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Oklahoma Sooners at The Opening Finals 2018: Preview and Schedule

No school has more commits representing it at The Opening Finals than Oklahoma.

SB Nation Recruiting

Nike’s The Opening Finals, annually the year’s biggest camp for football recruits, takes place June 30-July 3. Out of the 163 prospects in attendance, a whopping 25 are five-star recruits, per 247Sports, and another 107 are four-stars. The event at The Star in Frisco, Texas features a variety of competition-based events, including a 7-on-7 tournament, a lineman competition, and a Nike training camp.

Of all the programs represented at the event, the Oklahoma Sooners lead the way with seven commitments in attendance — including six from the 2019 class. Additionally, a fairly large number of targets are at the event and will be looking to boost their stock.

Unlike previous years, the 2018 event will not be televised. However, Bud Elliott and SB Nation will be in Frisco covering the event, so make sure to follow @SBNRecruiting on Twitter for updates, highlights and more. RJ Young will be there on behalf of FloFootball, so make sure to follow him, as well. We’ll also try to provide some updates down in the comments section.

Full Roster


Schedule

Beginning Saturday, position groups will do drills at different points throughout the event, but here are the three most important things to follow:

Nike Training Camp: Sunday 3-9:30 p.m. CT

This event is like the NFL Combine, with each player receiving an athleticism score and the winner being crowned. Each prospect will run through drills, which are rated with Nike’s Football Ratings system. Some notable winners from the past include former Texas A&M receiver Speedy Noil and New York Giants safety Landon Collins.

7-on-7: Pool play begins Monday at 10 a.m. CT. Championships begin Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. CT, with the finals at 1 p.m. CT

All seven Oklahoma commits in attendance — QB Spencer Rattler, WRs Theo Wease, Arjei Henderson and Trejan Bridges, TE Austin Stogner, OG EJ Ndoma-Ogar and 2020 RB Jase McClellan — are playing for Team Overdrive.

The Lineman Challenge: Begins Monday, with Lineman 1-on-1 finals beginning Tuesday at 12 p.m. CT


Oklahoma Commits

Spencer Rattler - Phoenix (AZ) Pinnacle - QB: The fastest gun in the west was the star of last month’s Elite 11 competition, and he’ll look to impress even more and potentially earn that fifth star (which he should already have).

Composite Ranking: No. 41 overall, No. 1 PRO (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive

Theo Wease - Allen (TX) - WR: Oklahoma’s highest-ranking recruit just looks the part of a guy who can dominate at the next two levels of football. Here’s what he did to the nation’s No. 1 corner — Derek Stringley — this week at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge in Atlanta:

Composite Ranking: No. 27 overall, No. 5 WR (although he is No. 3 overall and No. 1 WR according to Rivals)

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive

Arjei Henderson - Richmond (TX) Fort Bend Travis - WR: Henderson has sort of been overshadowed lately by the other two receivers in his class, but he’s an exceptionally talented receiver who thrives in a number of areas. He’s not to be slept on.

Composite Ranking: No. 76 overall, No. 14 WR (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive

Trejan Bridges - Carrolton (TX) Hebron - WR: Bridges has had a monster offseason, highlighted by earning WR MVP honors at the Rivals Challenge this past week.

Composite Ranking: No. 112 overall, No. 21 WR (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive

Austin Stogner - Plano (TX) Prestonwood Christian - TE: Of all the weapons in this 2019 class, Stogner might be the most dangerous because of the matchup nightmare he poses. His ceiling as a red-zone target might be higher than was the case for Mark Andrews, which is insane.

Composte Ranking: No. 94 overall, No. 2 TE (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive

EJ Ndoma-Ogar - Allen (TX) - OG: Theo Wease’s high school teammate is about as athletic and ferocious as they come at his position. Just wait ‘til Bill Bedenbaugh and Bennie Wylie get their hands on him.

