Oklahoma to shift focus to 2023 with top juniors visiting

On3 imageby:Jeremy Crabtree01/27/22

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Oklahoma coach Brent Venables and Co. have done a good job of assembling a quality 2022 class on the fly.

The Sooners did major damage control by landing a blue-chip quarterback in Nick Evers and getting coveted four-star cornerback Gentry Williams to reaffirm his commitment. The Sooners’ class sits at No. 8 in the country less than a week before Signing Day and second overall in the Big 12.

Now Oklahoma is shifting its focus more and more on the 2023 class. The official transition begins this weekend with the first junior day since Venables took over in Norman.

A long list of blue-chip targets is expected on campus this weekend, headlined by Sooner quarterback commit Jackson Arnold. He’ll be joined on the junior day visit by three-star interior offensive lineman Joshua Bates, a longtime OU commitment.

Strong list of 4-stars coming to Oklahoma

At least three other four-star visitors are expected to be at the Oklahoma junior day:

  • Mustang, Okla., in-state athlete Jacobe Johnson is also set to return to campus for the third time. Johnson is ranked as a four-star prospect, according to the On3 Consensus. He’s also the second-ranked player in Oklahoma. The Sooners are considered clearly the team to beat over Oklahoma State, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine.
  • Another four-star in-state visitor is Micah Tease of Tulsa Booker T. Washington. Tease is well on his way to more than 20 scholarship offers. But with a renewed focus on local talent by Venables staff, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him pick the Crimson and Cream.
  • The Sooners are also set to host On3 Consensus four-star receiver Ashton Cozart of Flower Mound (Texas) Richland. Landing Evers and Arnold is expected to help the Sooners’ chances with Cozart. Oklahoma currently is the favorite over Texas, according to the On3 RPM.

Will the Sooners offer Dylan Edwards?

Derby (Kan.) High three-star running back Dylan Edwards is set to be in Norman this weekend. While he doesn’t have an Oklahoma offer to this point, the Sooners have been heavily pursuing him to get him on campus for a visit.

The 5-foot-7, 165-pound three-star running back already has a solid offer list from programs like Kansas State, Kentucky, MinnesotaNebraskaIowa StateKansasIndianaNew Mexico StateMichigan StateWest Virginia, Arizona, Memphis, Washington and Wisconsin and others.

Venables is a Kansas native. He’s made it clear he plans to pursue the top players in the Sunflower State heavily, so it will be interesting to see what happens with Edwards and the Sooners.

Edwards was recently honored for his incredible junior season with the 2021 Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year award. The award capped off a junior season that saw Edwards rush for 2,603 yards, 40 touchdowns, and rack up more than 3,214 all-purpose yards. Edwards also averaged 221 yards a game and 13 yards a carry. He was a key reason why Derby made it to the Kansas Class 6A state championship game.

Two other names that have been linked to junior day visits to Oklahoma are three-star athlete Moussa Kane out of New York and safety Jayden Bonsu from New Jersey.