No Father's Son

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gotta reload that roster, no time for rebuilding

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I have also only read the last few pages so maybe I am missing things.

gotta reload that roster, no time for rebuilding

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Leon Flexes Recruiting Muscle As Sooners Finish With 18th-Ranked Class

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Boone Tillman // Sooner Born • Published: January 25th, 2029

The talk all offseason may have been about how Coach Leon never stays in place long enough to see a recruiting class through, but I'll be damned if he can't recruit with the best of them. I ain't saying I hope he doesn't see this class through, quite the opposite, but I'm just saying, at the end of the day the man can recruit with the best of 'em.

Leon took over a recruiting class ranked 39th nationally with just 8 recruits and worked his magic, finishing with the 18th-overall class amid a furious flurry of prep recruits and portal additions.

Before we get to the most significant additions, I want to take a moment to address the bigger implications behind a few portal additions.

Coach Leon has been through the ringer this offseason with many outlets publicly questioning how he can continue to get buy-in from players with his constant job hopping. I understand the rhetoric behind it, but when you see him pull two former recruits from the Oregon State Beavers—tackle Antoine Eze and linebacker Gregory Foxworth—it speaks volumes. His guys love playing for him, point blank. We saw that when his move from Maryland was announced, none other than Malik Washington came out in support of his coach, and now you see it again with former recruits following Leon to Oklahoma.

Jahleel Sweat was the lone five-star recruit left unsigned and while the Sooners had courted the Hopkinsville, Kentucky native all selason, he had been reluctant to put pen to paper with the uncertainty surrounding Venables, enough that SMU had surpassed the Sooners for his No. 1 choice. That is until Coach Leon kicked in the door.

Leon invited Sweat to campus as soon as the final recruiting window opened, a move that reportedly came up aces. "He'd already been on campus in Week 10 with Venables," acknowledged Leon about the quick visit, "We wanted to show him what was different now. The culture, the attitude, the whole vibe."

When asked about the visit, Sweat was candid: "To be honest, I was on the fence about taking a second trip to Norman—I thought I'd seen everything I needed to see. But I'm glad I did, completely changed my perspective."

Joining Sweat in committing to the Sooners was local quarterback AJ Hatchett, the 21st-overall quarterback in the recruiting class and the 5th ranked prospect inside the state of Oklahoma.

Adding the five-star and four-star recruits gave the Sooners a boost, but then the transfer portal additions pushed them over the top. That is not to say that the Sooners hit on all of their targets, however.

Former SMU wide receiver Jason Lee and Kentucky linebacker Cedrick Work were highly sought after by Leon, but despite "tremendous" efforts—according to Leon—neither will be wearing crimson and cream next season as they committed to Ohio State and Penn State, respectively.

They may not have seen the vision in Norman, but plenty of others hopped on the wagon, headlined by former Aggie Oscar Robledo. The former Aggie entered the portal with Oklahoma being his preferred destination according to those close to them, and Leon wasted no time zeroing in on the explosive back who tallied 1,154 yards and 15 touchdowns for Texas A&M last year.

"What's not to love," questioned Leon about the Robledo signing, "He's fast, shifty, explosive and he's proven he can handle an SEC workload. The whole offensive dynamic changed when he donned the crimson and cream."

Robledo was one of 12 transfer portal signees by the Oklahoma Sooners that was heavy on star power. Of those twelve, seven of them were full-or part-time starters at their previous programs including former Florida corners J'Vari Flowers and Teddy Foster, Utah free safety Nathan Tilmon, and Pittsburgh guard Carter Sheehan.

Offensive coordinator Jerry Mack even brought in a familiar face, former Kennesaw State quarterback Javier Hyde, whom Mack recruited while head coach.

"Javier isn't there to threaten a starting spot, more of a mentor role," revealed one position coach, "Mack praised his intelligence and felt he would be a valuable addition to the quarterback room."

"We entered the portal with the goal to get faster defensively and improve the talent level in the trenches," clarified Leon after the portal was finalized, "We accomplished that. There were a few guys we missed out on, but they were luxury additions, not needs. We're really happy with how the roster took shape coming out of recruiting and now it's time to roll up our sleeves and start seeing how tough we really are."


