Commit GIF Breakdown: Rivals100 LB Jacob Phillips

Before Wednesday, the 2017 Oklahoma recruiting class was already special.

The Sooners finished 2016 with 20 signees and a No. 16 national team ranking.

Before Wednesday, OU had already earned 21 commitments and the No. 3 ranked recruiting class in the country.

On Wednesday, East Nashville (Tenn.) Magnet Rivals100 linebacker Jacob Phillips not only joined SoonerSquad17, the nation's No. 37 overall player became its highest ranked commitment.

The 6-foot-3, 231-pound inside 'backer was always a well-regarded recruit, but saw his stock soar after he won the Rivals Five-Star Challenge's Linebacker MVP this summer.

At the time, Phillips was ranked outside of the Rivals100, but quickly turned heads when he matched five-star Baron Browning's impressive size (both are around 6-3/230) and athletic ability to hang with the nation's top running backs in space.

There may be no better way of examining why Phillips skill-set is so special, especially considering his size, than to watch how he performed against literally the nation's top running backs.

Here, you can see Phillips against five-star running back Cam Akers. Akers, the nation's No. 12 overall player, is a strong, physical presence at over 200 pounds, but the newest Oklahoma commitment is able to overwhelm his space, forcing the running back into only one possible route, which Phillips dismisses easily with his long frame.

Najee Harris, the nation's No. 1 overall player, is an even bigger and faster specimen, but Phillips was able to use great technique squaring up the running back, keeping him in a position between danger and Harris, and where he could make a quick break to explode on the ball.

Again, Phillips' 6-foot-3, 230-pound frame and length gives a quarterback almost zero room to fit in a throw.

This next clip is a display in Phillips effortless athleticism.

At first glance, the running back looks to have clearly won the route, as he explodes out of his break ahead of the larger linebacker. Yet, while almost appearing stiff due to his size, Phillips flips his hips and turns to run down USC commit Stephen Carr, the nation's No. 31 overall player.

In a camp setting, without the benefit of full pads and a true football setting, the drills are mostly designed to showcase linebackers in space. Even though this is proving more and more valuable, especially in a conference like the Big 12, no one can call themself a true linebacker without being able to play downhill inside the box and being physical with the running game.

And that's the thing with Phillips' performance in Atlanta - he came in with people knowing the 230-pound prospect would be a force in the running game. His tape showcases a player who loves to play behind his pads and find contact at or behind the line of scrimmage. Once he showed up against the top athletes in the country and showed he was as good as any linebacker at covering in space, that's what propelled the East Nashville Magnet star to his current No. 37 overall ranking.

The now highest ranked commitment in the Sooners class of 2017 is well-deserving of the bill.

For years, Oklahoma defenses have had linebackers who could cover, linebackers who could stop the run, athletic linebackers, big linebackers, fast linebackers, but lacked in finding one who could do it all. It's not a stretch to say Phillips has joined Caleb Kelly in giving OU two such linebackers in back-to-back classes.

Phillips stonewalling a receiver at the line during his performance at the Rivals Camp Series in Columbus was named the No. 2 play by a linebacker during the circuit.