LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 01: Fireworks explode near the giant London Eye Ferris wheel on the south bank of the River Thames as thousands gather to ring next year on January 1, 2018 in London, England. Crowds lined up on the banks of the River Thames in central London to watch in 2018 with a spectacular fireworks display. (Photo by Jack Taylor / Getty Images)
On July 4, it ended with an explosion in the Sooner Nation with a pair of highly skilled Oklahoma 2021 soccer prospects who promised their commitment to Crimson and Cream.
Caleb Williams, the No. 1 quarterback and No. 4 player overall in the 2021 class, ended the small suspense about where his game would lead in a year, announcing his engagement to the Sooners on the broadcast channel of CBS Sports HQ with a “horns down” salute.
The timing of Williams’ announcement was planned ahead of time, but it was the second big news Oklahoma received on Saturday night. Williams’ fireworks show was always going to be the main act, but the four-star cornerback provided a surprise pre-show Latrell McCutchin, who preceded the Williams news with the announcement that he also promised to play for the Sooners.
Williams was the top-ranked uncommitted prospect in the 2021 national class and was on the target list for virtually every major college football program. A couple of months ago she eliminated all but three schools (OU, LSU, and Maryland) from her elections, but most people concluded over time that she was leaning heavily toward Oklahoma and playing for Lincoln Riley.
It’s been a great week for Oklahoma’s recruiting effort in 2021, but it has been even more hectic for Williams. In addition to its highly anticipated announcement on Saturday night, the Washington. DC, a resident earlier in the week, was named MVP of the Elite 11 quarterback competition held in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
Williams is the second five-star quarterback to which Riley has recovered in the past three recruiting cycles and is the top-ranked prospect Oklahoma has landed since Adrian Peterson, No. 1 overall in the 2004 class, signed with the Sooners. Spencer rattler, who is expected to be the Sooners’ starting QB this season, was the highest-rated quarterback in the 2019 class.
Peterson, who now plays for Williams ‘hometown NFL team, the Washington Redskins, participated in the act during Williams’ live announcement, praising the young QB for making good decisions and welcoming him to the family of Sooner’s football.
Although Riley was head coach in both Baker mayfield and Kyler Murray’s Heisman seasons, his hiring was credited to the former coach Bob Stoops. Riley gets all the credit for recruiting Rattler and Williams, but they have yet to earn a living on the field.
According to Jason Kersey, who covers Oklahoma football for The Athletic, since 2010, 17 schools have signed or obtained commitments from five-star quarterbacks. Oklahoma is one of five schools that have signed at least two. Alabama leads with five, Clemson and Georgia each have three, and the Sooners now have two.
McCutchin’s commitment to the Sooners has taken an interesting and somewhat revealing route. Until March 1, the recipient of the Top 10 in the 2021 class, from Austin, Texas, in the heart of the country of Texas Longhorn, had been committed to Alabama. However, after a visit in early March to Oklahoma, he curiously withdrew from the Crimson Tide. Although he has just announced his commitment to OU, some believe it had been decided several weeks earlier.
At 6 feet 1 inch, McCutchin’s length and athleticism in the cornerback position is just what the defensive coordinator Alex Grinch he’s been wanting in Sooner High to pass defense against tall receivers. McCutchin is one of two defensive running backs who have committed to Oklahoma by 2021. Jordan Mukes, who is 6 feet 4 inches from Choctaw, Oklahoma, is the other.
As we’ve been reporting for several weeks, Williams’ engagement could be just the beginning of a series of top-tier recruits that could be arriving in Oklahoma in the coming weeks and months.
Typically, when a school gets a quarterback prospect, it brings with it its residual benefits due to other talented recruits who want to be part of the same championship formula. As a recent example, when Rattler got engaged and eventually signed with Oklahoma, three of the 10 biggest receivers in the class, all five-star prospects (Jadon Hasselwood, Theo Wease and Bridges of Trajan) he did the same.
The main objectives that Riley and his staff have high on their radar include broker prospect No. 1 Camar Wheaton, another great name that is on the list of many teams. This could be a great test for the running coach DeMarco Murray, which was specifically contracted to maintain the flow of the OU return pipeline.
Four Star WR Jalil Farooq, who is from Maryland and a close friend of Williams. It could easily be the next domino to fall on the Sooner side of the fence.
Bryce Foster and Savion Byrd they’re a talented pair of offensive prospects from the Lone Star State. Foster is probably closer to Oklahoma than Byrd, who is also being recruited by SMU and the other great Texas schools.
The Sooners are also very interested in keeping the defensive defense in the state Kendal Daniels at home. Daniels, who is from Biggs, Oklahoma, outside Tulsa, is considering OU along with Texas A&M, LSU, and Clemson. If he stays home and leaves with Oklahoma, the Sooners will likely transfer him to the linebacker.
In the coming weeks, we’ll see to what extent Williams ‘announcement has opened the door for more talent to join the Sooners’ 2021 class.
