Time for Caleb Williams to Get Busy — Recruiting More Stars Like Him
We know how good a quarterback Caleb Williams is.
Or, we think we know.
But now’s not the time for that. Now, at least through mid-December, possibly early February, Williams will add real value to Oklahoma’s 2021 recruiting class in another area.
As a recruiter.
Lincoln Riley won’t need Williams to take snaps for a while, at least 14 months, probably more.
What Riley needs from Williams now is his unbridled enthusiasm for OU, his passion for all things crimson and cream, his new devotion to turning Horns down when the lights turn up.
Photo: CBS HQ screenshot
And nobody recruits better than a quarterback. Williams, who's already been actively networking with others to join him at his next destination, is now the face of this class. Now that he knows that destination, Riley should expect him to ramp up his recruiting efforts even more.
With commitments from Williams and Austin defensive back Latrell McCutchin on Saturday, OU jumped from 35th in the Rivals team rankings and 33rd in the 247 Sports team rankings to 15th and 14th, respectively.
Per Rivals, OU has the fewest verbal commitments (11) of any team in the top 16. More commitments will produce a higher ranking, of course.
But more blue-chip recruits could push the Sooners into top-five territory in the final 2021 rankings.
Caleb Williams (center) with his Elite 11 MVP trophy
Photo: Spencer Forsyth for SI Sooners
That’s where Williams comes in.
Williams — the third-highest rated Sooners pledge in the ratings era behind Adrian Peterson and Rhett Bomar, per 247 Sports and Rivals — says he wants to win a national championship in Norman.
The best way for him to accomplish the ultimate goal is to now convince others like him that they can do precisely that at OU.
Bryce Foster? Come on down. Camar Wheaton? Come on down. Maason Smith? Come on down. Kelvin Gilliam? Come on down. Jalil Farooq? You’re the next contestant on “Caleb Williams is Right.”
Of those, Smith seems the most unlikely to land at OU. He’s the most talented defensive linemen in the 2021 class, and those kinds of players inevitably end up in the SEC. The 5-star defensive tackle from Houma, LA, revealed on Saturday that the Sooners are in his top eight choices, but according to how his preferences are ranked by 247 Sports, the 6-foot-5, 316-pound Smith has Alabama, Florida, Georgia and LSU ahead of OU, Miami, Oregon and USC. Both Rivals and 247 Sports project Smith will end up at LSU.
MAASON SMITH KEEPS SOONERS IN TOP 10
Two 5-star Texas schoolboys coming to Oklahoma might be more realistic.
Wheaton is regarded as the No. 1 running back in the 2021 class. 247 Sports projects he’ll end up at OU. Rivals projects either Texas or Alabama. Most say he’s the third of Lincoln Riley’s “Serious Three,” along with Caleb Williams and Mario Williams. Caleb Williams will need a talented runner to carry the football in Riley’s prolific offense. Is the 6-foot, 190-pound Garland, TX, native sold on Williams as his quarterback?
A LITTLE GOOD KARMA FROM CAMAR?
Foster, a Rivals 5-star prospect, is ranked by Rivals as the top guard in the nation and the ninth-best player overall, while 247 Sports ranks him fourth at guard and 64th overall. Both services project the 6-5, 320-pound Katy, TX, product will go to Oklahoma, although Texas A&M and others are in play. Williams certainly needs elite blockers, and he’s going hard after “The Mountain.”
Williams has long been aligning himself with Foster, even as recently as today:
Gilliam is ranked as the No. 9 defensive end prospect in the nation by both Rivals and 247 Sports. He’s projected by 247 Sports to go to Oklahoma, but Rivals projects he’ll end up at Penn State. The 6-4, 255-pound Gilliam has OU in his top 10. Being from Highland Springs, VA — less than two hours from Williams’ home in Washington, DC — he’s friends with Williams. Is that relationship enough to pull the 4-star Gilliam to Norman?
OKLAHOMA DOMINATES GILLIAM'S TALKS WITH WILLIAMS
Farooq is another 4-star from DMV (DC-Maryland-Virginia). He’s from Upper Marlboro, MD, only 30 minutes from the Capital. The 6-foot-1, 200-pound Farooq is considering OU along with Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and Maryland, but both 247 Sports and Rivals project he’ll be a Sooner. Farooq attended Williams’ announcement ceremony Saturday, and they even posed for pictures together — including one in which they threw the Horns down.
WILLIAMS' ATTENTION TURNS TO FAROOQ
That’s the kind of ardor that Oklahoma’s newest pledge is trying to cultivate among his peers: Come stand with me, play with me, and accomplish these goals with me.
Now that he’s promised Lincoln Riley he’ll play for Oklahoma, Caleb Williams has put himself on the hook to deliver more than just one signature.
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