Oklahoma Recruiting Class

Ranking	Position	Name	Ht	Wt	Hometown	Tendency	NAT/STA/POS
	DE	Jahleel Sweat	6'6	232	Hopkinsville, KY	Power Rusher	5/1/1
	HB	Deon Bull	6'0	188	Plano, TX	North/South Receiver	93/16/14
	DT	Cole Leo	6'3	303	Jones, OK	Power Rusher	118/3/5
	WR	Dillon Slye	5'8	182	Cibolo, TX	Route Artist	122/22/15
	TE	Maurice Lucky	6'4	202	Lake Dallas, TX	Physical Route Runner	142/28/20
	LB	Fredrick Garbutt	6'1	210	Arlington, TX	Signal Caller	181/33/14
	QB	AJ Hatchett	6'4	210	Oklahoma City, OK	Dual Threat	226/5/21
	DE	Nick Michel	6'6	229	Garland, TX	Pure Power	325/56/35
	DE	Kevin Canty	6'5	248	Arlington, TX	Power Rusher	906/149/84
	LB	Gregory Calitro	6'1	204	Cedar Hill, TX(JUCO)	Lurker	1000/162/77
	DT	Kevin Esposito	6'4	303	Mansfield, TX	Speed Rusher	1105/181/62

Oklahoma_Transfer_Class

Class	Position	Name	Previous School	2028 Stats
SO(RS)	HB	Oscar Robledo	Texas A&M	283 Att, 1,151 Yds, 15 TD
SO(RS)	C	Denetrious Busby	Temple	0 Sacks
JR(RS)	G	Carter Sheehan	Pittsburgh	1 Sack
JR	LB	Greg Foxworth	Oregon State	48 Tkl, 14 TFL, 4 Sacks
JR(RS)	CB	J'Vari Flowers	Florida	71 Tkl, INT
SO(RS)	CB	Ja'Darius Pleasants	Kansas	31 Tkl, INT
JR(RS)	CB	Teddy Foster	Florida	8 Tkl, 2 INT
JR(RS)	FS	Nathan Tilmon	Utah	78 Tkl, TFL
SO(RS)	T	Antoine Eze	Oregon State	8 Sacks
FR(RS)	G	Zeke Mayer	Alabama	N/A
FR(RS)	QB	Larry Thrasher	USC	N/A
SO(RS)	QB	Javier Hyde	Kennesaw State	N/A

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Oklahoma Set To Renew Old Rivalries & Ignite New Ones Starting In 2029

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ESPN // College Football News • Published: January 31st, 2029

November 4th, 2023 was the last time Oklahoma and Oklahoma State faced off in their longstanding "Bedlam Series", as the Sooners departed for the SEC starting in 2024.

Six years later and we are so back, baby. Roger Denny and the Oklahoma Sooners athletic department announced with a media rollout that starting in 2029, the Oklahoma Sooners would be bringing back a number of key rivalries.

"We already had a home and home agreement with Nebraska to start next season and it is with great pleasure that I announce in addition to the renewal of that rivalry, we have officially agreed to an annual renewal of the "Bedlam Series" with our in-state rival Oklahoma State," declared Denny at a scheduled press conference earlier today.

It was far from the only scheduling announcement of the afternoon, however.

"With the SEC agreeing to reduce conference games from 9 to 8 this season," continued the Oklahoma athletic director, "We had the opportunity to add a high-profile matchup into our slate as well."

"I'm pleased to announce that we have agreed to a four-year home-home series with the Oregon Ducks, starting this season when we head to Autzen Stadium."

During the short Q&A after the announcement, Denny confirmed that recent fervor between the two fan bases, stemming from coaches Dan Lanning and Armando Leon's job opportunities this summer, is what prompted the conversations between Oregon and Oklahoma leadership.

"Obviously, there is some off-the-field stuff that plays into the growing rivalry, but aside from that we both represent premium conferences in the college football landscape. It would be foolhardy not to give the people what they want."

Additionally it was announced that the Oklahoma Sooners' final non-conference game was going to be against another in-state program, the Tulsa Hurricane.

Twitter erupted at the announcement of the Oregon vs. Oklahoma series with both fan bases taking shots at each other in the aftermath—Oregon fans tweeting out #No.11 and #TemuKiffin while Sooners fans countered with #PutYoRingsOntheTable and #LanningAin'tBuiltForMore, a play on the SEC's slogan "It Just Means More."

Both Oklahoma State and Oklahoma posted graphics promoting the renewal of the rivalry, showing a longstanding respect for each other's programs.

While the conference schedules have already been announced, the NCAA is expected to release the full schedules including non-conference games by the end of the week. Early speculation has the Oregon Ducks hosting the Oklahoma Sooners early in the season, before their respective conference slates begin.

[djp73]

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Oregon gotta show how tough they are now that teams are closer to equal

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Defense Wins the Day In Spring Game; Same Song Different Verse For Sooners In 2029?

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Boone Tillman // Sooner Born • Published: April 18th, 2029

Boomer Sooner. I think. Maybe. Ask me again in October.

