’s shown some great flashes but I want to see how he operates over the course of an entire season as a starter. He’ll have the benefit of one of the better offensive lines in the conference.
Blake Shapen, Baylor: See above.
Tier 3: Welcome to the “it could go either way” group. These two have high ceilings based on what little we know of them. Perhaps they’ll shoot up the tier list. Perhaps they won’t.
Quinn Ewers, Texas: All the tools are there, minus a competent offensive line. If Ewers can still be successful with less-than-stellar protection, he might just be as elite as advertised. The big problem? We’ve never seen him play a meaningful snap. Not to mention, he’s essentially a true freshman. I don’t deny Ewers could be great one day, but he has plenty of hype he’s yet to live up to.
Chandler Morris, TCU: His claim to fame is a win over Baylor last season, showing he might just be the future for the Frogs. Morris still has a lot to prove entering his third year of college football, but the promise is there.
Tier 4: And here’s the rest.
J.T. Daniels, West Virginia: The former five-star quarterback has bounced around from Southern Cal to Georgia to now West Virginia. Is Graham Harrell the offensive coordinator to finally unlock Daniels’ full potential?
Jalon Daniels, Kansas: The Jayhawks seem to finally have a guy they can rely on. Daniels has the playmaking ability and chemistry with a big returning group to make things interesting in Lawrence this season.
Hunter Dekkers, Iowa State: A complete rebuild is headed for Iowa State this season. Dekkers doesn’t necessarily have massive shoes to fill at the quarterback position talent-wise but he doesn’t quite have the weapons the last guy did.
Tyler Shough/Donovan Smith, Texas Tech: I think the Red Raiders will be a fun team because of the system. Who leads them at quarterback? No clue. 🤷🏽♂️
🏀 Back in Tulsa
Oklahoma men’s basketball will meet Arkansas at Tulsa’s BOK Center for the second annual Crimson & Cardinal Classic.
The nonconference tilt, scheduled for Dec. 10, will make tickets available to the public at noon CT on Friday, Aug. 19. Tickets will be available at bokcenter.com.
The Sooners won last year's meeting 88-66, handing then-No. 12 Arkansas just its second loss of the season.