Oklahoma football: How does OU’s 2022 class stack up against Big 12, SEC schools?

Oklahoma football recruiting for 2022 was shaping up as another strong class, and the 2023 OU class was ranked No. 1 in the nation, albeit at a very early stage in the process.

The last thing you want to happen in a recruiting process is to have the head coach leave the program just ahead of an official signing period.

Lincoln Riley appeared to be on the way to signing another top-10 Sooner class, which would have been the third in his five recruiting cycles as a head coach. That’s the way things stood on Nov. 28, and then on Nov. 29, uncertainty hit the Oklahoma football program like a ton of bricks.

The week before Oklahoma’s final regular-season game with Oklahoma State, social media was abuzz with rumors that Riley was leaving to take the head-coaching job at LSU. Following the Sooners loss to their in-state rivals, Riley addressed the rumors head on stating definitively that he was not going to be the head coach at LSU.

Sooner fans immediately let out a sigh of relief. Only, less than 12 hours later, to find out the rumors were half right. He was leaving OU, but for USC and not LSU. Just like that, an Oklahoma football program that had been one of the most stable in college football over the last two decades in terms of coaching transitions and internal disruption found itself turned completely upside down.

Not only was Riley leaving, but he was taking several OU assistants with him. You can only imagine what was going through the minds of the players on the current Sooner roster, not to mention what the 15 recruits who had committed to play at Oklahoma for Lincoln Riley were thinking.

We all know the story. No need to rehash it any further here.

What could have been a total disaster was fortunately averted thanks to the expedient and effective work of OU president Joe Harroz and athletic director Joe Castiglione in going after and getting the man they wanted, in Brent Venables, to be the new head coach, and to Bob Stoops, who quickly jumped in to serve as interim head coach and lead the Sooners in their Alamo Bowl preparation and game against Oregon on Dec. 29.

Riley’s decision to leave did have an impact on Oklahoma’s early signing class for 2022, which came about just two weeks after Riley’s departure announcement. The Sooners lost six 2022 commitments out of a 16-member class, and three 2023 commitments (all rated as four and five stars) within the first week following the news.

Stoops immediately hit the recruiting trail on behalf of OU, and Venables was out on the road for the Sooners the same day he was formally announced as the new head coach. As a result, 11 of the original 16 who were committed to OU for 2022 signed with the Sooners on Dec. 15. That included one of the decommitments (LB Kobie McKenzie), who flipped back to Oklahoma after committing to Texas just a few days before.

Through the efforts of Venables and new offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby, OU was able to replenish to class ahead of the early signing period by adding four-star QB Nick Evers and four-star WR Jayden Gibson, both of whom decommitted from Florida after the coaching change at that school, deciding instead to come to Oklahoma. Venables also added three-star DT Alton Tarber.

Before the Riley departure, Oklahoma’s 2022 class was ranked 13th by Rivals. It’s still ranked 17th, despite the decommitments by some top recruits, including five-star RB Raleek Brown, a California kid who elected to stay closer to home and go with Riley to USC.

Despite all the turmoil and uncertainty surrounding the OU coaching changes, Oklahoma’s 2022 signing class thus far received high grades from two Rivals recruiting analysts. Sam Spiegelman gave the Sooners an A- and ranked Oklahoma as the second-best class in the Big 12, behind Texas, heading toward the second of the two National Signing Days, in February.

Comparing the Sooners’ recruiting efforts in the early signing period with the schools in the SEC, where Oklahoma and Texas will be headed in the next year or two. Rivals’ Patrick Conn places Oklahoma’s current 2022 class fifth behind No. 1 Texas A&M, Alabama, Georgia and Texas.

Venables has said he is not done adding to the 2022 class. The Sooners are still in the hunt for several top targets, both on offense and defense.