When Phil Picciotti signed with the Sooners out of IMG Academy in the 2023 recruiting cycle, many Oklahoma fans imagined that he would be the program's next dominant inside linebacker.

And Picciotti, no doubt, had a similar vision. But fate has turned his journey down a very different path.

After two seasons of little more than sheer frustration at Oklahoma, the 6-foot-3, 238-pound linebacker is headed for the NCAA transfer portal. An injury cost him the entire 2023 season, and although he got healthy enough to participate in practices the following spring, he suffered another injury that cost him the entire 2024 season as well. He leaves the program without ever having appeared in a game for the Sooners.

Picciotti, a native of Pennsylvania, committed to Oklahoma over a list of offers that included Penn State, Nebraska, Michigan, Notre Dame and Miami. He was one of four linebacker commits in a loaded 2023 class for the Sooners (alongside Sammy Omosigho, Lewis Carter and Taylor Heim). Omosigho and Carter have carved out roles in OU's linebacker rotation, and the jury is still out on Heim, who was always a bit of a project. But Picciotti's tenure as a Sooner can only be memorialized for what might have been.

At his next destination, Picciotti will have up to four years of eligibility remaining, as he can obtain a medical waiver for one or both of the seasons he lost at Oklahoma.

Not an OUInsider.com premium member? Sign up today to get loads of inside information on Oklahoma football, softball, basketball, and recruiting, all for just a few dollars a month. Click HERE to get started!

Follow us on Twitter @OUInsider and on Instagram @ouinsiderofficial!

Subscribe on YouTube by clicking here for daily video content on all things Oklahoma!