Oklahoma Sooners, Brent Venables set to host players from 2022 and 2023 recruiting classes

This upcoming weekend the Sooners will host a plethora of talented athletes from across multiple recruiting classes. The incoming 2022 class still needs to be buttoned up while the Sooners host members of the 2023 and 2024 classes in the coming weeks. Brent Venables and his staff have their first major recruiting weekend together and will look to close out some recruitments or position themselves nicely for others.

With so much talent in town, the Sooners will be busy this weekend hosting and showing these recruits what Norman and Oklahoma Football is all about. If they do it right, they can put themselves in a prime position to land talent across multiple classes.

Here are the 2022 names that the Sooners will be hosting:

2022 CB commit Gentry Williams

Gentry Williams is the No. 1 player in the state of Oklahoma and has been for multiple years now. He committed to the Sooners in October and has remained committed despite the coaching change. He’ll be taking another official visit this weekend which is only possible since the Sooners had a head coaching change.

Jay Valai, the Sooners’ new cornerbacks coach, will have his opportunity to close the deal on Williams, who wanted to wait and get acquainted with his new position coach before signing. Venables and Valai will look to put the finishing touches on the talented in-state star and keep the big talents of Oklahoma in-state.

2022 DT Ahmad Moten and 2022 Edge R Mason Thomas

Ahmad Moten and R Mason Thomas are teammates from the Fort Lauderdale area of Florida at Cardinal Gibbons High School. Both players hold offers from the Sooners. Thomas is committed to Iowa State, while Moten is uncommitted but is being recruited by UNC, Miami, and Iowa State.

Thomas is being recruited by defensive ends coach Miguel Chavis, one of Venables’ first hires when he became head coach. Chavis has been presumably working for a few months on Thomas and likely has his best opportunity to make his last best impression on the talented edge defender.

On the flip side, his teammate, and friend, Ahmad Moten, will likely be shown the ropes by defensive tackles coach Todd Bates. Bates will be looking to do his part to secure another interior defensive lineman as the Sooners continue to reshape and restructure the foundation of their defense.

Being that both are teammates, a successful visit could lead to one being able to sway the other into joining the Crimson & Cream.

2022 CB signee Jayden Rowe

Jayden Rowe is the only signee that will be in attendance this weekend, but the Sooners will love having him on campus. With Rowe signed and getting to visit the school with a full staff and other 2022 signees in attendance, they could use the time to get a peek at what it’s like with Brent Venables running the ship. The additional benefit to having Rowe already on board is it gives the coaching staff more time to spend with guys who are still on the fence.

Unlike some of his other 2022 classmates, Rowe will be a Summer enrollee, but this weekend should give him a good look at Norman and what to expect from Brent Venables and the new defensive staff. He’s got a massive amount of potential and could be a weapon for Venables and the defensive staff to use while as a Sooner.

2022 DL Gracen Halton

Gracen Halton is yet another defensive line prospect the Sooners will have on campus this week. Halton is listed as an edge by 247Sports, but with his size and frame, he could slide inside and play on the interior.

The Oregon commit is a California kid but is taking an official visit to Oklahoma as national signing day approaches. With the full defensive staff likely in the building, look for the Sooners to apply the pressure and see if they can get Halton to think a little bit harder about where he chooses to play his college football.

2022 ATH Jamarrien Burt

Jamarrien Burt represents a very new recruit into the fold late for the Sooners. Burt was not on the radar of the previous coaching staff, but with Venables and company’s recruiting focus shifting to the southeast, they’re making a late play for the 2022 Athlete’s services. Despite the late offer, Burt immediately decided to come and take an official to visit the Sooners.

Burt was a two-way player for his high school in Ocala, Florida, and could go on either side of the ball in college. Utah, Indiana, and Missouri seem like the most significant competition here.

2023 LB Anthony Hill

Linebacker Anthony Hill is a consensus top 50 recruit in the country and will be in Norman this weekend. He can play on or off the ball and is physically imposing for someone who hasn’t even graduated high school yet. Before Venables’ hiring, the Sooners were in touch as Lincoln Riley and his staff made several appearances in Denton, Texas, to visit the talented player. Venables has recruited and coached some elite linebackers and will be doing everything possible to give the Sooners a shot here.

Another tip in the Sooners’ favor is that a current Sooners player is from the same high school as Hill, Billy Bowman. Hopefully, with Bowman on campus and Venables there, the Sooners can use all hands on deck to show Hill what Oklahoma can offer. Texas and Texas A&M are the Sooners’ biggest threats here.

2023 DL David Hicks

David Hicks joins Anthony Hill as a premier Texas product in Norman for this weekend’s visits. Like Hill, Hicks is one of the five-best recruits in the state of Texas per 247Sports. David Hicks is a consensus top 10 recruit and will force the Sooners into a heavy recruiting battle with the biggest brands in college football like Alabama, LSU, Notre Dame, and Texas.

Clemson was in a great spot for Hicks’ during the season last year. Why is that significant? The lead recruiter for Hicks was Todd Bates who is now the defensive tackles coach at Oklahoma.

Bates and Hicks have a relationship and with Oklahoma’s proximity to Texas, one has to think that makes the Sooners an appealing opportunity for Hicks to consider.

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