Oklahoma keeps stealing talent in a rapidly escalating 2026 haul

Early National Signing Day is less than a week away on Dec. 3, but the Oklahoma Sooners still aren’t satisfied with their 2026 recruiting class. 

Hayes Fawcett of Rivals reported on Wednesday that three-star safety Markel Ford flipped his commitment from the SMU Mustangs to the Sooners. Ford became the fifth commit the Sooners have flipped their way just since October, mostly thanks to their stellar season that has them in the College Football Playoff hunt after struggling last year. 

Markel Ford flips commitment from SMU to Sooners

Ford had been committed to SMU since April. He announced a top 8 beforehand that included SMU, OU, Michigan, Arkansas, Baylor, Texas Tech, Arizona State and Texas A&M. He had an extensive list of offers also from Auburn, LSU, Mississippi State, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, USC and more. 

According to the 247Sports Composite, Ford is the No. 72 safety in the 2026 class and No. 117 overall prospect in the state of Texas out of Mesquite Horn High School. 247Sports by itself has Ford as high as the No. 61 safety.

The Sooners now have three safeties committed to their 2026 class, and Ford is rated as the highest based on the 247Sports Composite. Three-star safety Jacob Curry, who also plays linebacker, recently flipped his commitment from Northwestern to OU. Three-star Niko Jandreau has been pledged to the Sooners since June. 

As of Wednesday evening after Ford’s addition, the Sooners have the 15th-best 2026 class in the country with 23 commits and is No. 8 in the SEC.