Rivals national recruiting analyst Marshall Levenson is joined by Parker Thune of OUInsider.com, Landyn Rosow of AggieYell.com and Jefferson Powell of DeathValleyInsider.com to tackle three topics and determine whether they believe each statement is FACT or FICTION.
Thune: FICTION. Oklahoma is undeniably off to a solid start in the 2025 class, as it has nabbed 15 total commits and could grab two or three more by the end of May. But I wouldn’t pick Oklahoma for Ty Haywood or Michael Fasusi at the moment, and the only other five-star that could feasibly wind up a Sooner is elite safety Jonah Williams. Although OU is in solid shape with Williams, that recruitment will be a drawn-out battle till the end. In order to secure a top-five class, the Sooners would probably need multiple five-stars among the group to help weigh it down from the top. I don’t perceive that to be a likely outcome.
So though Oklahoma’s class is stocked with blue-chip talent and some wickedly underrated prospects, I would project that the Sooners land in the range of No. 6 to No. 10 nationally. That’s an endgame with which Brent Venables and his staff will be perfectly content, as they’ll trust their evals and are not prone to chase a top-ranked class simply for the sake of hype.
Levenson: FICTION. I am in complete agreeance with Thune on this topic. While the Sooners have a very impressive haul to this point, there is just not enough hope to land some of the elite, top of the line, talents to finish out this class that would be required to fend off some programs behind them.
Programs such as Texas A&M, Alabama, Oregon and Texas are four that are trending for a handful of five-star prospects. What could make this interesting is how the Sooners’ season plays out. If they show to be competitive immediately in the SEC, they may be able to sway some back their direction, but as of now, I would look at the 6-12 range as a likely finishing position.
RELATED: OKlahoma’s 2025 commitment list
Rosow: FICTION. Connor Weigman is the best quarterback on the Aggies’ roster and when fully healthy, he is one of the top quarterbacks in the SEC. Prior to a fluke injury last year, he averaged just north of 300 yards per game. While the former five-star has had injury issues in the first handful of years to start his career, this year should be the one we see him piece it all together. If healthy, Weigman will be the man from start to finish.
Levenson: FACT. Unfortunately for the talented signal caller Weigman, we have not been able to see him in more than four games in a single season since he arrived to College Station in 2022. Weigman has shown flashes of brilliance on the field in his eight games, but I worry about his ability to withstand a full season all while learning a completely new system and offense.
Mike Elko admittedly said Weigman was limited this spring due to his foot injury from a season ago. With quarterbacks down the roster such as Jaylen Henderson and Marcel Reed, will they, at some point in the season, be a better physical choice to take the reigns? There is hope Weigman is ready to go for the season, but starting the year off with a tough opponent in Notre Dame and a road SEC game in week three is not an ideal timeframe for Weigman to shake the rust. I am not sure what the reason will be, but I foresee moments in the fall a second quarterback will take snaps for the Aggies.
Powell: FICTION: If you hone in on one of Brian Kelly’s quotes it’s easy to misinterpret what he was trying to say. The quote that’s got the college football world buzzing right now was when he told WAFB’s Jacques Doucet, “We’re not in the market of buying players,” If you hone in and focus solely on that one comment from the entire 1:48 clip, yeah it can come across as a negative toward the NIL landscape, but it’s easily lost in translation without the other pieces of the conversation. He also said, “That’s what some guys are looking for, they want to be bought. Look, I understand NIL is part of this and we have an incredible collective, we have very very generous opportunities around the greater Baton Rouge area for NIL opportunities, so they are here but we’re not going to go out and buy players. That’s not what this is about, this was never about that. We will develop you and we will get you ready for the next step.”
How I interpret Kelly’s comments are that yes LSU is not just going to pay a guy for the sake of winning the NIL war with other programs and securing a commitment. They want players that want to come in and compete and develop both on and off the field, not just financially. It’s more about the individual mindset of the players in question. He went on to add, “if you’re just looking to get paid, you’re looking in the wrong place. If you like all the things that we do here, developing our players, bringing you into a championship program, playing in front of the best fan base in America, playing for championships and having an opportunity for NIL, you should be a Tiger, but if you just want to get paid, this is not the place for you.”
At the end of the day, no matter how you interpret his comments, LSU will remain competitive in the NIL landscape. From top to bottom across the board for all sports, it is probably one of the more competitive programs in the country when it comes to NIL opportunities. There are female athletes in gymnastics and women’s basketball that have signed lucrative seven-figure NIL deals before graduating, the opportunity is there. That’s not going to change. So ultimately, I don’t think his comments will have much impact at all.
Levenson: FICTION: Powell does a great job hitting this topic with a few talking points of one of the most polarizing quotes of the offseason from a coach in college football. I agree with Powell’s outlook that Kelly was not dissing NIL completely, but instead dissing the notion that LSU will just be handing out blank checks to anyone and everyone.
If there is a player who LSU wants to add to its roster, and it feels the monetary request is within its means, it will surely be in the thick of working to add that player. If there is a player, even a supremely talented one, who is asking to break the bank, LSU will not be one that obliges blindly.
It’s important to also sit back and realize this is LSU. It is going to be at the top of the recruiting food chain as it always has been. The brand, notoriety and location alone will keep the Tigers in the mix to land top 10 classes even if they miss on some big fish they feel are not worth what they are asking for. You have to go back to the class of 2012 to find a year that Tigers were not among the top 15 recruiting classes. Just as Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Texas and a handful of others will be consistently at the top, LSU will be among them. Kelly’s comment will have little to no affect on recruits themselves long term.
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