Oklahoma’s growing California pipeline lands a monster defensive win

It was nothing but good news for the Oklahoma Sooners on Sunday.

Just hours after learning they will host the No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide for a rematch in the first round of the College Football Playoff, the Sooners landed four-star defensive lineman Elija Harmon from Inglewood, California, to inflate their top 2027 recruiting class and California pipeline.

Elija Harmon commits to Sooners over USC, Texas A&M, Oregon and Nebraska

Harmon on Thursday announced a top 5 of OU, Texas A&M, Oregon, Nebraska and USC, so it was a nice recruiting win for the Sooners while beating out two old Big 12 rivals and a former coach in his own backyard. He also had offers from Auburn, Florida, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and more.

According to the 247Sports Composite, Harmon, listed at 6-foot-3 and 280 pounds, is the No. 25 defensive lineman in the 2027 class and No. 21 overall prospect in the state of California. He also made the Navy All-American Bowl roster.

Harmon became the Sooners' 11th commitment to their 2027 class that's already ranked No. 1 in the country by 247Sports and the 247Sports Composite. Rivals ranks OU's class as the second-best behind Texas Tech. That means every major recruiting service has the Sooners with the best 2027 class in the SEC.

The Sooners also continued their growing California pipeline with Harmon, who was already the third addition to the 2027 class from The Golden State. OU also added three players from California in the 2026 class that just signed last week. All three 2027 commits are top 40 overall prospects in the state, and all but one were in the 2026 class.