On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine: Oklahoma trending for DL David Hicks

Katy (Texas) Paetow five-star defensive lineman David Hicks plans to go the distance in his recruitment.

In recent interviews with On3’s Sam Spiegelman, Hicks re-affirmed that his current decision is to wait until the All-American Game in January to publicly announce his commitment. Texas A&M and Oklahoma have been the two schools battling for his services, with Alabama looking to make a push back into his recruitment.

Hicks recently locked in his final two official visits to Alabama and then Oklahoma (November 19) before his January decision. Texas A&M is expected to host Hicks unofficially on September 17 when Miami — another one of his final seven schools — comes into town.

But after a recent expert prediction from Spiegelman earlier this week, as well as industry updates earlier today, it’s the Sooners who have taken a commanding lead, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). It now gives Oklahoma a 75.6 percent chance of securing Hicks’ commitment come the beginning of next year.

The Aggies trail behind at 18.5 percent, with all other programs polling below 1.1 percent.

David Hicks Recruiting Profile

The 6-foot-4, 270-pounder is the nation’s No. 9 prospect, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He ranks as the No. 1 defensive lineman and the No. 1 player in the state of Texas as well.

On3 Director of Scouting and Rankings Charles Power writes this about him as a prospect:

“Physically-developed defensive lineman with advanced power along with length and quickness. Possesses a big frame with a muscled build and an 80-inch wingspan at 6-foot-4. Has brute strength which he pairs with initial quickness to create steady disruption along the line of scrimmage. Consistently shows quick and powerful hands at the point of attack with some advanced pass rush technique for a young defensive lineman.

… Very much a power player at this point in his development, but plays with some nuance and technical skill. Working at both defensive end and defensive tackle as a junior at a powerhouse program in Texas’ highest classification. A strong, but not elite athlete. Turned in dominant showings at college camps prior to his junior season.”

About the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine

RPM was released to the public in December. The On3 engineering group teamed up with Spiny.ai to create the industry’s first algorithm and machine learning-based product to predict where athletes will attend college. 

It factors in machine learning, expert predictions, social sentiment, visits, and historical trends. However, expert predictions are still a big piece of the RPM equation.