Oklahoma football: Sooners get multiple projections for elite 2025 defensive tackle
By Chip Rouse
Since Brent Venables arrived back in Norman several years ago as the new head coach of Oklahoma football, the Sooners have made a concentrated effort to improve the talent level and overall impact of the defensive line.
Venables was widely recognized while he was defensive coordinator and on the staff at Clemson for the recruitment and development of NFL-quality defensive lineman and some of the best D-lines in college football. That is also his goal at Oklahoma, and his past two recruiting classes are a positive step in that direction.
Several national recruiting services are projecting that OU will land another elite defensive lineman in its 2025 class in Trent Wilson, a four-star recruit out of Upper Marlboro, Maryland. This would be a major pickup for Oklahoma and co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Todd Bates.
At 6-foot-3, 275 pounds, Wilson has received offers from a number of major FBS programs, including Alabama, Ohio State, Texas A&M, Penn State, Tennessee, Florida, Florida State and Oklahoma. Those are the eight schools Wilson has listed as his eight finalists. He has 17 offers alone from SEC and Big Ten schools.
Wilson is rated four stars and is ranked as the No. 7 defensive lineman in the 2025 class and the 127th prospect overall nationally, according to Rivals.
Here is the scouting report that John Williams of Sooners Wire, an Oklahoma-dedicated website that is part of the USA Today social media network, offers on Wilson:
"Wilson plays as the three-technique defensive tackle, or between the guard and tackle in (his high school's) defensive alignment, plays with good quickness and power. He uses a good first step to dart the gap between opposing linemen to get to the quarterback or bring down the running back in the backfield."
If Wilson indeed commits to Oklahoma, he will join fellow 2025 commits Ka'Mori Moore out of Lee's Summit, Missouri, and Alexander Shieldnight from Wagoner, Oklahoma. The Sooners' 2024 recruiting class is also loaded with defensive line talent: David Stone is a five-star prospect ranked No. 7 at his position and No. 17 nationally. Jayden Jackson, Nigel Smith II, Danny Okoye and Wyatt Gilmore are all four-star recruits.