Armando Leon Gunning For Familiar Faces As Transfer Portal Officially Opens
Boone Tillman // Sooner Born • Published: January 23rd, 2030
For Armando Leon and the Oklahoma Sooners, it appears their transfer portal strategy this year falls firmly under the category of "if something works, do more of it."
Coach Leon leaned on his former connections in his first offseason with the Oklahoma Sooners with the signings of both Greg Foxworth and Antoine Eze from the Oregon State Beavers, both players who were recruited by Leon during his two years in Corvallis. Foxworth and Eze were starters for the National Champion Oklahoma Sooners this past season and it appears Leon is banking on similar success in the 2030 transfer portal.
With the transfer portal officially opening today, the Sooners already have six official visits scheduled for former players under Leon; three each from Maryland and Oregon State with five of the six landing on the defensive unit.
When asked about the belief that Oklahoma is the front runner for all six of the players, regardless of their reasons for leaving their respective schools, Leon was dismissive of any foul play.
"It seems like a no-brainer decision to me. These are guys that I recruited for a reason and helped coach up. The familiarity is the biggest asset. They know the system, the playbook, and what I expect. I'm really baffled at the overwhelming negative response that players who already agreed to play for me once are excited to do it again for the reigning National Champions. I'm not the first coach to bring former players with me, but unlike those previous instances, I'm not bringing an entire starting unit with me. Each time I've left a program, I've never advocated for anyone to follow me. If they chose to do so of their own volition?"
Leon raised both his shoulders in a half-hearted shrug, "Sue me I guess," he added.
Listen folks. Everyone is quick to cry foul in today's day and age, I get that. But like Leon said, he isn't Curt Cignetti taking the entirety of the James Madison roster with him, or Kalen DeBoer poaching the Washington Huskies when he left for Alabama. Some of these young men are two years removed from playing for Leon and if their respective programs lacked the resources to keep them, good for them for betting on themselves and finding somewhere that does.
And, let's not pretend these aren't positions of need for the Sooners. We lost our All-American MLB in Kyle Brink, bringing in a guy like Gordon Paul, who was a four-star recruit and played under Leon as a true freshman sounds like a no-brainer. He got buried on the depth chart in Maryland with the scheme switch, but he still has talent and most importantly, Leon trusts him.
LaMarcus Blount, Mario Magnifico, and Jamie Isaacs all play corner, or are projected to in the case of Isaacs who has underwhelmed as a full-time safety, where we lost three players from last year's squad. Like Leon said, this is a non-issue. Coaches bring in former players every year, just becase we're the reigning National Champions, suddenly people want to cry foul?
PUH-LEASE!
The bigger story, in my opinion, is the curious lack of information regarding the Sooners and transfer portal quarterbacks. I have heard exactly ZERO chatter on that front, period.
Cole Welliver is gone, folks, in case you didn't realize he was graduating. AJ Hatchett, Larry Thrasher, and Javier Hyde are the only quarterbacks on the roster. Hatchett was a four-star recruit last year, so the jury is out, but both Thrasher and Hyde have career clip-board holder written in permanent ink all over them.
We're bringing in two quarterbacks in our recruiting class, and by all accounts the coaching staff is bullish on their belief in Markelle Nickey, but if you want me to sit back and smile while we trot out a true freshman or redshirt freshman as we look to defend our National Championship, you clearly aren't a long-time listener.
BRIAN PENNEL IS RIGHT THERE. He is in the portal. When asked what he is looking for during his final collegiate season, he had one answer: to win.
And what did the Oklahoma Sooners just do last season?
OH YEAH, WIN.
It looks like a match made in hog-heaven. So why am I hearing zero traction on that front?
I can only hope that it's being kept exclusively under wraps, or that with all the attention on recruiting former players, the Sooners' pursuit of Pennel has gone under the radar.
Because I refuse to believe Coach Leon's decision for the starting quarterback next season is going to come from the throw of a dart. 'Cause right now, that is exactly what he's doing by not going after ANYONE.
Prove me wrong, Coach. Please?