Look, I want to be excited. I genuinely do. I've been bleeding crimson and cream since before I could spell "Oklahoma," and there is nothing—and I mean nothing—I want more than to walk into Gaylord Family this fall with full confidence that this program has turned the corner. But after years of Brent Venables and his "trust the process" defense-first philosophy that gave us a 4-8 disaster and the most embarrassing stretch of Sooner football in modern memory, you'll forgive me if I'm not quite ready to pop the champagne over a spring game.

Saturday's modified scoring final—Defense 67, Offense 54—was impressive. It really was. But I've seen this movie before, folks, and I know how it ends.

Let me be fair before I get to my concerns. The offensive skill talent on this roster is genuinely exciting, and that part did give me some hope. Oscar Robledo looks like the real deal; 15 carries, 99 yards, a rushing score, five catches for 60 more yards and another touchdown, with multiple explosive plays. That's a complete back. Isac Adcock ripped off a 30-yard touchdown run with the kind of burst that makes you sit up straight. The receiver room—Ja'Kayden Ferguson with 88 yards and a score, Elijah Thomas looking polished as ever, Iosefa Topa making plays, is deeper than anything we had in the back half of the Venables era. I'll give them that.

The quarterback situation, though? That's where my eyebrow goes up. Cole Welliver threw for 259 yards and three touchdowns, which sounds great on paper until you see he also threw three interceptions. Jett Niu added a score but threw one himself. Four interceptions combined, folks. Four. Now yes, it's spring ball, yes the defense is clearly very good, but I watched four years of this offense turning the ball over at the worst possible moments and losing games we had no business losing. Old habits die hard, and I'm not ready to declare the turnover demons exorcised based on one spring afternoon.

But here's the thing that really keeps me up at night.

Armando Leon is, by all accounts, a brilliant defensive mind. Two consecutive number-one ranked defenses at Maryland. A Rose Bowl appearance in his first year as a head coach. The resume is undeniable. And sure enough, the defense on Saturday looked every bit as ferocious as advertised. Karlos Vigil with three sacks and five tackles for loss. Three sacks from a defensive tackle. Trystan Haynes with two interceptions and six pass breakups, Ralph Saylor and Richard Trainer each adding picks of their own. Three defensive touchdowns. Three fourth-down stops. Three three-and-outs. The front seven of Foxworth, Britt, Vigil, and Brink was terrorizing quarterbacks all afternoon.

It's dominant. It's physical. It's everything you want from a defense.

And it scares the living daylights out of me.

Because here's what I lived through: Brent Venables came to Norman as a defensive genius. One of the best in the country, they said. Program changer, they said. And the defense was good, sometimes great, while the offense sputtered, stalled, and self-destructed for four agonizing seasons. We lost games 17-13. We lost games where our defense held opponents to 20 points and our offense managed 14. We went 4-and-8 with a defense that would have been respectable in any other era because the offense couldn't sustain a drive when it mattered.

Now here comes Coach Leon, another defensive coordinator turned head coach, another brilliant defensive mind, another guy whose calling card is shutting offenses down. And the first thing I see out of spring ball is his defense beating his offense by 13 points in a glorified scrimmage.

I'm not saying history is going to repeat itself. I'm saying I've heard this song before and I know the melody.

What I need to see; what Sooner Nation *deserves to see, is an offensive identity that can carry this team on its back when it needs to. I need to see those quarterbacks stop bleeding the ball. I need to see the offensive line win a physical battle in the fourth quarter of a game that matters. I need to see this staff recruit and develop an offense worthy of the talent that's clearly already in that skill group.

The defense will be fine. The defense is always fine under guys like Leon. That part I believe.

It's the other 11 guys on the field that I'm watching.

Prove me wrong, Coach. Lord knows I want you to.

Boomer Sooner. Cautiously.

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2029 Oklahoma Sooners Recruiting Preview

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Boone Tillman // Sooner Born • Published: August 20th, 2029

Coach Leon already showed he can swing five-star prospects, landing his first-ever five-star commit this offseason in Jahleel Sweat. Now, he has to prove he can do it while fighting tooth and nail with the big boys, who were distracted by the transfer portal this spring while Leon flipped Sweat.

The Sooners have been ambitious with their opening big board that features six five-star prospects and 11 total in Rivals' Top-200.

"Some we're really gunning for, others we are just doing due diligence," stated Leon when asked about his early Big Board, but refusing to elaborate when asked if that included having two Top-15 quarterbacks on the early roster.

Oklahoma has the consensus No. 1 overall prospect, QB Klay Abraham, and the 6th-overall quarterback, five-star Ja'Darius Tonges, each atop their board to start the early recruitment process. Both Abraham and Tonges project as dual-threat quarterbacks, while Tonges is the more athletically gifted of the two.

