Let’s start with the big decision coming tomorrow from elite Timpson (Texas) ATH Terry Bussey. I had a couple conversations this morning with sources that reaffirmed what we’d reported last week, which is that Oklahoma has at the very least made it tough for Bussey to say no to the Sooners. Neither staff has been informed of a final decision at this point, and I’m told the Oklahoma commits have become increasingly involved in recruiting Bussey down the stretch. But this all comes back to Emmett Jones and the relationship he’s built with the East Texas dynamo.
“It’s been a rollercoaster,” one source told me. “It’s been up and down, but sometimes it really feels like he’s a Sooner.”
We’ll stay vigilant here and will keep you updated. I don’t want to drive optimism too high unless Oklahoma starts to gain some legitimate confidence this decision is going their way, and it does seem to be more optimism than confidence right now. That said, I’d say the very fact that Bussey hasn’t made a decision yet is a testament to how effective Oklahoma’s push has been.
Any way you slice it, this is down to two schools. It’s the Sooners and Texas A&M as we enter the final hours of this recruitment.
There has been some smoke elsewhere about the possibility of Bryant Wesco showing back up at Oklahoma at some point, but I think that’s a little overblown right now. Again, given Wesco’s subdued personality and the stringent nature of Clemson’s visit policy, I am of the opinion that a visit to OU would be kept under wraps. What remains true, as we’ve reported in the past, is that Emmett Jones never severed the lines of communication with Wesco and his family after the Clemson commitment. And I’m also told from the Midlothian end that it’s not out of the question Wesco begins to explore other options if Clemson’s offense doesn’t work out the kinks.
“He does not want to tip his hand at all,” a trusted source told me. “However, there is something to the fire about his unhappiness with the direction of Clemson.”
Wesco and Michael Hawkins have a strong bond as well, so relationships should immediately make Oklahoma a major player IF Wesco ends up decommitting at some point. However, that conversation is pretty moot until (or unless) Wesco actually decides to back off of his pledge. However, he isn’t the only Clemson WR commit that is at least keeping other options in mind…
There has been contact here, and the contact was actually initiated by Moore’s camp. It’s worth noting that he is a high school teammate of Eddy Pierre-Louis. But as of right now, based on the conversations I’ve had, I don’t think Oklahoma would take Moore even if the Bussey decision doesn’t go their way tomorrow. Regarding the addition of a sixth WR, the way it was phrased to me by a good source is, “It would have to be a situation where something fell into [their] lap. There would have to be a long staff meeting and a lot of things figured out. And you know, it would just have to be a really special talent.”
Obviously, Bussey and Wesco fall into that “really special” category. I’m not sure Moore does. So unless the Sooners lose a pledge or come to an agreement that a sixth WR is necessary (or perhaps feel that snagging Moore is the nail in the coffin with EPL), I’m not holding my breath on anything coming of this.
One last thing: Davon Mitchell has officially announced that his visit this weekend will be an OV, and I wanted to take this opportunity to remind you all that as we’ve previously reported, Mitchell will be graduating high school in 2 1/2 years and enrolling at Oklahoma in January. I do not expect him to test OU’s visit policy by making a trip to Miami, despite some recent buzz that the Hurricanes might get him on campus.
