Stormin in Norman
Fansided

Oklahoma football: Sooners get commitment from elite 2023 running back

By Chip Rouse

NORMAN, OK - SEPTEMBER 18: Oklahoma Sooners cheerleaders run across the field with Sooners flags after a 100-yard return on a blocked point-after-touchdown for two points against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on September 18, 2021 in Norman, Oklahoma. Oklahoma won 23-16. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
NORMAN, OK - SEPTEMBER 18: Oklahoma Sooners cheerleaders run across the field with Sooners flags after a 100-yard return on a blocked point-after-touchdown for two points against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on September 18, 2021 in Norman, Oklahoma. Oklahoma won 23-16. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Oklahoma football recruiting reeled in another prime prospect on Thursday, receiving a verbal commitment from four-star 2023 running back Daylan Smothers.

They say that good things come to those who are willing to wait, and for Sooner fans who were becoming concerned about the slow build of the Oklahoma 2023 recruiting class, the month of July has brought a continuous flow of good recruiting news.

Smothers’ commitment makes six the Sooners have received in the first two weeks of this month.

Rated four stars by both 247Sports and Rivals, Smothers is ranked by both recruiting services as a top-10 running back in the 2023 class. As a junior at West Charlotte High School in Charlotte, North Carolina, he ran for 1,581 yards and 28 touchdowns, and his sophomore season, in 2020, he was named the North Carolina High School Player of the Year by the Charlotte Observer.

Smothers credits the relationship he has built with OU running backs coach DeMarco Murray as a big part of his decision to come to Oklahoma. In addition to OU, Smothers made official visits to Florida State and North Carolina State. He also had offers from Alabama, Ohio State, Penn State and Tennessee, but felt the Sooners were the best fit.

Smothers is the second running back commitment in Oklahoma’s 2023 class. Kaleb Hicks, another four-star prospect, out of Denton, Texas, committed to the Sooners in June.

The six commitments received in July has increased the Sooners’ 2023 class from nine to 15. In just the past two weeks, OU’s 2023 class has risen from 41st to 11th in the 247Sports class rankings.

Home/OU Football Recruiting