Even in a ‘down year’, Brent Venables’ eye for talent has set up the Sooners for success in the years to come
Despite a “down year” in recruiting, Brent Venables has picked up several key players that will be the foundation of the Sooners for the future
When Brent Venables first took over as head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners, the Sooners’ momentum on the recruiting trail skyrocketed. Venables reeled in three straight top-ten classes in a row, laying the foundation for their current College Football Playoff bound team. However, a 6-7 2024 season cratered that momentum, and the Sooners dropped all the way to end up finishing with the 17th overall class in 2025.
However, despite that low ranking, the Sooners picked up several players in a “down class” that have built themselves up to already be key players of both the present and future for Oklahoma, proving that Venables and the staff he has built still have their fastball and a keen eye for talent.
Oklahoma’s freshmen are the foundation
Even with this “low ranking” class, the Sooners have found several foundational players to build their future around on both sides of the ball.
On offense, five-star tackle Michael Fasusi took over the starting left tackle role early on in the season and never looked back. Fasusi allowed just two sacks all year and never allowed a sack from Weeks 9-14. As his bookend, four-star freshman Ryan Fodje took over at right tackle midway through the season and locked that job down, allowing just one sack all year and delivering some strong moments in the run game.
Running back Tory Blaylock also emerged as a big play threat change-of-pace running back for the Sooners. He finished second on the team in rushing, but he led the Sooners in runs over 10+ yards and that was while battling some nagging injuries at the end of the year.
We haven’t even seen a glimpse of what Elijah Thomas can be, but the Sooners are confident in him becoming a “dude” at wide receiver soon. Per sources, Thomas’s grasp of the offense hasn’t quite gotten comfortable yet, but perhaps that could change with the bowl game practices. That hasn’t stopped Thomas from being an impact player though, making several big plays as a key special teamer for the Sooners.
Defense was always going to be Venables’ bread and butter, and he delivered here. Most notably, true freshman cornerback Courtland Guillory broke into the starting lineup virtually right away with Gentry Williams battling injury, and he emerged as one of the Sooners’ best perimeter cornerbacks in years with his length and ball skills.
Oklahoma burned Omarion Robinson’s redshirt late in the year, and while he didn’t play a lot (just 11 snaps against Tennessee and Missouri), it’s clear the staff was interested in increasing his role soon. We haven’t seen much of four-star cornerback Trystan Haynes or EDGE rusher CJ Nickson, but neither of those are surprising, given the Sooners’ depth at those spots.
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