Some prospects have been in the recruiting spotlight for a long time and understand how exactly how the game is played.

They have the offers. They make the visits. That wasn’t the case for Choctaw (Okla.) High defensive back Jordan Mukes when he made his trip to Oklahoma’s junior day in January.

His first college visit of any sort, it was an eye-opener for him.

“I knew I was gonna see some other dudes that were athletic,” Mukes said. “I loved the coaches’ energy. It was crazy, though. I was way taller than a lot of them. I was wondering if I was really a DB? But I had people telling me I had great height and great size.”

Mukes was coming off his first full year in the secondary and was starting to become a name to watch on the trail. He left Norman without the offer in January, but it wasn’t a huge disappointment.

What was, however, was the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Everybody knew the plan. OU coaches were going to watch Mukes in track and watch him during spring football and then make the call as to offer him or not.

The virus took that away and had Mukes unsure of his standing and unsure of when, or even if, the OU offer was going to come his way.

The offer came. The commitment soon followed, and OU had its second in-state commitment to go with Weatherford’s Ethan Downs.

“I used to always say I was going to be an OU football player, but I never really knew it was going to come,” Mukes said. “I didn’t know that day would be here where I could say it.

“I knew I’d get the offer, just didn’t know when. I was kind of nervous because I started thinking this won’t happen until my senior year, until I have some senior film.”

Mukes definitely sees the silver lining of how everything has worked out. Still learning everything that goes with the position, he admits he wasn’t at his full potential if OU had come to watch him work in the spring.

So that was his goal. Starting in the spring, tunnel vision.

“It was a reality check for me,” Mukes said. “I got a trainer, my IQ got higher. Everything I had before, I feel I’ve just added onto it. I feel like I’m elite now.

“It’s gonna be bad for a lot of (opposing) players.”

Mukes remembers getting the offer. A FaceTime call with defensive coordinator Alex Grinch and then head coach Lincoln Riley was added. It was something he said he’ll never forget.

The virus changed his own commitment timeline. Mukes said he planned on making the call in July but decided to go ahead and do it in the spring. He’s locked in with OU, but that hasn’t stopped Texas Tech and Kansas State from continuously reaching out.

Mukes was the first commitment in the secondary, and then things took off with three more recruits announcing in a 28-day period from July 4-Aug. 1.

“Man, I really like this class right now,” Mukes said. “A lot of good defensive backs. Big, athletic dudes. And whoever else is coming, Speed D is gonna be nice.”

Listed at 6-foot-4, Mukes said he’s teetering around 202, 203 pounds right now. He has no doubts he’ll be 215 pounds when he is at OU. With that size, with that speed, he seems to be the prototype for what Grinch and cornerbacks coach Roy Manning want in the secondary.

“I think he’s just real (Grinch),” Mukes said. “He’s just a cool coach. I feel like he’s always gonna tell me the things I need to hear even if I don’t want to hear them. I want a coach like that, to be real with me. I love his energy and really the energy of all the coaches, especially Coach Roy.”

One of the first recruits Mukes met on his initial OU visit was Downs. Now months later, they remain the only two in-state commitments. That’s not why they’re friends, but the bond has developed quickly.

“It’s cool to me that it’s me and him,” Mukes said. “Me and Ethan are real cool and talk about a lot of stuff. I’m definitely ready to play with him. I didn’t know about him. I didn’t even know where Weatherford was, to be honest. That was my first time meeting him, and I was like, this dude is huge. So these are the types of players for OU, huh?”

Now others will be saying the same thing about Mukes. Weatherford and Choctaw both start their seasons Friday night.