The Future Sooners?

As the calendar turns to March, the majority of the focus is now squarely on the 2019 class for Oklahoma.

It’s already been an intriguing journey with four decommitments in the last 12 months to go along with major pledges along the way.

There’s no doubt this will change, but here’s SoonerScoop.com’s Bob Przybylo’s first crack at predicting what #NewWave19 will look like for Lincoln Riley and company.

The easiest piece to this puzzle and maybe most important. Rattler committed to OU in late June, and he’s not backing off his word. Feel pretty confident Riley won’t have to scramble back through the 2019 quarterback class for any reason. Rattler is secure and will recruit heavily for OU going forward.

There’s always going to be a wonder whether Spiller looks more toward Texas A&M with his father’s ties to the program and the Aggies feeling fresh with Jimbo Fisher. But months keep passing and nothing has been going on yet on that front. As long as OU keeps the relationship with Spiller and family, think the Sooners can win this one. Major is picking up big offer after big offer, but a return trip to OU separates the Sooners and OU eventually earns the nod.

Why not? Bridges is locked in. Wease and Henderson don’t feel like they’re too far behind. So why not go for it all and land Wilson, too? It’s obvious the junior day trip changed the way things are perceived by Wilson, and OU is going to capitalize on that. When OU really decides it wants an offensive weapon, Riley doesn’t lose. OU lands four Rivals 100 and two five-star prospects in this group.

Stogner has the distinction of being OU’s initial commit for 2019, and he’s going to keep that title the whole way. A lot of schools will come in his direction, but Stogner stays solid throughout and OU lands another four-star tight end.

Now we get to the hypotheticals and wondering who is going where. Think the biggest debate is with Stacey Wilkins. Down to OU and Arkansas, it would be a huge win for the Sooners to steal one from the Hogs’ backyard. Hard to see it happening. Ever since Morris decommitted from Florida State, OU has felt like the team to beat for whatever reason. That continues here and shows how Bill Bedenbaugh gets the job done. Interior guys are taken care of with Buford and Ndoma-Ogar. If it’s not Wilkins, OU finds a second offensive tackle along the way.

The recent decommitment of Green was rather surprising. So hedging a bit here. Either Green comes back to the Sooners, or OU moves on and takes Lufkin (Texas) High’s Carl Williams. Ruffin McNeill still searches for a major defensive tackle, but not one that immediately stands out right now. Calvin Thibodeaux puts in the work and lands Hicks to go with Roberson, and OU’s defensive line continues to get stronger.

The thought is Davis is in that EDGE spot so however you want to classify that is fine. Perkins is going to end up being the steal of the class. As more schools enter the race for Perkins, OU is going to look smart for attacking so early and so aggressively. It’s just about getting Cooper to campus, and then OU closes strong in that situation.

Go big or go home. Landing Hill takes away a lot of the sting of missing out on Josh Proctor the year before. Steele is going to be a heck of a battle until September, but the Sooners maintain that piece to the puzzle. The only definite one at this point feels like Morris. OU would love for his teammate, Erick Young, to join but I still see him at either LSU or Texas A&M.

It’s a 20-member class at this point so there are definitely a few unknown pieces nine months until early signing period. You could see an H-Back somewhere down the road, for sure, and maybe Norman North’s Cole Mashburn gets a look there. You know there will be another offensive tackle but hard to pinpoint which one OU is making the most headway with right now. Defensive tackle is missing a piece but might become a lot like 2018 where OU goes for an elite prospect and doesn’t just take one to fill out the depth chart. Same at linebacker where it will be about who’s available instead of hitting a target number. Defensive back will be fun to watch. Kerry Cooks does a great job of building the early relationships and has again for 2019. Now it’s a numbers game and closing the show. With Austin Seibert being a senior, it’s time for Shane Beamer and Jay Boulware to find the next kicker as well for the Sooners.