Oklahoma Sooners lose top 2027 in-state prospect to Texas Tech

Just hours after winning their 2025 season opener in Norman, the Oklahoma Sooners still took a loss on their home turf.

The Sooners beat Illinois State 35-3 on Saturday night, but just moments after head coach Brent Venables wrapped up his postgame press conference, On3's Hayes Fawcett reported that top 2027 Oklahoma recruit Cooper Hackett committed to Texas Tech over the in-state Sooners and plenty of other programs.

Fort Gibson's Cooper Hackett commits to Texas Tech over OU

It wasn't a complete surprise since Rivals logged a prediction way back in July for Texas Tech to land Hackett, but as time passed and a new college football season kicked off, it seemed like the biggest college football program in Hackett's home state still had a chance.

The Sooners offered Hackett on March 5, the day Bedlam rival Oklahoma State also did. Texas Tech beat everyone to the punch, though, as Hackett's first major offer back in January. He also had offers from Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Kansas State, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas A&M and more.

Hackett is scheduled to visit Norman next week when the Sooners host Michigan for a primetime matchup.

From Fort Gibson High School in Oklahoma, Hackett, listed at 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds, is the best 2027 prospect in the state according to every major recruiting service. According to the 247Sports Composite, Hackett is the No. 3 offensive tackle in the 2027 class and No. 10 overall prospect in the country. On3 gave him five stars, while 247Sports still lists him as a four-star recruit.

Missing out on the top 2027 in-state recruit comes as the Sooners don't have a single Oklahoma product in their 2026 class.

Still early in the process, the Sooners have one 2027 commit so far in three-star offensive tackle Luke Wilson from Southlake Carroll in Texas.

Read more about OU football recruiting