Oklahoma's Top 20 recruiting what-ifs, No. 5: Chris Patterson
Chris Patterson's bio in the 2004 OU media guide
Maybe coming from Chicago and playing football as well as he did simply produced too much hype around Chris Patterson.
The 5-star linebacker signed with Oklahoma as a member of the Sooners’ 2004 recruiting class, and Sooner Nation’s anticipation for his arrival was at a fever pitch.
Chris Patterson in 2007
Kansas State Athletics
But other than a camp and a summer visit with his family to the Norman campus before his senior year, the high school All-American never got to OU — he never qualified academically — and spent two years at Joliet Junior College back home in Illinois before finishing his career with two years at Kansas State.
Patterson was billed as a 6-foot-3, 220-pound force of nature, but when he got to Manhattan, the Wildcats listed him at 6-1, 203.
Rivals listed him as the No. 15 player in the nation, while SuperPrep tabbed him as the No. 10 linebacker in the country. After making 106 tackles and 13 quarterback sacks in 2003, Patterson was a PrepStar Top 100, a Parade All-American and U.S. Army All-American — and played in the San Antonio all-star game with future Sooners Adrian Peterson, Rhett Bomar, Lendy Holmes and Marcus Walker.
Chris Patterson in 2007
Kansas State Athletics
Patterson told Rivals in 2003 that he still had “some work to do in the classroom this year, but ... I know that I’m going to bust my butt and that I’m going to qualify.”
Patterson tried to get qualified twice more before settling in at Joliet — he had 34 tackles, two tackles for loss, two interceptions and a forced fumble in 2006 — and then eventually at K-State, where he fought through injuries and finished his college career with just 18 tackles during the 2007 season.
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This series
National Signing Day is around the corner, so SI Sooners is examining Oklahoma’s biggest recruiting what-ifs of the last 20 years.
This is about players who arrived (or almost arrived) at Oklahoma but then, for whatever reason, left well before they reached their potential.
This is what college football recruiting is all about: the risk-reward that comes with not knowing a prospect's potential. For every Adrian Peterson, there's a Rhett Bomar. For every Tommie Harris, there's a Moe Dampeer.
The time period is since 2000, when online recruiting services and the current "star" system became prominent.
The rankings were compiled by SI Sooners publisher John Hoover, Sports Animal host Al Eschbach, KREF host James Hale and Sooner Spectator publisher Jay Upchurch.
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How Hoover voted:
I ranked Chris Patterson at No. 4 in my top 20. That was my first year covering the Sooners as a beat writer, so I had extremely high expectations for Patterson, just as he probably did. His eligibility drama dragged out for what seemed like forever before he went the junior college route.
No. 5 on my list was 2008 wide receiver Josh Jarboe. You can read about Jarboe at the link on the list below.
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Top 20 Oklahoma Recruiting What-Ifs
(since 2000)
- No. 20: LB Mike Reed
- No. 19: LB Ricky DeBerry
- No. 18: CB Parrish Cobb
- No. 17: DB Hatari Byrd
- No. 16: LB Tay Evans
- No. 15: Brandon Williams
- No. 14: Jeff Lebby
- No. 13: Keith Ford
- No. 12: Austin Haywood
- No. 11: Tony Cade
- No. 10: Jameel Owens
- No. 9: Michiah Quick
- No. 8: Dallis Todd
- No. 7: Josh Jarboe
- No. 6: Brent Rawls
