There just aren’t a lot of them. It’s what makes the job so important, and the person who holds that job so valuable.

No matter what recruiting class, you never hear about how there are too many quality defensive tackles. That’s simply not a problem that exists. All the same elite schools are all going for the same 10-15 tackles that they know can enrich a class and a program.

For Oklahoma, that job belongs to Todd Bates. In his first year with the Sooners, Bates knows there is no such thing as immediate gratification in defensive tackle recruiting.

It’s always going to be a grind, but OU fans are confident Bates is going to figure it out because he has those years of experience at Clemson that showed he can do it.

Bates isn’t the rah-rah in-your-face type of coach. He’s laid back. He understands the urgency is landing top-tier recruits. But what he understands more than anything is you have to get the right one.

“It all starts for us with the person that they are, first,” Bates said. “That's where it starts for us. You know, we got a saying around here that you know, you sign the wrong five star.

“If you miss out on the five-star, he can only beat you once or twice. But if you sign the wrong one, he beats you every day.

“And so we start with the person that they are. That's what Coach Venables starts with when he's hiring. And that culture is going to attract the right people but also repel the wrong people. Because one thing I will say is that we want the people that are looking for what we have, and we got a good thing.”

You look at the 2023 class, and David Hicks is the name that is going to be circled, underlined, all that good stuff. Bates and the rest of the staff have been hard at work in attempting to make Hicks a member of the group, but it’s going to take some time.

Bates is a-OK with that.

“I'll tell you what we always talk about in our culture, break the tape with your face,” Bates said. “We got that image of a sprinter finishing and straining and leaning forward through the tape. That's what we want to do. It's not how you start, but how you finish.

“It starts with the relationships, and having a real one and vetting out the people who aren't about that. We want relationships, and then making sure you're on the right guys, which is people who want to develop as a whole person – spiritually, academically, socially, and athletically.”

Toughness to the forefront

Almost every OU coach has talked about how crucial it’s going to be to have that toughness. You could single out offensive line and defensive line, though, as the spots that are going to need it the most.

Get the sense from offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh that he’s comfortable where his guys are at entering camp, thanks in large part to the return of Jerry Schmidt running the strength and conditioning department.

Bedenbaugh had that connection with Schmidt before. Bates hadn’t, but it’s pretty clear the respect is there. Now everybody’s hoping the same with the results.

“The toughness, and I think Schmidty has a lot to do with that,” Bates said. “He infuses toughness, and like, he doesn't walk by it. He'll like seek it out, seek out weakness. And he will go and attack it. And to make it a strength. And that's what we do. We're trying to get tough guys, man, who love the game of football, who want to play and be physical.”

New names?

Defensive line is as wide open as it can be after OU lost so many stars from that group a year ago. There are certainly some easy candidates to bring up as guys who are going to make some noise, but Bates brought up a couple of interesting names at media day.

Defensive tackle Kelvin Gilliam and defensive end R. Mason Thomas both got some appreciation from Bates in terms of guys who are going to work.

“Kelvin Gilliam comes to work every day,” Bates said. “You see the R. Masons of the world, who just got here and shows up, that’s a competitor. He just rolls the sleeves up, shuts his mouth and goes to work. So that's what you like, you like that hard hat mentality. Because that's what we want to be. It all starts with the mindset and the mentality of our guys and they're all going to be blue-collar guys.”

Redmond turning the corner

For some guys on this team, 2022 is a now or never season for them in Norman. Whether you believe it’s his fault or not, defensive lineman Jalen Redmond is one of them.

Injuries have hampered him like crazy since arriving in 2018. But he made it through spring and summer without one setback.

Healthy, and now maybe even more importantly, accepting his role of moving inside, Redmond feels like someone that is really going to take off under Bates.

“Now I'm expecting big things out of him,” Bates said. “He's really been working on his technique. He's a fantastic pass rusher man and has improved his run technique as well where he continues to work and just listen and take coaching. He's very coachable and very talented.”

Poetry not a guilty pleasure

One of the first things OU fans learned about Bates was his love of poetry. Bates doesn’t apologize about it. He’s not ashamed about it.

He’ll write poems to coaches, recruits. Whenever something strikes a nerve and brings out the inspiration, Bates isn’t afraid to let it be known.

“I'm a big believer in being who you are, and I use it in every aspect of who I am,” Bates said. “I use it with my kids. I use it in recruiting. I use it with my players because it's real, and that's who I am. It's authentic.

“Poetry has really played a big role in developing a way to express my feelings, and ways that I motivate players and ways that I motivate people. And that's always my goal to motivate and inspire.

Adding Johnson’s experience

You knew OU needed to add some experience through the transfer portal, but Jeffery Johnson was a sneaky addition. As sneaky as you can be at his size.

A starter and captain at Tulane, Johnson was down to OU, LSU, Missouri, Florida and Michigan, but one trip to Norman changed all that.

No other visits necessary. Johnson had a solid spring for the Sooners and sounds like nothing has changed heading into the preseason.

“He is a pro, man,” Bates said. “And he's shown up and brought that mentality to our room to where film is, it's not just a plus that you're doing extra. He's made it to where there is a mandatory thing for those guys. And it's player-led. And that's the best type of leadership you can have.”