Sooners surge to No. 15 class behind key flips, elite talent, and a resurgent 10-2 season
After a challenging 6-7 finish in 2024, head coach Brent Venables and his staff faced significant pressure on the recruiting trail.
A resurgent 10-2 campaign in 2025 changed the momentum, powering the Sooners to the nation’s No. 15-ranked recruiting class in the 2026 cycle, according to both 247Sports and the 247 Composite.
Oklahoma signed 24 prospects on Early Signing Day — an even split of twelve 4-stars and twelve 3-stars. The class posted an average player rating of 89.65 and a total score of 253.36 on 247Sports.
2026 Oklahoma Signees
DL James Carrington
6-2, 257 | Crean Lutheran (Irvine, CA)
3-star | No. 62 CA | No. 92 DL
Chose OU over Alabama, Florida State, and others.
LB Beau Jandreau
6-1, 215 | Hamilton (Chandler, AZ)
3-star | No. 150 LB
Completed the “Desert Double” by joining twin brother Niko on June 23. Turned down Oregon, Texas, Arizona, and others.
DB Niko Jandreau
6-1, 200 | Hamilton (Chandler, AZ)
3-star | No. 155 S
Committed May 13, beating his twin Beau to the punch. Chose Oklahoma over Oregon State, San Diego State, and others.
WR Jayden Petit
6-4, 195 | St. John Neumann (Naples, FL)
4-star | No. 12 FL | No. 13 WR | No. 93 overall
Brent Venables dubbed him a “freakazoid.” Flipped from Wisconsin and selected OU over Missouri, North Carolina, and others.
WR Daniel Odom
6-1, 178 | St. John Bosco (Bellflower, CA)
4-star | No. 34 CA | No. 48 WR
Picked the Sooners over Washington, Florida State, and others.
CB Derrick Johnson
6-2, 170 | Murrieta Valley (Murrieta, CA)
4-star | No. 20 CA | No. 23 CB | No. 204 overall
Chose OU over Washington, UCLA, TCU, and others.
DE Matthew Nelson
6-5, 215 | Bryant (Bryant, AR)
3-star | No. 4 AR | No. 40 DE
Signed with Oklahoma over Alabama, Arkansas, Tulane, and others.
TE Tyler Ruxer
6-4, 220 | Heritage Hills (Lincoln City, IN)
3-star | No. 3 IN | No. 15 TE | Top-300 nationally
Selected OU over West Virginia, Duke, Northwestern, and others.
QB Bowe Bentley
6-2, 200 | Celina (Celina, TX)
4-star | No. 8 QB | No. 13 TX | No. 106 overall
June commit who chose the Sooners over LSU, Ohio State, Colorado, Missouri, Texas Tech, and others.
IOL Deacon Schmitt
6-5, 320 | Windsor (Windsor, CO)
4-star (Composite) | No. 2 CO | No. 19 IOL | No. 278 overall
Picked Oklahoma over Alabama, Colorado, and others.
S Markel Ford
6-0, 180 | Horn (Mesquite, TX)
3-star | No. 72 S | No. 117 TX
Turned down Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Michigan, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, and more.
DE Daniel Norman
6-4, 205 | St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
3-star | No. 47 EDGE | Top-500 overall
Chose OU over Miami, UCLA, Colorado, South Florida, and others.
RB Dezephen Walker
5-11, 190 | Raymore-Peculiar (Peculiar, MO)
3-star | No. 28 RB | Top-500 overall
Selected Oklahoma over Kansas State, Kansas, Arkansas, and others.
IOL Noah Best
6-3, 290 | Midlothian (Midlothian, TX)
3-star | No. 38 IOL | Top-500 overall
Chose OU over SMU, Texas Tech, Kansas State, Missouri, and others.
K Trace Rudd
6-0, 180 | Blue Valley Northwest (Overland Park, KS)
3-star | Top-10 K | No. 19 KS
Picked the Sooners over Texas Tech.
TE Ryder Mix
6-4, 220 | Lone Star (Frisco, TX)
3-star | Top-50 TE | Top-120 TX
Committed to OU over Arizona State and Ole Miss.
RB Jonathan Hatton Jr.
6-0, 205 | 4-star | No. 4 RB nationally
Flipped back to Oklahoma from Texas A&M last week after originally committing to the Sooners in October 2023 and flipping to the Aggies in March. DeMarco Murray closed the deal.
LB Kristan Moore
6-2, 215 | Selma (Selma, AL)
3-star | Top-150 LB
Flipped from North Alabama to OU on Nov. 30 — just the sixth Alabama native in program history.
ATH Xavier Okwufulueze
6-4, 195 | Rejoice Christian (Owasso, OK)
3-star | No. 8 OK | No. 33 ATH
In-state product projected as a tall wide receiver. Chose OU over TCU, Arkansas, and others.
EDGE Jake Kreul
6-3, 230 | IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL)
High-end 4-star (Composite) | Top-100 nationally | Top-10 EDGE
Teammate of current Sooners Jayden Jackson and David Stone at IMG. Selected Oklahoma over Texas, Florida, Ohio State, and others.
WR Jashier Rogers
5-11 | Appoquinimink (Middletown, DE)
4-star | No. 1 DE
Flipped from Penn State to Oklahoma on Oct. 27 after James Franklin’s dismissal.
DT Brian Harris
6-3, 280 | Creekside (Jacksonville, FL)
4-star
Todd Bates beat out Alabama, Penn State, Mississippi State, and others.
LB Dane Bathurst
6-3, 230 | Carmel (Carmel, IN)
3-star | No. 9 IN
Chose the Sooners over Purdue, Duke, and others.
LB Jacob Curry
6-1, 210 | Nease (Ponte Vedra Beach, FL)
3-star (247) | Composite 4-star | Top-50 LB
Picked Oklahoma over Ohio State, Auburn, and others.
With a blend of high-end talent, critical flips, and geographic diversity, Brent Venables and staff delivered a solid signing day, with the transfer portal additions coming as well, the Sooners are setting up for continued momentum in the SEC era.