Of all the names of the recruits that were known to be in Norman on Saturday, it was the one guy that nobody knew about that became the 15th verbal commitment for the OU class of 2012. JUCO DE Chaz Nelson, from the same JUCO (Garden City CC in KS) that produced former Sooners J.R. Bryan and Cam Kenney, gave his verbal commitment Sunday morning. You can check out some highlights here.
Nelson is a 6'3" 240 pound DE that has spent most of his time as a stand up d-end for Garden City. He will have two years to play two and with Frank Alexander graduating and the belief by some that Ronnell Lewis could leave early, clearly Nelson thinks he has a chance at early playing time. He will enroll at OU in January and thus will obviously be in Norman to take part in spring football, which only increases his chances for early playing time.
If you were really over analyzing things, you might think this says something about OU's chances with five star DE Mario Edwards and the rumors of his reported reaffirmation to Florida State. While no one can really speak to that due to Edwards going silent while he focuses on his h.s. team's TX state playoff run, know that Edwards is a guy you make room for no matter what. So don't assume that OU taking another DE in Nelson means there is no room for Edwards now.
Nelson turned down offers from Baylor, Illinois, Kansas State, and Texas Tech to commit to OU.
Welcome to Sooner Nation Chaz!