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Oklahoma's Top 20 recruiting what-ifs, No. 12: Austin Haywood

A local product with a love for the Sooners, Haywood spent two years in Norman before deciding he wanted to transfer to Central Arkansas

John E. Hoover

Austin Haywood's bio in the 2010 OU media guide
Austin Haywood's bio in the 2010 OU media guide

Austin Haywood grew up dreaming of being Oklahoma’s next great tight end.

In 2008, Jermaine Gresham was an All-American, and in 2010 became a first-round draft pick.

But when Haywood arrived at OU from nearby Southmoore as one of the jewels of the 2010 recruiting class, James Hanna and Trent Ratterree had emerged as the Sooners’ tight end tandem (they combined for 65 catches, 972 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2010-11), and fullback Trey Millard was beginning to redefine what the position looked like in Josh Heupel’s offense.

Austin Haywood
Austin Haywood / Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Haywood played in 11 games during his freshman season in 2010, then played in the first six games of the 2011 season and even caught six passes for 42 yards as a sophomore before letting coach Bob Stoops know that he wanted to transfer.

The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Haywood was a 4-star prospect at nearby Southmoore and widely considered one of the top 5-7 tight ends in the country, but the OU offense was beginning to change by the time he got there.

Add to that Haywood’s position coach — offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson — leaving to take over Indiana after Haywood’s freshman season, and Haywood wasn’t happy at OU any more. Haywood’s father told The Oklahoman that Wilson’s departure left his son disappointed.

Haywood later told the Norman Transcript it was his decision to leave OU, and said “It was my fault it didn’t work out.”

Haywood wanted to play right away in 2012, so he transferred to FCS Central Arkansas. But Haywood left the Bears prior to the start of the 2012 season and stepped away from football altogether, his coach said.

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This series

National Signing Day is around the corner, so SI Sooners is examining Oklahoma’s biggest recruiting what-ifs of the last 20 years.

NOTE: We've changed the theme from "regrets" to "what-ifs" because it's hard for many to get past the negative connotation of regret. Also, "what-if" is a more accurate depiction of what we're trying to convey.

The series isn't intended to put anyone in a bad light. It's not about the coaching staff regretting that they signed these guys, or the players regretting they came to Oklahoma.

This is about players who arrived (or almost arrived) at Oklahoma but then, for whatever reason, left well before they reached their potential.

This is what college football recruiting is all about: the risk-reward that comes with not knowing a prospect's true potential. For every Adrian Peterson, there's a Rhett Bomar. For every Tommie Harris, there's a Moe Dampeer.

The time period is since 2000, when online recruiting services and the current "star" system became prominent.

The rankings were compiled by SI Sooners publisher John Hoover, Sports Animal host Al Eschbach, KREF host James Hale and Sooner Spectator publisher Jay Upchurch.

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How Hoover voted:

I didn't rank Austin Haywood in my top 20. But Haywood was an intriguing prospect, a local kid with a love for the Sooners who not only had tons of ability, but seemed ideal for the position in what the OU offense had been under Kevin Wilson. But Wilson's departure and Josh Heupel's move to offensive coordinator changed the position, and Haywood was largely relegated to blocking. Watching his high school highlights — one-handed catches, and dodging through traffic once to even throw a touchdown pass — show why he wanted the ball in his hands.

No. 12 on my list was 2014 wide receiver Dallis Todd, a big-bodied, wildly productive high school All-American from Southern California. Todd appears later in our countdown.

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Top 20 Oklahoma Recruiting What-Ifs

(since 2000)

Published
John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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