New OU commit Tory Blaylock picked the Sooners for much more than football

It’s been 53 days since the Sooners landed a commitment of any kind, stretching back to four-star OT Ryan Fodje’s pledge on February 4.

But that drought ends today.

Oklahoma has yet another blue-chip running back in the fold, as NFL legacy prospect Tory Blaylock has announced his pledge to the Sooners.

The Houston-area sensation is currently regarded as the No. 10 all-purpose back in the country, and chose OU over a laundry list of 40-plus scholarship offers. At six feet tall and 197 pounds, Blaylock is the first RB — and in all likelihood, the only RB — of the 2025 class for Oklahoma.

And in the four-star phenom, the Sooners get a dynamic backfield piece who’s on board with OU for all of the right reasons.

At Oklahoma, the pitch to running back recruits is pretty straightforward: come play for a coach who was an NFL draft pick and played seven years in the league. DeMarco Murray’s resume speaks for itself.

But in Blaylock’s case, his entire life has been spent under the tutelage of a man with those same credentials.

After a prolific high school career in the small East Texas town of Atlanta, Derrick Blaylock played his college ball at Stephen F. Austin. A fifth-round draft pick of the Kansas City Chiefs in 2001, he spent seven seasons in the NFL before embarking on a career as a skills trainer. His best year as a professional came in 2004, when he logged 775 scrimmage yards and nine touchdowns in a loaded Chiefs backfield that also featured Larry Johnson and Priest Holmes.

And granted, Tory’s old man never won NFL Offensive Player of the Year like Murray did. But it’s not terribly surprising that Derrick’s lineage produced a Power 4 running back prospect. What’s perhaps more surprising is that among Derrick’s five sons, only Tory ended up sticking at running back — although the jury is admittedly still out on ten-year-old Truett, the youngest of the bunch.

Tory is the middle child, and his two older brothers have found their niche at defensive back. Travian, the eldest, is preparing for a pro career after wrapping up his career at the University of Wisconsin last fall. Taylen, the second of the five, is currently at Lindenwood after starting his collegiate career at Sam Houston State.

Defense also became the calling for Trenton, the fourth of Derrick’s boys. He’s a rising sophomore at Atascocita, and recently clocked a laser-timed 4.49 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the invite-only Under Armour Next camp.

Though they all wound up in the secondary, Travian, Taylor and Trenton started their respective football journeys at running back, and Derrick would have liked to keep it that way.

“If it had been up to me, they’d still be playing running back,” he laughed.

But Tory blazed a path straight as an arrow. Running back was his lane, and he never deviated from it. That meant plenty of work, plenty of commitment, and a relentless demeanor in the weight room — all of which Tory thoroughly embraced.

“Man, I train all my kids growing up, because I own a training facility in the area,” Derrick explained. “So I’ve been their trainer forever, since they was little. And Tory was just a little bit different in the fact that he wanted more. He would get out of football practice, and the middle school that he went to, it’s right down the street from the gym. He would get out of practice and walk to the gym just so he could work out after practice. Once I saw that, I was like, ‘Man, this kid, he’s different. He wants it.’ And I had to give it to him. So I was able to push him a little bit more.”

And who better to train up a young running back than someone who played the position at the highest level? Tory knew the inherent blessing that he’d been given as the son — and protege — of a former NFL football player. That only drove him to go even harder, and it drove Derrick to ramp up the intensity of Tory’s physical and mental regimen.

“Every single day, I’m working hard and obviously learning from my dad, who played the position and did pretty good at it,” Tory remarked. “So he’s teaching me things that he knew and things that he learned from great coaches in the NFL. He didn’t have as much of a support system, for real. And some of the things that he didn’t have, he’s making sure that I have. He wants me to be a better version of him. So he’ll teach me fronts, how to read coverages, all that. So it makes my job so much easier knowing that I’m one step ahead of everybody.”

He’s indeed one step ahead of everybody, both metaphorically and literally. Tory is one of the fastest 100-meter sprinters in the state of Texas, and ran the first leg for an Atascocita relay team that annihilated the national 4x100 record last week. The previous mark of 39.76 seconds had stood for nearly three decades. But with Blaylock leading off and LSU wide receiver signee Jelani Watkins running anchor, the Atascocita team clocked an incredible 38.92 — over eight-tenths of a second faster than the previous record.

