Eight Former Oklahoma Players Selected in XFL Draft

Eight players who wore a Sooners uniform were selected this week in the XFL Draft ahead of the league's return to action next spring.

The XFL is back. Again.

The return of the league means, of course, that a bevy of former Oklahoma players are getting another shot at restarting their professional careers when the circuit returns to play next spring.

This week, the XFL held it’s draft as players were selected by the eight teams to fill out their rosters for game action in a few months - with eight former Sooners getting picked up.

Former OU wide receiver Charleston Rambo was the first off the board getting selected with the No. 4 overall pick in the offensive skill draft by the Orlando Guardians.

It starts right here with what might be the coolest last name in football.

The @XFLGuardians select Charleston Rambo as their first #XFLDraft pick.

Presented by @ZipRecruiter. pic.twitter.com/xCfejw3YDx

— United Football League (@TheUFL) November 16, 2022

Before finishing up his career at Miami, Rambo caught 76 passes for 1,180 yards and nine touchdowns in three seasons with the Sooners from 2018-2020.

In the sixth round of the offensive skill draft, another former Sooners wide receiver was selected with Jeff Badet going No. 44 overall to the Vegas Vipers.

Another weapon to our air arsenal.

With our 6th pick we select Jeff Badet, WR Oklahoma pic.twitter.com/PUL5Sz5RrZ

— Vegas Vipers (@XFLVipers) November 16, 2022

After transferring to Oklahoma from Kentucky in 2017, Badet caught 26 passes for 400 yards and three touchdowns.

A third former OU pass-catcher was also taken with Jordan Smallwood getting selected by former Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops and the Arlington Renegades.

Smallwood played with the Sooners from 2014-2017 and was a player in the previous iteration of the XFL in 2020.

The fourth offensive player from Oklahoma to get selected was running back Keith Ford, who will join Smallwood with the Renegades.

Ford players with the Sooners in 2013 and 2014 before transferring to Texas A&M to finish up his college career.

The fifth and final offensive player off the board from OU is fellow running back Abdul Adams, who will be a member of the St. Louis Battlehawks.

Adams was a member of Oklahoma for the 2016 and 2017 campaigns before transferring to Syracuse, and has the longest run in program history with his 99-yard touchdown scamper against Baylor in 2017. 

On the other side of the football, former defensive back Parnell Motley was selected in the 12th round of the defensive backs draft by the D.C. Defenders.

First up, Parnell Motley, CB Oklahoma. pic.twitter.com/TPQWjnGQ80

— D.C. Defenders (@XFLDefenders) November 16, 2022

At OU from 2016-2019, Motley totaled 176 tackles, 33 pass deflections and six interceptions in his Oklahoma tenure.

Former linebacker Jordan Evans also saw his name called this week, going in the fifth round of the defensive front seven draft to the Seattle Sea Dragons.

The Seattle Sea Dragons select Jordan Evans. #XFLDraft pic.twitter.com/K9VG8FFqSd

— Seattle Sea Dragons (@XFLSeaDragons) November 16, 2022

A member of the Sooners from 2013-2016, Evans racked up 281 career tackles, including 21 for loss, and five interceptions. He was also a member of the Cincinnati Bengals from 2017-2021.

Lastly, former defensive lineman LaRon Stokes was also nabbed in the draft, joining Badet with the Vegas Vipers.

Stoked is an understatement.

Welcome, LaRon Stokes (@Saint__LaRon) , LB Oklahoma. pic.twitter.com/51iibtNjHJ

— Vegas Vipers (@XFLVipers) November 16, 2022

Stokes is the most recent former Sooner to be in the league, having been a member of Oklahoma as recently as last season.

The 2023 XFL season is slated to start next February.