Weekend visit preview: OU hosts nation’s No. 1; 5-stars visit USC, UF

Week 4 of the college football season is upon us and there are a lot of good matchups, which means top recruits will be flocking to campuses again for official and unofficial visits.

On3 previews the top recruiting trips scheduled for the weekend and breaks down the most important visits.

Sooners host No. 1 recruit

The stars will be out in Norman, Oklahoma, this weekend as the Oklahoma Sooners play host to a handful of the nation’s best defensive prospects.

Leading off the list of visitors is the No. 1 recruit in the country Marvin Jones Jr. of Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) American Heritage.

“I’ve heard many great things about the experience in Norman and it’s exciting to visit a school outside of Florida for the first time in a while,” Jones told On3’s Chad Simmons.

Joining him on campus will be most of Oklahoma’s 2022 and 2023 commits and a number of prospects, including 2023 Alpharetta (Ga.) Milton EDGE Lebbeus Overton (No. 6 in the 2023 On100) and Owasso (Okla.) High DL Chris McClellan (No. 85 in 2022).

The trio represents exactly the type of prospects Oklahoma wants—and needs—to get as it prepares to leave the Big 12 and join the SEC in in the next few years.

Getting Jones on campus is no small feat. But eventually landing him would be a major shot across the bow of SEC country, with both Alabama and Texas A&M in heavy pursuit.

5-star Devon Campbell visiting USC

Even though Donte Williams is USC’s interim head coach, he’s dived headfirst into keeping the Trojans moving forward on the recruiting trail.

After offering fast-rising SoCal running back Jaydn Ott earlier this week and Michigan commit Mason Graham, the Trojans will host a big group of prospects on campus for unofficial visits this weekend.

At the top of the list is five-star offensive lineman Devon Campbell of Arlington (Texas) Bowie. Fresh off a visit to Oklahoma last weekend, Campbell told On3’s WeAreSC that he will be at USC with his family.

Ott will also be on campus for an unofficial visit and there’s intel he could go ahead and commit to the Trojans.

5-star 2023 CB visiting Florida

Five-star junior cornerback Cormani McClain of Lakeland (Fla.) Lake Gibson will make a second visit in a row to Florida this weekend. McClain was “blown away” by his visit to Gainesville last weekend for the Alabama game. He’ll be in the stands again this weekend as Tennessee comes to town.

The Gators have moved into the No. 1 spot for McClain. In fact, McClain calls the Gators his leader at this point. But he’s also not in a rush to decide with Alabama, Ohio State, Miami, Florida State, Michigan and Arkansas also after him.

Gardendale (Ala.) High four-star 2023 DL Kelby Collins also will be at the game. He was supposed to make a trip to The Swamp last weekend to watch the big-time matchup between the Gators and Alabama. But he canceled his trip due to the weather.

There will be other top 2023 targets in the stands such as UF TE commit Mac Markway, WR Bryson Rodgers, LB Andrew Harris and LB Michael Harris. All of those players are consensus four-star recruits.

Florida State looking for momentum

With Florida State struggling on the field, the Seminoles are looking for something to get their recruiting efforts also fired back up on the trail. One prospect that could do that is coveted four-star cornerback Earl Little Jr. of Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) American Heritage.

The 6-foot, 175-pound Little confirmed Thursday that he will be in Tallahassee, Fla., this weekend for an official visit with the Noles.

Little has had Florida State high on his list for a while now, but Alabama has been at the forefront of his recruitment for quite some time.

Elite 2023 EDGE heading to Michigan

After a visit to Penn State last weekend for the White Out game, coveted 2023 EDGE Nyckoles Harbor of Washington (D.C.) Archbishop Carroll is slated to be in Ann Arbor this weekend. The Wolverines do have some good connections with Harbor, as his mother is from the Detroit area and one of his track coaches graduated from Michigan.

Speaking of track, Harbor – a potential five-star prospect – will be looking hard at the school’s football and track programs. He is one of the best sprinters in the country. He ran a 10.38-second 100-meter time and a 21.36-second 200-meter time as a sophomore.

Getting him on campus early in the process is a big win for Michigan. The Wolverines are part of a top group that includes Maryland, Oklahoma, Oregon and Penn State.

Mississippi State expecting key targets

One of the best games of the weekend is LSU at Mississippi State, and Mike Leach’s Bulldog squad is using it to bring a handful of official visitors and a large group of unofficial visitors to Starkville.

The official visit list will include Mississippi State commitments and consensus three-star offensive linemen Lucas Taylor and Jackson Cannon.

The official visit list also includes two of MSU’s top targets in consensus four-star linebacker Stone Blanton of Madison (Miss.) Ridgeland Academy and consensus three-star receiver Kaydin Pope of Savannah (Tenn.) Hardin County.

Two other key names expected to visit are consensus three-star DL Quentel Jones and consensus three-star ATH and longtime commitment Trent Singleton.

Jones’ recruitment has developed into one of the best in the South with Miami, Tennessee and Missouri battling for his commitment. Intel indicates that the Bulldogs feel good about their chances with him.

Mississippi State also is in good shape with Singleton, despite pushes from Indiana and Memphis. He might take other visits. But this weekend’s trip to Starkville will be backed up with an official sometime in December.

Other key visits

+The Texas Longhorns get their chance to impress On300 linebacker Lander Barton of Salt Lake City Brighton this weekend. The four-star visited Michigan and is slated to be at Utah on Oct. 16 and Oregon on Oct. 30. Utah has been the team to beat with Barton for quite some time, but the Longhorns get a chance to thwart that trajectory this weekend.

UT is also scheduled to host a large crew of commitments this weekend, including On300 DL Kristopher Ross of Houston North Shore on an official visit.

+Notre Dame hosts consensus three-star receiver Major Everhart on an official visit this weekend. TCU, Texas Tech, Virginia Tech, Baylor, Penn State and a few others are in play, but the Irish have a great shot to make a move this weekend. The Irish also expects a top group of underclassmen, including fast-rising Chicago Simeon receiver Malik Elzy.