It became quite evident early in his high school career that Tory would have his pick of the litter. Offers began rolling in during his freshman year — first from Texas Tech and UTSA, then Oregon and SMU and Arizona State. Texas and Texas A&M threw a hat in the ring, as did Penn State and Tennessee. In the grand scheme, the Sooners weren’t all that quick to jump into the fray; when they offered in August of 2022, Blaylock already had well over a dozen schools in the mix.

That didn’t matter to Derrick, who maintains that he was all but sold on Oklahoma from the get-go.

“Man, it was really the first meeting, honestly,” he chuckled. “Just sitting down and talking to Coach V, it was different. It was different than any other meeting, just hearing him talk about his upbringing and his lifestyle and the decisions that he made. And you could tell that he’s a guy who’s in it because he wants to see young men be developed and treated fairly, and it’s more than just the game of football for him. It’s the game of life. And that was huge for me.”

Tory returned for a junior day in March of 2023, then showed back up to Norman for Oklahoma’s “Sooners Under the Stars” recruiting event in July. Two months later, he took in a game at Owen Field for the first time, and that’s where he first began to realize that he wanted to be a Sooner.

“That’s where I was thinking, ‘I could envision myself playing here. This might be the place for me,’” Tory recalled. “I had it at the top of my list. And then I went back up in January, me and the whole family. We all went up there, got to see around the town, got to really spend quality time with the coaches. And from there, even though it’s been a couple months since then, ever since that moment, I felt like Oklahoma was the place for me. I had that feeling deep down inside that that’s where I was going to go.”

He didn’t commit on that January visit to OU, but Tory left campus that day with a strong sense of direction in his recruitment. He and the rest of the Blaylock clan were united in their judgment that Oklahoma was the place for him. Even so, he sought the Lord for a final confirmation of his decision.

“My family’s big on prayer, and praying over things that are really important in our lives,” Tory explained. “I just feel like Oklahoma just stood out from everywhere else. I could make pros and cons lists and all that stuff, but Oklahoma stands out. It’s a really special place. And when my family was like, ‘We feel like this is the place for you,’ I just knew that was definitely when I was going to commit.”

With every sign pointing to Norman, Tory decided that he was ready to shut down his recruitment for good. And he’d get no argument from his father.

“Man, he just honestly came to me,” recalled Derrick, “and was like, ‘Hey, I think it’s time. I don’t really want to wait any longer; I feel like this is the spot for me. I feel like I’m wanted. I feel like I can go in there and I can compete. I feel like it’s a great staff, great place to be, and the fans are awesome. I feel like this is it; I don’t want to press this process anymore. I’m ready to do it.’ And I was like, ‘Man, you know how I feel. I’ve been feeling like this since we’ve been doing this.’ Like I said, the first time I sat down with Coach V, I was like, ‘This feels great. This is it.’ They were number one for me.”

So Tory called DeMarco Murray, who in turn put out his notorious “Yamaha” tweet to signal an impending commitment. Oklahoma fans speculated as to whom Murray’s tweet might reference. But when Tory showed up to the Under Armour Next camp rocking a pretty exclusive Oklahoma T-shirt, any remaining mystery was effectively dispelled. And when he conducted interviews after the event, he couldn’t even recall the full list of schools that made his top six.

Scarcely interested in keeping an open secret, Tory expediently announced that he would hold his commitment ceremony on March 29. With his pledge now public, he’s the 10th member of Oklahoma’s 2025 recruiting class, which is squarely in the national top ten and ought to remain there.

For some time, Tory has been building bonds with the other members of Oklahoma’s class, and it should come as no surprise that four-star quarterback and longtime OU commit Kevin Sperry took a very active role in pursuing him.

“Yeah, I already view them as brothers,” said Tory. “Especially Kev. He’s been reaching out to me for a long time and really helping recruit — calling me, checking up. Even if it’s not about football or anything like that, he’ll just call and check up and ask how the family been. So that’s my dawg for real.”

And now that he’s on board, Tory is ready to shift his focus toward recruiting his peers to Oklahoma, as Sperry has done for over a year. But he’s not at all concerned with prioritizing the biggest names in the country. Tory’s eager to surround himself with players that share his drive, desire and passion — regardless of the recruiting services’ collective opinion.

“I just want to bring around guys who want to come work,” he proclaimed. “All the stars and stuff, the rankings, all that’s cool. But I want to bring in people that fit the system, good people that want to come in and work. The class is going to be very special; that’s all I’ll say.”

