Okay, so this is sorta cool.

How long until the season opener again? Spring Practice starts March 8 - come on with it.

Once again, OU has a very good OOC schedule with a super competitive home game, a good home game and a very competitive road game. In a college football world where most of the teams plays a collection of the worst Div 1 teams that they can find to accept the money for the honor of being slaughtered, OU along with a few other teams plays a competitive, representative schedule. However, like last year, such a schedule when you have a very young team (massively amplified by injuries)  does not give your team time to develop or survive the errors that can occur in month one. OU is going to have to hit the ground running or lose their current home game winning streak (FSU), and give a new coach a signature win for a program proving it can stay on top (Cincinnati). At least this year, OU opens at home in Norman against the worst team on their schedule rather than a packaged TV neutral site game against a top 25 team. So usual first game jitters should not be so lethal. Things get significantly harder after that.

UT Junior Day 1 is over. While they could be some activity tomorrow as kids go home for the most part the event is over. Their next Junior day is being played for after OU's event on the 20th.

So here's the recap.

13 Verbals:

9 with no real impact on OU at all

1 verbal OU really wanted, and OU might have trouble finding a comparable talent in Texas or in state- DT Desmond Jackson. Right now it does not appear to be a great year for DTs.

3 verbals that probably had OU offers or OU would have invited for their Texas focused Junior day. I think that OU can find equal or better talent in Texas, in state, or in region.

QB David Ash 6-3, 215, 4.6  OU Neutral (as much fun as Army of Darkness riffs would be for Sooner fans, OU was not interested in Ash at all)

WR Jaxon Shipley 6-1, 180, 4.5 OU Neutral (Jaxon joining Case McCoy as the next pair of "roommates QB/WR with a special connection")

WR Miles Onyegbule 6-4, 200, 4.5 OU Offer (Generally considered to be the 2nd best WR in Texas behind Trey Metoyer who is not at UT's Junior Recruiting Weekend, a win for OU. And OU already has WR Kameel Jackson verbaled who OU clearly thinks is a Top 3 type WR talent in Texas.)

FB Joe Bergeron OU Neutral

OL Josh Cochran 6-6, 270,  OU Neutral

OL Taylor Doyle 6-5, 270  OU Neutral

LB Chet Moss 6-2, 225 OU Neutral (Anything that pushes Steve Edmond away from UT is a positive)

DT Desmond Jackson 6-2, 270 OU Offer (This is the first real hit. Best DT in Texas and it's a down year for DTs in Texas)

CB Leroy Scott 5-10, 180, OU Offer (Good CB prospect, but OU has Josh Turner to target in state. Very similar players)

ATH Mykkele Thompson 6-0, 168 OU Neutral (Rivals is calling him a WR. That's 3 at that position. I'd guess UT is full)

TE MJ McFarland 6-5, 235, 4.7 OU Neutral (An actual real TE for UT. OU seems focused on Chris Barnett 6-6, 240, 4. 7 from Dallas more)

DB Sheriod Evans 6-2, 185, 4.4 OU Offer (maybe)

OL Marcus Hutchins 6-2, 260 OU Neutral

While the Men's team is struggling with a myriad of problem too numerous to detail.

The Women's team received good news that Aaryn Ellenberg has been named to the McDonald's West Team.

Prior to signing day TaW posted a number of position reviews. Rather than repost them, here's a number of quick links to the articles.

Defensive Back Review

Linebacker Review

Defensive Line Review

Offensive Line Review

Offensive Skill Positions Review

Scout's released their first edition of their Top 150.

The full list is available here

Five Star Players- listing OU or OU is pursuing:

OU has updated their first depth of 2010, and usually depth chart interpretation is pointless. However, sometimes you can find position moves and the odd demotion for motivational reasons. And with a month to go until spring football, a new depth chart will have to pass for football news.

So here's the depth chart

Offense:

Center: Gabe Ikard is listed as the backup center. Now I suggested in my position previews that moving Ikard to OL made a lot of sense. So seeing Ikard at center is a positive move, but where's Brian Lepak? Now Lepak was hurt before the Sun Bowl, but Ben Habern is listed on the depth chart and he's out for spring.<;/p>

LG: Bronson Irwin is the backup guard behind Stephen Good. The only true Freshman enrollee on the 2 deep.

TE: Eric Mensik (despite in every interview out there James Patton basically begging to keep Mensik at tackle) is the starter. James Ratterree is the backup, no sign of James Hanna (motivational candidate number one)

LT: Donald Stephenson 1st team. Stephenson rehab from academic liability to starting LT is temporarily complete

RG: Tyler Evans ahead of Tavaris Jefferies

Defense:

DE: Justin Chaisson ahead of RJ Washington at backup DE (motivational candidate number two)

SAM: Ronnell Lewis ahead of Austin Box. No Joseph Ibiloye?

MIKE: Tom Wort ahead of Daniel Franklin. I really thought that Ronnell would be given a shot at MLB.

WILL: Travis Lewis the starter is no surprise, but Jayden Bird as his backup is surprising. I thought Bird would be at MIKE LB

Boundary CB: As expected Jonathan Nelson is the starter

SS: Sam Proctor is first team, Joseph Ibiloye is second team. I'm very surprised that Ibiloye is not being listed at SAM LB. And no sign of Kevin Brent or Tony Jefferson

It just seems like signing day was last week (and it was), but already we are hitting two important weekends for OU's 2011 recruiting class.

Let's recap first. OU has two verbals for a class that looks to be in the 17 to 19 range depending upon NFL defections (Travis Lewis, Ryan Broyles) and other attrition. Recruiting priorities are DT, OL, WR, CB

OU or UT has represented the Big 12 in every Conference Championship Game since Bob and Mack starting competing. This year both OU and UT have enough questions that one could honestly ask if someone is ready to finally end that their hegemony over the rest of the division. However, questions at the only teams to really challenge both schools (Tech and OSU) to date are perhaps larger than at OU. Also, the bottom dwellers conference wise don't appear to have made enough of an improvement to challenge OU and UT, but might be able to move up the division rankings.

Before we at TaW can even get the "State of the Season" post finished, OU's east coast duo of Stephen Pledger and Andrew Fitzgerald added another chapter to it by shoplifting (allegedly) from the Sooner Fashion Mall Dillard's on Saturday night after the game.