Completed Event: Football at Temple on September 13, 2025 , Win , 42, to, 3
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Football
42
at Temple
3
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Sooners Sign 24 on First Day of Early Period
December 03, 2025 | Football
NORMAN — University of Oklahoma head football coach Brent Venables and general manager Jim Nagy announced the addition of 24 members of OU's 2026 recruiting class Wednesday, the first day of the NCAA's early signing period.
Of the 24 signees, 13 are ranked as four- or five-star prospects on a five-star scale by recruiting sites 247Sports, ESPN, Rivals or Kohl's Kicking, while 11 others received three-star ratings. The early signing period lasts through Friday and the regular signing period begins Feb. 4.
As of 2 p.m. CT, the Sooners' class ranked No. 15 nationally in the 247Sports composite rankings and No. 16 by Rivals and ESPN.
"Really excited about the depth of this class," said Venables. "We really hit all of the targets we set out to. Several of them we've been recruiting for a couple cycles now, and we really landed in a great space. We were able to get the guys we needed to come in and not only fit our locker room from a cultural and fit standpoint but also have a chance to come in and impact us right away."
All 24 of Wednesday's signees are high school seniors. Eleven of them are offensive players (one quarterback, two running backs, four wide receivers, two tight ends and two offensive linemen), 12 are defensive players (five defensive linemen/ends, four linebackers and three defensive backs) and one is a specialist (kicker).
Three players are rated as top-100 overall recruits nationally (quarterback Bowe Bentley, running back Jonathan Hatton Jr. and defensive end Jake Kreul).
The states of Florida and Texas produced the most OU signees on Wednesday with five each, while California produced three, Arizona and Indiana two each and Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma one each.
"Love this class, love where we ended up with the 24 players," said Nagy. "If you would have told me back in March when I got here – I remember looking at the board they had in place and the names that were up there – to be standing here in December with this group of men is pretty exciting.
"(During) my past with the Seattle Seahawks, we were really big on collecting alphas. So that's something I was really dialed into during the recruiting process – guys who were ready to come in and play. This is a developmental program and the coaches do a great job with it, but the guys have to be wired right to come in right away and be developed. We feel like we did that. We really like this group."
Added Venables: "Couldn't be more excited. The foundation of our locker room is going to be high school players and guys who are about the right stuff and attracted to the things we're about – blue-collar, tremendous work ethic, guys who love to be pushed and challenged, want to be coached and developed and have a great value for education and the collegiate experience, and being connected to something for the next 40 years of their life, when football's over."
The Sooners, who are postseason-eligible for the 27th consecutive season (second-longest streak nationally), will find out their postseason opponent on Sunday, Dec. 7.
Of the 24 signees, 13 are ranked as four- or five-star prospects on a five-star scale by recruiting sites 247Sports, ESPN, Rivals or Kohl's Kicking, while 11 others received three-star ratings. The early signing period lasts through Friday and the regular signing period begins Feb. 4.
As of 2 p.m. CT, the Sooners' class ranked No. 15 nationally in the 247Sports composite rankings and No. 16 by Rivals and ESPN.
"Really excited about the depth of this class," said Venables. "We really hit all of the targets we set out to. Several of them we've been recruiting for a couple cycles now, and we really landed in a great space. We were able to get the guys we needed to come in and not only fit our locker room from a cultural and fit standpoint but also have a chance to come in and impact us right away."
All 24 of Wednesday's signees are high school seniors. Eleven of them are offensive players (one quarterback, two running backs, four wide receivers, two tight ends and two offensive linemen), 12 are defensive players (five defensive linemen/ends, four linebackers and three defensive backs) and one is a specialist (kicker).
Three players are rated as top-100 overall recruits nationally (quarterback Bowe Bentley, running back Jonathan Hatton Jr. and defensive end Jake Kreul).
The states of Florida and Texas produced the most OU signees on Wednesday with five each, while California produced three, Arizona and Indiana two each and Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma one each.
"Love this class, love where we ended up with the 24 players," said Nagy. "If you would have told me back in March when I got here – I remember looking at the board they had in place and the names that were up there – to be standing here in December with this group of men is pretty exciting.
"(During) my past with the Seattle Seahawks, we were really big on collecting alphas. So that's something I was really dialed into during the recruiting process – guys who were ready to come in and play. This is a developmental program and the coaches do a great job with it, but the guys have to be wired right to come in right away and be developed. We feel like we did that. We really like this group."
Added Venables: "Couldn't be more excited. The foundation of our locker room is going to be high school players and guys who are about the right stuff and attracted to the things we're about – blue-collar, tremendous work ethic, guys who love to be pushed and challenged, want to be coached and developed and have a great value for education and the collegiate experience, and being connected to something for the next 40 years of their life, when football's over."
The Sooners, who are postseason-eligible for the 27th consecutive season (second-longest streak nationally), will find out their postseason opponent on Sunday, Dec. 7.
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