Why Oklahoma? Why is it that Tory — a consensus blue-chip prospect with offers from the likes of Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State and Notre Dame — feels confident enough to pull the trigger without any official visits?

Sure, the on-field fit was a major factor. But much like his father, Tory loves Oklahoma because he’s looking for a school that will serve him far beyond the gridiron.

“I fit very well in their scheme,” he acknowledged. “But obviously, Coach Venables, he’s a great guy. That’s really a man that I’m looking forward to playing for. Great coach on the field, but also a great man that wants to develop great men on and off the field. They have things like the S.O.U.L. Mission; that’s one really impressive thing for me. I went to other schools, and nobody has anything like that going for them outside of football.”

Oklahoma will be the fourth different university to which Derrick sends one of his sons. And he’s got total comfort in entrusting Tory’s collegiate years to Brent Venables and the Sooner staff, because he knows his son will leave college as a man and not just an athlete.

“They let it be known that this is what they do,” said Derrick of Oklahoma. “Off-the-field stuff is going to be what they do. That’s what it’s about, man — doing life together. Like, these kids, they teach them how to change a flat. They teach them how to tie ties. Coach V buys everybody a suit; everybody gets a suit. It’s just things like that, man. It goes beyond football. It’s life.”

And naturally, Tory’s stoked about the opportunity to play for one of his childhood heroes in Murray.

“Coach Murray, just growing up and watching him play, him being one of my favorite running backs as a kid, to know that I’m about to get coached by him is even crazier,” he said. “I wanted to be like him. And he’s a great coach and a great man just like Coach Venables, and I’m just ready to get to work.”

For Derrick, it’s a great reassurance to know that he can effectively hand his son off — pun fully intended — to another ex-NFL back. It’s a dream scenario.

“It’s an awesome feeling, just knowing that he’s been there,” said Derrick of Murray. “He knows what it takes. He knows how to prepare kids, how to take care of their bodies. He has all the information and tools to get them ready to go to the next level. And for me, man, it’s just refreshing to know that I’ve been coaching Tory for so long, giving him pointers and things like that. And now I can just sit back and be like, ‘Hey, man, he’s in great hands. Not good hands, but great hands.’”

The Sooners recently signed Murray to a brand-new contract that will keep him in Norman for the foreseeable future, although the 36-year-old briefly considered leaving his alma mater for Ohio State. Would Tory have followed Murray to Columbus if the contract negotiations with Oklahoma had ended differently?

Given that the Buckeyes were a major consideration for Tory earlier in the process, it’s a possibility. But one of the things that sold Derrick on Oklahoma was that, in the famous words of Bob Stoops, “there’s no one man that’s bigger than the program.” One figure does not solely represent, comprise or encapsulate everything that Oklahoma is.

“For a while, Ohio State, they were up there,” Derrick admitted. “But when you sit down and you visit [Oklahoma] and you see the family there — and you can see it; it’s not something that they just talk about — it’s just different. And that’s what I want for my kid. And shoot, I want my other kids there too. I wish all my kids could go there. It’s the right time, man. It just feels right, and I know it’s not just a feeling. It is right.”

If there’s a word to describe the Blaylocks’ overall demeanor today, it’s likely the word “comfortable.” Now that Tory is officially locked in with Oklahoma, they can bid an adieu to the madness of the recruiting process — at least until Trenton’s recruitment heats up — and revel in the fortunate union between Tory and Oklahoma.

“I’m in great hands,” Tory declared. “I have a great system right now, and my parents just feel comfortable handing it over to Coach Venables and the rest of the staff. So that’s my main thing. My parents feel very comfortable, and I also feel very comfortable and confident that he’s gonna develop me into the player I want to be.”

Tory Blaylock is a Sooner. He wouldn’t have it any other way, and neither would the newest OU Dad.

“I know any school that he goes to, he’s gonna play football,” said Derrick. “He’s gonna do well in football. But what about him as a person, as a man? Because he’s going to be a husband and a father one day. And now I’m passing him off for three or four years. What are you going to instill in him?

“I want those things to be lined up to what I believe in. And I definitely believe wholeheartedly that this is the staff that’s gonna do that. This program is perfect for him.”

This story is free, but in order to access even more fantastic content from OUInsider, grab a subscription today. In addition to in-depth feature stories like this one, you'll also get exclusive behind-the-scenes team information, full message-board access and a wealth of recruiting intel. Don't miss out on the market's premier Oklahoma coverage!