Oklahoma DE Target Colton Yarbrough Has 'Always Been a Sooner Fan,' But Now is Just a Recruit
Colton Yarbrough may eventually become one of college football’s true unicorns.
At 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, Yarbrough is a defensive end/edge rusher who has so far played just one year of 11-man football and last summer was clocked in the 40 at 4.7 seconds.
And that was before his freshman season at Durant.
Yarbrough, still just 15 years old and already a prized recruit in the class of 2026, holds scholarship offers from Arkansas, Colorado, Miami, Michigan State, Oregon, Tennessee and Vanderbilt. He received his first offer from the Commodores prior to beginning high school.

But while his recruiting momentum is picking up, he’s not slowed down by the hype.
“I don’t even let it bother me,” Yarbrough told AllSooners recently. “I just play my own game.”
Right now, Yarbrough’s “own game” is a lot of 7-on-7 tournaments, getting ready for spring practice at Durant, and planning camps and visits.
He plays mostly defense for Sean Cooper’s C4 Sports 7-on-7 team, and the natural fluidity with which he moves around the field – dropping in coverage, flipping his hips, reacting to bat down a football or changing direction to chase down a receiver – simply belies his mountainous frame.

By the time he reaches his senior year, Yarbrough might very well stand 6-foot-7 and weigh 250 pounds.
That’s actually sort of on his to-do list the rest of this offseason – that, and anchoring the 4x100 relay and competing in the long jump and high jump for the Durant track team. He also competes in powerlifting.
“Just get bigger, stronger, faster,” he said, “get ready for Friday nights.”
Yarbrough doesn’t have an official scholarship offer from Oklahoma yet among his nine total offers, but that could come any day. He's actually on the OU campus Friday for another unofficial visit.
The Top 2026 in OKLAHOMA EDGE/DE @ColtonYarbrou7 will be back at @OU_Football Today.
— Sean Cooper (@seancooper_C4) April 14, 2023
Holds at least 1 Offer from Every Power 5 Conference.#C4Family#RecruitTEXOMA #Boomer pic.twitter.com/A0Oruvs9hY
He said he talks with OU edge coach Miguel Chavis “all the time” and recently chopped it up with OU d-tackles coach Todd Bates and Sooners head coach Brent Venables as they visited teammate Xadavien Sims in Durant.
His impression of Venables?
“He’s a tough dude,” Yarbrough said.
And his thoughts on Chavis?

“He knows his stuff,” Yarbrough said. “He doesn’t think he’s above you like a lot of schools think they are.”
Yarbrough also has attended two OU camps.
“Their camp is really nice,” he said. “All their coaching staff knows what they’re talking about.”
Thankful to receive another Power 5 offer from Oregon @coachtuioti92@seancooper_C4 @ShawnMcclellan6 @toddvargas @Brandondrumm247 @josh_scoop @prepredzoneok pic.twitter.com/vjqRK1WWfL
— Colton “the ghost” Yarbrough (@ColtonYarbrou7) March 9, 2023
Yarbrough previously played 8-man football at Caddo, OK. He last played tight end and defensive end. He said he only got the football one time during the season.
The result?
“Sixty-five-yard touchdown,” Yarbrough laughed.
“It was fun, but I’m not going nowhere with 8-man,” he said. “I’m not gonna know anything about 11-man when I get to college.”
Last year at Durant, in his first taste of 11-man football, Yarbrough started out at middle linebacker as a freshman on varsity, then switched to defensive line, then switched to outside linebacker.
Thankful to receive another SEC offer from Tennessee @colemanminnis @seancooper_C4 @toddvargas @Brandondrumm247 @josh_scoop @prepredzoneok @CoachEkelerUT pic.twitter.com/NXlpGxobFL
— Colton “the ghost” Yarbrough (@ColtonYarbrou7) March 27, 2023
“They’re trying to figure me out, because I came from 8-man,” he said. Which, he said, “was easy. Too easy. Not enough competition. We (at Durant) play some dogs.”
Growing up in Oklahoma, Yarbrough admitted his early college football allegiances, but realized things change when a young fan becomes a promising recruit.
“I’ve always been a Sooner fan,” he said. “But here lately, I like to keep it on the low. I don’t like taking (sides with) fans. I’m just a college football fan, I guess, all around.”

Still, he says he’s been to “a lot of OU’s” games over the years and has enjoyed getting to meet some of his college football heroes up close, like fellow defensive end Ethan Downs, who he’s met both at multiple OU camps as well as on unofficial visits.
“He’s tough. Strong,” Yarbrough said. “He’s real humble. He remembered me.”