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Speed D the focus of a Tuesday offer bonanza for Oklahoma

Sooners offer a plethora of playmaking recruits, primarily on defense
Parker Thune|
Speed D the focus of a Tuesday offer bonanza for Oklahoma
Speed D the focus of a Tuesday offer bonanza for Oklahoma

Alex Grinch has made it evident he’s looking for big, physical, ballhawking athletes to fit the Speed D mold.

And if anything became clear throughout a wild Tuesday on the recruiting trail, it’s that instilling the Speed D culture is priority 1A.

In a span of 24 hours, the Sooners extended eight total scholarship offers to recruits, six of them defensive players.

The two that jump out physically are Ian Jackson and Jordan Mukes, both of whom are imposing safeties. Jackson is a 2021 four-star recruit from Prattville, AL. He measures in at 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, and can play linebacker as well. Mukes, also a 2021 four-star from Choctaw, OK, is 6-foot-4 and 192 pounds.

Let's not forget that the Sooners already added Bryson Washington and Justin Harrington in the class of 2020. The future of the Sooners' defensive backfield should be nothing short of terrifying to Big 12 opponents.

Jaylin Marshall is another intriguing developmental project in the secondary. The 2022 three-star from Hollywood, FL, stands 6-foot-3 and tips the scales at 190 pounds. He's still growing into his body and could stand to sharpen his fundamentals a bit, but he's nonetheless a fearless defender with a nose for the ball. Plus, he's only a sophomore, so his progress over his final two years of prep ball will be worth monitoring.

Elsewhere, R.J. Cooper is a fantastic athlete that could be a fit at linebacker in Grinch's scheme. The 2022 four-star already boasts offers from a myriad of elite programs, including Alabama, LSU and Notre Dame. His natural position is defensive end, but he's lean, explosive and relentless. He's got all the tools to be a very talented hybrid rusher at the collegiate level.

The other two defensive players that received offers from the Sooners are 2021 North Carolina linebacker Jabril McNeill and 2022 Florida safety Alfonzo Allen. McNeill is a three-star prospect, standing 6-foot-4 and weighing in at 225 pounds, and boasts offers from such programs as Oregon and UCF. Meanwhile, Allen, a teammate of Jaylin Marshall, is one of the more sought-after safety recruits in the country. LSU, Alabama and Auburn are among the programs that have offered the 6-foot, 175-pound four-star.

On the offensive side of the football, the Sooners became the second FBS program to offer 2023 Austin Westlake pass-catcher Jaden Greathouse.  They also extended a scholarship to hulking 2022 offensive tackle Will Campbell of Monroe, LA.

All in all, Tuesday's surge offered credence to the notion that the Sooners' #WeTooDeep mantra isn't just talk. Lincoln Riley and his staff are in it for the long haul, and they're wasting no time in recruiting to that end.

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Parker Thune
PARKER THUNE

I'm an award-winning journalist and broadcaster born in Texas and raised in Nebraska. I moved south several years ago to attend the University of Oklahoma, and I've been on staff with SI Sooners since March 2020.

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