— Let's start with Gus Cordova. Although the three-star DE did plan on visiting Oklahoma this weekend, it seems as though the OU staff has backed off of those plans from their end. As he continues to gain steam on the recruiting trail, Cordova maintains strong interest in the Sooners despite a laundry list of other offers. If we’re talking about sheer interest level from the prospect, I would say Oklahoma is easily in the best position for Cordova. But the question becomes whether the love is truly reciprocated from the OU staff, and as of right now, the on-again, off-again nature of the Sooners’ pursuit of Cordova would indicate that the answer is no. If Oklahoma turns up the heat on the Lake Travis standout and OU legacy (who has outstanding junior tape, by the way), I think they could wrap things up with him pretty expediently. But for the moment, they’re standing pat in his recruitment. And in speaking with sources on the matter, the Sooners’ primary concern may not be the off-field situation involving Cordova at Lake Travis (if you've heard nothing of this, let me know in the comments and I'm happy to fill you in). It may be as simple as his fit in the defense. He projects as a hand-in-the-dirt defensive end and is currently about 255 pounds, but the Sooners already have a guy of that phenotype committed in Alex Shieldnight. Would they take two? It doesn't seem they are necessarily banking on it.
— That brings us to a new offer at edge in the 2025 class, and that’s fast-rising Houston phenom Smith Orogbo. He’s got some really fun junior tape, plus some ideal measurables which are not dissimilar to a younger PJ Adebawore (minus the world-class wingspan, obviously). Orogbo has long been a target for schools such as Nebraska, Houston, Texas Tech and Baylor, but he added the offer from OU yesterday and moved quickly to set up a visit. Orogbo told me that he clicked right off the bat with Miguel Chavis, and that although he already had a trip to Baylor booked for this weekend, he intends to get to Oklahoma next month for an unofficial visit. The Sooners have a myriad of pre-existing options at the edge, including CJ Nickson, Dawson Merritt, Jayden Woods, Max Granville and the aforementioned Cordova. So it very much remains to be seen how hard they’ll push for Orogbo. However, especially at this point on the calendar, I don’t think you offer a kid like Orogbo unless you’re willing to take him. I know it’s early, but OU piqued Orogbo’s interest from the get-go, and I like the Sooners to eventually get an official visit from the 6-foot-4, 215-pound stud.
— Ashdon Wnetrzak was one of the standouts at the All-American Combine in San Antonio earlier this month, and it resulted in a wave of interest from several Power 5 schools. I’ll save you the headache on this one: the name is pronounced WIN-trick, and he already held an offer from Oregon but is now hearing from OU, Texas, Utah, Notre Dame, Penn State and others. I’m frankly not surprised that he hasn’t picked up any offers from those schools just yet, because this is definitely the type of kid that a college coach probably wants to see with his own two eyes before pulling the trigger. Wnetrzak is 6-foot-8 and 340 pounds, and that listing might even be a bit conservative. In terms of sheer surface area, he’s one of the largest human beings I’ve ever seen. He was on the Forty Acres for Texas’ junior day this past weekend, and tells me he’ll be at Oklahoma on Feb. 2. I don’t know if Bill Bedenbaugh ends up offering him right off the bat given the Sooners’ standing with some of their current targets, but it is worth noting that Wnetrzak is a former high school teammate of Eugene Brooks, so he’ll effectively have two lead recruiters if he does pick up the OU offer.
— OU was the first offer for Manny Choice last summer, and he’s built a strong relationship with Emmett Jones throughout the process. However, he has yet to visit Norman. That’ll obviously change this weekend, as he was one of the first names we confirmed for the Sooners’ junior day. I spoke to Choice tonight and he told me that Jones remains arguably his strongest player-to-coach relationship on the recruiting trail. Texas A&M and Texas have both become big players in this process, as has TCU. But especially because Jones was first to the table with Choice, I think OU has the advantage. What will inevitably come into play here, though, is the timeline, as the Sooners only have one receiver spot left in the 2025 cycle. From the sounds of things, Choice isn’t planning on shutting things down before the summer. So unless Emmett and Oklahoma can completely blow him away this weekend, I’m holding off on projecting Choice into Oklahoma’s class. But let's see if Jones can work some magic when the kid gets to campus.
