Oklahoma’s top-10 recruiting class features a deep list of talented prospects, including more than a half-dozen blue-chippers. But the Sooners have their eyes set on a few major targets still, including one of the top recruits in the state of Texas — and the nation.
Denton (Texas) Ryan High School five-star offensive tackle Ty Haywood has been at or near the top of OU’s wishlist for more than a year now, and the Sooners hold a significant advantage in the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM).
Schools like Miami, Oregon, Texas and Texas A&M are also in the mix for Haywood, but one recruiting insider believes it could be another school that poses the biggest threat to the Sooners.
“With Ty, the in-state schools [Texas and Texas A&M] are absolutely a factor. Oklahoma, I think that’s the choice right now. But the school I think you kind of have to watch out for, and I think again, I’m building it up like it’s a surprise name, is Alabama,” says Oklahoma recruiting insider Josh McCuistion. “It is a school he has mentioned before as somebody he really grew up liking and having kind of a fandom of.
… So you have to watch that a little bit. It’s hard to gauge where he is [on the board] for Alabama and what their level of concentration on him is at this point. I like where Oklahoma is, but again, this is going to be a battle all the way down. I would expect that he’s done before the start of his senior season. But between late June and mid-August, there’s a lot of volatility of when this could happen.”
Sooners have been relentless in their pursuit
Haywood has an official visit locked in with the Crimson Tide later this month. And he’ll also take visits to Florida State, Texas A&M and OU in June.
But no other program has worked as hard as the Sooners have in recent months to stay atop his list.
“They’re one of the hardest recruiters out there right now … they’re definitely recruiting me the hardest,” Haywood previously told On3 of Oklahoma. “Coach Bedenbaugh’s a great guy and I like the way the coaches treat you like people. Coach Venables is a down to earth man, he’s pretty good to be around, he has great energy and always happy.”
… They’re always checking on me no matter what, seeing how I am and how I’m doing, and they stay on top of the game as far as building a relationship with the players — and not just the player, but the person.”
The Crimson Tide, however, have come on strong since Kalen DeBoer and his new staff took over.
“The new coaching staff called me one day,” he told On3’s Chad Simmons in March at the Under Armour Next camp in Dallas. “The old staff they had didn’t recruit me at all. But they watched my film and they moved me up on their board. They were like, ‘We want you to be part of this. ‘Bama is the standard, and we’re the best and want you to be part of the best.’”
Now each of the contenders will get their shot at Haywood in the next six weeks before a potential decision comes later this summer.
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