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Oklahoma Adds Massive Juco DL Transfer

Just days after the Sooners lost freshman defensive lineman Derrick LeBlanc to the transfer portal, Brent Venables and company received a commitment from a junior college lineman.

Randall Sweet

Danny Saili via Twitter
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Danny Saili, an interior defensive lineman from Hutchinson Community College in Kansas, committed to Oklahoma on Wednesday night. 

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After incoming freshman Derrick LeBlanc announced his intention Monday to enter the transfer portal, the Sooners made an offer to Saili, who spent his freshman year at Hutchinson CC after graduating from Topeka (KS) High School in 2022.

Listed at 6-foot-2 and 389 pounds, Saili will bring a presence to OU's d-line group that Norman hasn't seen in years. In his lone season of juco competition, the massive trench player recorded 18 tackles and one sack. 

Less than a week ago, the Maryland Terrapins extended an offer to Saili, marking his second of the spring. Once the Sooners' offered Saili, however, the Kansas native made his commitment. 

Saili joins former Kansas and Tennessee d-lineman Da'Jon Terry as well as former Michigan and Utah State defensive tackle Phillip Paea as summer transfers along the interior defensive line. With Oklahoma's upcoming transition into the SEC, adding multiple players with size up front will help Brent Venables and company compete while adding an element that OU's defensive front was missing under former defensive coordinator Alex Grinch.

While Saili's raw power will likely get him on the field in certain situations early on in his Sooners' career, the rising sophomore still has multiple seasons to grow his game under Todd Bates. While he likely will not play at his current weight, Saili is still the heaviest defensive lineman OU has had in years and should serve as a good run stuffer who can occupy offensive lineman and allow Oklahoma's speedy linebackers to fly downhill and make plays.

If the Sooners' staff is able to mold Saili into a solid contributor, they will have found a gem just a few hours north of home. Believed to have three years of eligibility remaining, Saili has plenty of time to develop under Bates and company.

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Randall Sweet
RANDALL SWEET

Randall is a recruiting analyst and staff writer at AllSooners focusing primarily on OU Football and the recruiting trail. Working as a journalist, Randall has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, and high school sports across the state. A 2022 University of Oklahoma graduate, Randall hails from Lubbock, TX. While in college, Sweet wrote for the OU Daily in addition to working with Sooner Sports Pad and OU Nightly. Following his time at OU, Sweet served as the Communications Coordinator at Visit Oklahoma City before leaving to join the team at AllSooners. The West Texas native has bylines in the Norman Transcript and is a Staff Writer for Inside the Thunder. Randall holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma in Norman, OK. 

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