With Abraham hailing from Mansfield, Texas and Tonges from Midlothian, Virginia, the recruitment is fierce for both quarterbacks with Alabama, Texas, Clemson, and Ohio State all offering scholarships to both quarterbacks.


•••


Graduating Seniors: 22


Oklahoma Sooners 2029 Big Board

Ranking	Position	Name	Ht	Wt	Hometown	Tendency	NAT/STA/POS
	QB	Klay Abraham	6'4	204	Mansfield, TX	Dual Threat	1/1/1
	MLB	Lorenzo Rozeboom	6'2	228	Provo, UT	Signal Caller	2/1/1
	QB	Ja'Darius Tonges	6'3	197	Midlothian, VA	Dual Threat	12/1/6
	CB	Paul Hixon	6'2	182	Gilbert, AZ	Field	13/1/3
	HB	Dion Pape	6'1	214	Magnolia, TX	Elusive Bruiser	24/3/1
	WR	Terrelle Smoker	6'1	187	Memphis, TN	Route Artist	29/1/3
	DE	JaMarcus Pryor	6'2	236	Dallas, TX	Speed Rusher	81/17/4
	WR	David Ekuale	6'2	193	Dallas, TX	Physical Route Runner	117/24/12
	MLB	Jason Pilgrim	6'1	234	Katy, TX	Signal Caller	139/29/12
	C	Kris Wilbur	6'4	293	Muskogee, OK	Raw Strength	156/2/5
	FS	Robert Chester	5'10	197	Mesquite, TX	Coverage Specialist	212/38/7
	DT	Teddy Smith	6'5	303	Murfreesboro, TN	Power Rusher	289/7/22
	CB	D'Angelo Louis	6'0	187	Hayden, AL	Bump and Run	293/11/22
	SS	Alex Correa	6'0	206	Houston, TX	Box Specialist	294/51/7
	LT	Taylor Hundley	6'6	325	Bixby, OK	Raw Strength	307/4/18
	RG	Villiami Madden	6'2	308	Midlothian, TX	Pass Pro	330/56/21
	CB	Nick Duarte	6'1	208	Delray Beach, FL	Bump and Run	348/38/29
	RG	Ezekiel Buck	6'4	291	Cedar Hill, TX	Well Rounded	379/63/27
	WR	Trevante Kalu	6'4	201	Fort Lauderdale, FL	Physical Route Runner	383/40/74
	RG	Larry Kafka	6'3	303	Suffolk, VA	Well Rounded	395/10/28

Oklahoma Sooners 2029 School Rankings
Championship Contender: C+ 47th
Program Tradition: A+ 5th
Campus Lifestyle: B+ 29th
Stadium Atmosphere: A 8th
Pro Potential:

► Show Spoiler

QB: 7th A
HB: 13th A-
WR: 26th B+
TE: 89th D+
OL: 20th B+
DL: 11th A
LB: 30th B
DB: 11th A

Brand Exposure: A+ 3rd
Academic Prestige: C 64th
Conference Prestige: A+ 2nd
Coach Stability: D+ 88th
Coach Prestige: A 8th
Athletic Facilities: A 11th
Team Prestige:


2029 Top High School Recruits

► Show Spoiler

Name	Position	Hometown	Top 3
Klay Abraham	QB	Mansfield, TX	Ala/TCU/OU
Lorenzo Rozenboom	MLB	Provo, UT	Ore/Utah/Neb
Richard Coffey	QB	Ft Mitchell, KY	Clem/LSU/tOSU
Jacques Carney	QB	Lititz, PA	tOSU/PSU/ND
George Silvera	CB	Mesquite, TX	Mizz/Tex/TAMU
Tyronne Augustine	ATH	Cincinnati, OH	Mich/MSU/ND
Abdul Vaughns	WR	Tallahasse, FL	UF/Aub/FSU
Timote Best	ATH	Powder Springs, GA	UGA/Clem/Aub
Tim Provo	CB	High Point, NC	UGA/NCSt/Clem
Iosefa Seumalo	LB	San Diego, CA	Tex/USC/BSU
Theo Trahan	QB	Shelby, NC	Clem/UGA/PSU
Ja'Darius Tonges	QB	Midlothian, VA	Clem/tOSU/Ala
Paul Hixon	CB	Gilbert, AZ	Ore/Tex/OU
Dom Cooke	CB	Neptune Beach, FL	ND/UGA/tOSU
Gio Anenih	LB	Miami, FL	Baylor/UGA/TAMU

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