Column: After Oklahoma's Signing Day Decommits, Venables Explains Recruiting 'Carnage'

Two wide receivers had long been verbally committed to the Sooners, but unexpected roster adjustments necessitated a change of plan.

Marcus Harris - Gracen Harris / Marcus Harris/Gracen Harris via Twitter/X

NORMAN — Brent Venables doesn’t like having to tell high school kids and their families that he no longer has room on his roster for them.

But that scenario unfolded this week — at OU and elsewhere around the country — as prospects signed binding letters of intent to play college football.

In a complex and unforeseen numbers crunch, some scholarship offers — even to those who had long been verbally committed — simply had to be rescinded.

In OU’s case, two wide receivers — Marcus Harris and Gracen Harris (not related) — were Sooner commits but were unable to sign. Marcus Harris, from California powerhouse Mater Dei High School, gave his non-binding, verbal commitment to OU in June, then on Wednesday signed with Washington. Gracen Harris is a two-sport prospect who pledged to Oklahoma in May 2023 and hasn’t yet signed with another school. 

They both technically go down as "decommitments," even though they still wanted to go to OU and, in a perfect world, OU still wanted to sign them.

Last week, Venables referred to the situation as “carnage” and said he has anxiety about it — which seems natural for a coach who uses words like “morality” and ethics” as he describes the importance of teaching young people the difference between a commitment and a reservation. 

This part of college football’s new way of doing business truly bothers Venables.

At his press conference Wednesday — National Signing Day and the opening of the three-day early signing period — Venables got a couple of questions about it, but deftly talked around the topic, offering only hints and clues.

In the case of the Harrises, OU coaches were apparently expecting some of this year’s injured wide receivers to leave for the NFL or even the transfer portal, but with several of them unexpectedly planning to come back in 2025, it creates a numbers logjam — one that will be exacerbated in the future when the new scholarship numbers and roster limits are implemented.

back @ the crib this weekend! pic.twitter.com/Rz5aLvXqjq

— Marcus Harris (@marthagreatest) October 17, 2024

“Nothing easy about it,” Venables said. “But in navigating it — and some of it has been planned ahead and (is) going, you know, according to plan. And then you have to have some flexibility and be able to pivot, maybe some of that from a strategy standpoint, doing things that maybe you haven't had to do in the past.

“But, uniqueness in that we had several guys hurt this year that, this could have been their last year, and so we'll bring a few of those guys back is what we're planning to right now.”

Without mentioning any prospects specifically, Venables hinted that there could be some solutions available for incoming recruits who suddenly no longer fit into the logistics of their original recruiting class. For example, a prospect can “grayshirt,” meaning he agrees to enroll as a regular student at mid-term for the opportunity to receive a scholarship later and doesn’t practice or play in games. A grayshirt begins his college football career a year behind, but still has the usual five years to play four.

Venables has said before he offers to work with outgoing transfers to help them find the best opportunity at another school. Asked if he does the same thing for prospects whose offers he has to rescind, it didn’t sound like he does.

“Maybe offer opportunities still, just not on the same timeline,” Venables said, describing a grayshirt situation. “That’s it.”

Back @ the Crib tmr‼️🏠 pic.twitter.com/jEXa4yNlEX

— Gracen Harris (@Official_g01) July 25, 2023

Another major element of navigating the numbers crunch is how to balance the need for developing young players at a given position (wide receiver in this case) with the need for transfers who can provide immediate contributions. Venables probably needs to win in 2025, and to do so, he’ll need proven, experienced players more than he’ll need young projects.

“As I've been talking about for well over a year now, the day has come where we're going to have to ask some good players to, you know, we're gonna have to help them move on and find a fresh start,” Venables said. “So, not a fun part of the job, but one that we've been positioning ourselves for — and we’ll attack the portal and the areas that we feel like will have the most need, and in the spots that make us better immediately, and add to what we have.

“And then you look at where are the spots on your roster where maybe you have a few more numbers and where you need to, you know, trim some fat and get your numbers in with a little more balance. And then find the areas on your roster that you need some immediate playmaking. I think that is something that we've identified and will attack when those opportunities come when the portal opens.”