Riley, Oklahoma Land 2021 Four-Star LB Clayton Smith
The fireworks have officially begun in Norman, and the Sooners' 2021 recruiting class is beginning to take shape.
Lincoln Riley and his staff scored another huge victory on the recruiting trail Friday, as four-star linebacker Clayton Smith tweeted that he's committed to Oklahoma.
Smith had scheduled his announcement for 2:10 pm Friday, and thus, the news of his decision came just a couple of hours after OU landed another much-anticipated commitment from five-star wideout Mario Williams. It's a fantastic day for the Sooners, who had long been in frenetic pursuit of both players.
"They check every box for me," Smith told SI Sooners. "It's a great school on the academic side, and their alumni base is everywhere. They've been nationally competitive for as long as I can remember [watching] football."
The 6-foot-4, 220-pound standout slots in as the 107th overall recruit in 247Sports' composite rankings. He's the No. 8 outside linebacker in the class per 247, and the No. 14 outside linebacker according to Rivals.
Smith credited his relationship with Riley as a major factor in his decision, as well as Oklahoma's innovative recruiting tactics and desire to utilize his versatility.
"They recruited me in so many different ways; it's just hard to look away from it," Smith said. "I'll be playing rush linebacker, rushing the quarterback about 80 percent and dropping [in coverage] about 20 percent. But what Coach Riley and Coach Grinch were telling me is, they're going to move me around because I'm so versatile."
Smith expressed great admiration for Riley in particular, and said that he's looking forward to playing for a man of such character.
"He's a stand-up guy," Smith said of Riley. "He's never told me anything wrong. At some point, everything that he has told me has been true."
Upon joining the Sooners in 2021, Smith steps into a deep linebacker room that will likely include Nik Bonitto, David Ugwoegbu, Dashaun White and Brian Asamoah, as well as 2020 signees Shane Whitter and Brynden Walker. Oklahoma also picked up a commitment from three-star 2021 prospect Danny Stutsman last week. Nevertheless, Smith said that he's already gunning for a starting role as a freshman.
"Hopefully I get to play my freshman year; I really want to," Smith said. "I've just got to get [to Norman] and put the work in, and hopefully it'll all fall in my favor."
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