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Oklahoma Lands In-State RB Commitment

Erik McCarty, a member of the 2023 recruiting class, pledged to the Sooners at OU's Junior Day on Saturday in Norman.
John E. Hoover|
Oklahoma Lands In-State RB Commitment
Oklahoma Lands In-State RB Commitment

Junior Day was immediately productive for Oklahoma.

The Sooners added a verbal commitment in the 2023 class on Saturday evening from Erik McCarty, a running back/athlete from McAlester, OK.

McCarty is a 3-star running back prospect, according to Rivals. As a member of the 2023 recruiting class, he hasn’t been ranked yet by 247 Sports.

The 6-foot-2, 180-pound McCarty is one of a couple dozen or so prospects attending Brent Venables’ first Junior Day in Norman this weekend.

The Sooners offered on Dec. 30, and he picked OU almost a month later over offers from Baylor, TCU, Nebraska, Kansas, Kansas State, Pittsburgh and Marshall. 

McCarty put up ridiculous numbers during his sophomore and junior seasons with the Buffaloes.

As a junior, he rushed 213 times for 1,966 yards (9.2 average) with 34 touchdowns, and last season he ran 202 times for 2,005 yards (9.9 average) with 38 touchdowns, according to statistics logged on MaxPreps.

He also played a big factor in McAlester’s passing game, catching 25 career passes for 479 yards and four TDs.

McCarty also played at a high level on defense, recording 70 tackles as a freshman, 88 as a sophomore and 104 as a junior. He also had seven interceptions, three fumble recoveries, six blocked kicks and nine passes defensed.

In his career, McCarty has accumulated 4,608 all-purpose yards and 80 total touchdowns.

McCarty is Brent Venables' second commitment in the 2023 class, joining quarterback Jackson Arnold. Rebuilding quickly after Lincoln Riley's departure drained a promising class, the Sooners now have four verbal commitments for 2023. 

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John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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