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Oklahoma's Delarrin Turner-Yell Declares for NFL Draft

The three-year starter from Texas thanked his coaches and teammates as he transitions to fulfill a lifelong dream.
John E. Hoover|
Oklahoma's Delarrin Turner-Yell Declares for NFL Draft
Oklahoma's Delarrin Turner-Yell Declares for NFL Draft

Oklahoma safety Delarrin Turner-Yell declared for the NFL Draft on Saturday.

He's the 10th Oklahoma player to leave for the NFL Draft, joining opt-out linebackers Brian Asamoah and Nik Bonitto and defensive linemen Isaiah Thomas and Perrion Winfrey, as well as kicker Gabe Brkic, running back Kennedy Brooks, fullback Jeremiah Hall, and offensive linemen Marquis Hayes and Tyrese Robinson.  

Turner-Yell, a senior from Hempstead, TX, announced his decision on Twitter.

“Playing in the NFL has always been a dream of mine since the age of four,” Turner-Yell wrote.

Even though Turner-Yell was a senior in 2021, he had the option of the returning in 2022 as part of the NCAA's relief for athletes who played during the 2020 COVID year.

He told his teammates on social media that they “have pushed me harder than you will ever know and I will forever be grateful for that! I will miss going to war with y’all, but I know something special is brewing in Norman. …”

The 5-foot-11, 200-pound Turner-Yell was a three-year starter for the Sooners after playing in seven games as a true freshman in 2018.

Turner-Yell started 13 games at strong safety in 2019 before missing the Peach Bowl playoff loss to LSU with a broken collarbone.

In 2020, Turner-Yell played in 10 games with eight starts as the Sooners managed the COVID season.

And this year, “DTY” earned second-team All-Big 12 recognition as he made 52 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and had three interceptions.

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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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