Even in the offseason Brent Venables and the Oklahoma Sooners have to constantly compete against other SEC football programs.
Chad Simmons of On3 reported that four-star edge rusher Kevin "KJ" Ford has scheduled just two official visits so far for this summer: Oklahoma and Alabama. Ford will visit Alabama on May 30, then Norman on June 20.
Ford has visited OU several times already throughout his recruitment, including at the end of last month during the Sooners' junior day. Venables and part of OU's coaching staff also visited Ford a few days before that. Ford also attended a few OU games this past season.
B🅾️🅾️mer pic.twitter.com/f37e7ysxKl
— Kevin “KJ” Ford Jr 🛸 (@KJ4ord) January 23, 2025
Ford actually announced his offer from Alabama the same day he posted the picture with OU coaches. The Sooners offered Ford way back in March.
From Duncanville, Ford is one of the top 2026 recruits from the state of Texas. He's a consensus four-star prospect, with Rivals and On3 ranking him as the No. 10 edge rusher in the entire class. Every major recruiting service ranks Ford as a top-20 overall recruit in the state of Texas.
Outside of OU and Alabama, Ford also has reported offers from Texas, Florida, Auburn, Arkansas, Georgia LSU, Missouri, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Penn State, Florida State, Oklahoma State and many more.
Despite the scheduled official visits to OU and Alabama, Rivals' Future Cast predicts Ford to end up with the Sooners or at Texas A&M.
So far, the Sooners have four commitments from the 2026 class, but none yet from the defensive side of the ball.