Brent Venables is Thrilled for Oklahoma's Freshman to Begin Their College Journey

This summer Oklahoma will welcome another batch of new additions.

Not only will the most recent transfer portal commitments join up with the team, but the rest of Brent Venables’ 2022 recruiting class arrive on campus.

Eleven recruits who signed their National Letter of Intent with OU last winter will finally get to join the team after finishing out their senior year of high school this past spring.

Among those additions will be highly-touted in-state prospects in Gentry Williams, Jacob Sexton and Jayden Rowe, as well as plenty of other players across the country who were heavily recruited.

Offensive tackle Jake Taylor will make the move from Las Vegas to Norman, and he’ll be joined by an offensive weapon speedy running back Gavin Sawchuk.

On the defensive side of the ball, R Mason Thomas, Jamarrien Burt and Alton Tarber all will roll in from the Sunshine State, and they’ll be joined by Californians Gracen Halton and Kevonte Henry and Cedric Roberts from Texas.

Though all of the incoming freshman will have an uphill battle to fight as they adjust to college football, Venables is excited about what each of those players can bring to the program.

“We’re counting on them,” Venables said in a media availability ahead of Thursday’s Sooner Caravan stop in Oklahoma City. “There’s nobody that we’re not counting on.”

More than getting to work developing each of those freshman on the field, which is essential, Venables said he’s excited about getting to help each of the new faces take the next step in their college journey.

“The newness of, I’m going to college,” said Venables. “Anxiousness and anticipation of that is always a really fun time. Going to college is all about transformation. Going from boyhood to manhood. When you’re dealing with college football, that’s part of the transformation, too.

“I tell them all time. Tell me about the 13-year-old, 14-year-old version of you. They’re sitting on that couch and they smile right away. Not shaven, don’t know how to drive a car. Don’t even know how to talk to a girl… Now tell me about where you are at now. When they come to college, it’s going to be the same thing. Same anxiousness. Same maturation, same transformation. We’re in that business. That’s one of the funnest parts of being a coach – to be a part of that transformation. There is a lot to be excited about for everybody.”

There will be plenty of decisions to make on the field, too.

Rowe, a 4-star recruit from Tulsa Union, will have the chance to fit into the defense at a few different spots.

“He’s all of 6-3, might be closer to 6-4, he’s 220 pounds. So we’ll have a dilemma on our hands,” Venables said. “Where do we put this guy? What a great problem to have because literally you feel like he could potentially fill in at a lot of different places.

“So it gives you a lot of flexibility with his size and his speed and both.”

Venables also noted the speed of Sawchuk and Williams as a massive asset for a couple of guys who hope to arrive this summer and make an early impact for the Sooners.

Just under 100 days remain until the Sooners take the field for the first time in a regular season contest with Venables at the helm, but there’s still plenty of development that will take place between now and then that has Oklahoma’s new head coach thrilled to continue to attack the offseason.

“A lot to really look forward to,” Venables said. “The excitement is real.”

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