When you sign 23 recruits during the early signing period, the traditional signing day on the first Wednesday of February just won’t have the same feeling.
That’s not a bad thing for Oklahoma, but it meant the Sooners were practically on the sidelines this time around. The work had already been done as the Sooners finish the 2019 class with their #NewWave19 class ranked No. 5 by Rivals.
It’s the third consecutive top-10 class for OU and the highest-ranked class since the 2005 group was No. 3, featuring names like DeMarcus Granger and Curtis Lofton, among others. Now we’ll see who are the names remembered in that same breath for 2019.
“It's a class that a lot of people worked really hard to put together and I think this is going to be a championship group that will help us continue to tackle all of the goals that we have here as a program,” said head coach Lincoln Riley in a press release.
Katy (Texas) Seven Lakes outside linebacker David Ugwoegbu committed to OU last month, and there was zero drama Wednesday morning. Ugwoegbu had his letter of intent in by 7:15 a.m. CDT, not even allowing any rumors to persist.
“David will play outside linebacker for us to start,” Riley said. “We're excited about him. We targeted him pretty early in the recruiting process. He has exceptional length and athleticism that is difficult to coach.
“You just see his burst on film, which is rare for a guy with his kind of length. He's been a great kid to recruit and has the kind of frame that we're looking to add defensively. We think he fits in well with what Coach (Alex) Grinch wants to get done."
OU was in the hunt for Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst offensive lineman Danielson Ike, but Ike opted to sign with SMU instead.
Although Wednesday sees OU finish with 24 signees for the 2019 class, that doesn’t mean that will be the final number when it’s all said and done.
OU is still aggressively pursuing junior college and graduate transfers at wide receiver, offensive line and the safety position.
One name to be watching is Santa Clarita (Calif.) College of the Canyons three-star wide receiver Brandon Pierce. After being offered by OU last week, the Sooners appear to be the favorite with both sides just making sure all the necessary boxes are checked before making the next step.
OU has four five-star prospects and 12 four-star prospects for the class. Nine members (Theo Wease, Jadon Haselwood, Trejan Bridges, Austin Stogner, Finley Felix, LaRon Stokes, Derek Green, Jonathan Perkins and Jamal Morris) are already on campus and attending class for the spring semester.
The 2019 class marked the beginning of the Lincoln Riley Era. His first commit, Stogner, happened just weeks after Riley became the head coach in Norman. It’s hard to argue with the finished product as OU tries to use this momentum combined with another college football playoff appearance into the 2019 season and the 2020 recruiting class.
