2024 Oklahoma football wide receiver preview - Coach Emmett Jones

Sometimes, college football coaches get lucky, no matter how legendary or extraordinary they are. Pat Jones got lucky by getting Barry Sanders to come to Oklahoma State. Gene Chizik got lucky and landed eventual Heisman winner Cam Newton out of a juco. Brent Venables and his Oklahoma football program got lucky and found Emmett Jones.

Coach Jones cut his teeth coaching high school football in Texas. He coached at several Texas high schools, including Seagoville, Lincoln, Skyline, and South Oak Cliff. His foundational recruiting talent, which we will discuss later, is routed in having his PhD. in Texas high school football.

Following his high school career, Jones went to Texas Tech, where he was the director of player development under then-head coach Kliff Kingsbury. His second college job took him to Lawrence, KS, where he coached the Jayhawks receivers for Les Miles. Following Miles' departure, Coach Jones returned to Tech, where he was named the receivers coach and passing game coordinator.

Following the end of Brent Venables's first season as OU's head coach, he brought coach Emmett Jones to Norman, and he's been working his magic ever since. Coach Jones is, without question, one of the most effective recruiters in college football, period. He was Oklahoma's secret weapon in the recruiting war, but now everyone knows his name.

By no accident, Coach Jones now leads one of the nation's most talented and deep wide receiver groups. He recruits, develops, and puts talent where it needs to be. He's a player's coach, and his players love him.

Jones' pass catchers look primed to lead the Sooner offense in 2024. Air raid playcalling, provided by new offensive coordinator Seth Littrell, will only highlight the Sooner receiver corps. Names like Nic Anderson, Jalil Farooq, Jaquaize Pettaway, Deion Burks, and Jayden Gibson will become household names under an air raid attack.

The Sooners' receivers are deep at each level of the scheme. They have a deep mix of big-body receivers (Anderson & Gibson), slot speed demons (Pettaway & Thompson), and deep threats (Burks & Farooq). It is reasonable to say that 6 of the Sooners' top receivers could start on any SEC roster.

Coach Emmett Jones is a new-age football coach. His roots are deep in the high school world, which gives him immense power and legitimacy on the recruiting trail. He's a down-to-earth, humble workaholic who can get intense when needed. Besides legendary offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh, Coach Jones is the most gifted and sought-after position coach on the Sooners staff.

Sooner nation is lucky to have Jones. But hey, sometimes it's better to be lucky than good.