Composite Ranking: No. 157 overall, No. 8 OG

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive

Jase McClellan - Aledo (TX) - RB (2020): McClellan is one of only eight 2020 prospects to be invited to the 2018 event, so that should probably tell you something. He committed to Oklahoma last July at the BBQ, and it’s best to be cautious with your optimism when a recruit commits that early in the game.

Composite Ranking: No. 29 overall, No. 4 RB (2020)

7-on-7 Team: Overdrive


Oklahoma Targets

Dax Hill - Tulsa (OK) Booker T. Washington - S: It’s tough to get a definitive feel for things in this race, but the Sooners are on his remaining list along with Alabama, Clemson, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma State. He took an official to Tuscaloosa recently and seemed to enjoy it, but Oklahoma still has as good of a shot as anyone.

Composite Ranking: No. 8 overall, No. 1 safety (five stars)

7-on-7 Team: Elite

Jaden Davis - Fort Lauderdale (FL) St. Thomas Aquinas - CB: Davis is considered a heavy OU lean, and he’s scheduled to make his announcement on July 18.

Composite Ranking: No. 213, No. 24 CB (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Impact

Woodi Washington - Murfreesboro (TN) Oakland - CB: Oklahoma has recently emerged as a favorite along with the Ohio State Buckeyes. If OU can bring him into town and make a good impression, and huge commitment could follow.

Composite Ranking: No. 182 overall, No. 20 CB (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Boomin’ (gotta be a good omen, right?)

Noah Cain - IMG Academy - RB: OU continues to sort of hang around in this race despite it feeling out-of-reach for quite some time. However, OU’s IMG freshmen — Bookie Radley-Hiles and TJ Pledger — are working on him, as is QB commit Spencer Rattler.

Composite Ranking: No. 58 overall, No. 4 RB (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Impact

Stacey Wilkins - Camden (AR) Fairview - OT: Wilkins took an unofficial to OU for the Spring Game back in April, which sort of solidified the Sooners as the clear leaders in the race. He has since made trips to Alabama (unofficial), Arkansas (official), USC (official) and LSU (unofficial), but it still doesn’t seem as if things have changed all that much.

Composite Ranking: No. 192 overall, No. 21 OT

7-on-7 Team: Dynamite

Jonah Tauanu’u - Harbor City (CA) Narbonne - OT: USC has long been considered the favorite, but OU officially entered this race by making a good impression during his unofficial visit to Norman.

Composite Ranking: No. 79 overall, No. 12 OT (four stars)

7-on-7 Team: Impact

Isaiah Spiller - Spring (TX) Klein Collins - RB: The recruitment of the former OU commit feels like a lost cause at this point, but the relationship is in place. Until he commits to A&M or the running back slots are filled by the Sooners, I’ll be paying attention (again, probably in vain).

Composite Ranking: No. 160 overall, No. 2 APB

7-on-7 Team: Elite

Shammond Cooper - St. Louis (MO) Trinity Catholic - LB: This race began trending in the wrong direction this spring. Will that continue if (when) Illinois flounders during the regular season?

Composite Ranking: No. 240 overall, No. 9 ILB

7-on-7 Team: Dynamite

Chris Steele - Bellflower (CA) St. John Bosco - CB: You may have seen a recent tweet regarding a reported commitment to USC for Chris Steele, which was done prior to his scheduled announcement. I have nothing to say in regards to the validity or ethical dilemma here, but for now we’re still considering him an OU target.

Composite Ranking: No. 39 overall, No. 5 CB

7-on-7 Team: Impact

Others of note: Four-star DE Marcus Stripling, four-star CB Erick Young, five-star 2020 RB Zachary Evans, five-star 2020 DE Bryan Bresee, five-star RB Trey Sanders, four-star DB Isaiah Rutherford, four-star ATH/DB Jeffery Carter (former commit), five-star ATH Bru McCoy, four-star RB Tyrion Davis (LSU commit)