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Boyce will be Boyce

The rivalry between Oklahoma and Texas has long been a heated battle in the recruiting realm, as well as on the gridiron.

Under Bob Stoops, OU has found success in turning supposed strong Longhorn leans such as Adrian Peterson or Jamarkus McFarland into Sooner signees.

However, flipping someone already committed to play in Austin has been much more rare, but that’s exactly what OU is attempting to do with Corinth (Texas) Lake Dallas cornerback Kobe Boyce, who used his first official visit as part of the Sooners massive recruiting weekend when they hosted No. 3 Ohio State.

Even though they fell to the Buckeyes 45-24, Oklahoma found a way to still provide a great experience for all of their interested prospects in town.

And Boyce was no exception.

“It was great. I enjoyed it a lot,” the three-star explained, “We toured the campus, ate at Coach Stoops’ house, we had a photo-shoot, we did a lot.”

Boyce at the Rivals Camp Series in Dallas.

The Texas commitment spent most of his time with guys he’s pledged to battle in the Cotton Bowl every October.

“I hung out with Robert Barnes, Jalen Reagor, Isaiah (Thomas), (Charleston) Rambo, Tre Brown, and Tyrese (Robinson).”

After such a disappointing loss, perhaps a paranoid Oklahoma fan may be concerned that Boyce was trying to possibly influence guys to join him in Austin.

In fact, it was quite the opposite.

It was the Sooner commitments that were using the game as a recruiting pitch for Boyce to make the Red River switch.

“Oh yes, they were saying we could’ve used you out there and I think there’s an opportunity for us to play,” Boyce recalled.

‘SoonerSquad17’ weren’t the only ones on campus getting Boyce comfortable to the idea of joining Oklahoma, his potential future position coach and top recruiter, Kerry Cooks, actually may be the main reason why the Sooners have remained such a strong contender for his signature.

“I just got a real relationship with Coach Cooks,” Boyce said.

The Lake Dallas star admitted he perceives a more authentic vibe from the Oklahoma defensive backs coach and, perhaps more importantly, a crucial family member is on board with him.

“We really click and my mom trusts (Coach Cooks),” Boyce revealed.

If you need any indication of how seriously Texas perceives Oklahoma as a threat in this recruitment, the Longhorns sent their defensive coordinator Vance Bedford to Lake Dallas High School this week to try and slow any momentum the Sooners gained.

For now, Boyce remains committed to play for Charlie Strong, but admits that there is still more he would like to see.

“I’m going to take all of my visits before I decide.”

With an official to Norman already in the books, the 6-foot-0, 170-pound defensive back has four visits remaining, and he at least has a good idea where he spend three of those.

“Ole Miss, Texas, Iowa, and maybe Houston.”

The Rebels are also quietly lurking here, but look for this one to be another heated Red River recruiting battle.

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