National Signing Day Comes to a Close

Originally Published: Feb 4, 2010 12:15 PM CDT

Dave Carty
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Some had been verbally-committed for months, others for over a year before the 2010 National Signing Day rolled around.

Some even kept those commitments.

National Signing Day was a blur that saw new unions formed and some crumble to the ground. While one or two were foreseeable, others came as a complete surprise.

Oklahoma Signing Day
The University of Oklahoma signed 28 recruits, but there was perhaps no bigger surprise than stud outside linebacker Corey Nelson. Previously a Texas A&M commit, Nelson altered course late and opted to sign with OU.

Among Oklahoma high school signees to OU were Mustang’s Bronson Irwin, voted the top Oklahoma recruit in the 2010 class in an Oklahoma Sports poll. He’ll be joined by Austin Haywood and Julian Wilson of Southmoore and Aaron Colvin of Owasso, who was one of two Owasso players to sign with a Stoops brother.

Another OU surprise involved Jenks athlete Jarrett Lake signing with Arkansas instead of the Sooners. Lake and the Sooners’ coaching staff evidently had a mutual agreement in place a month before Signing Day that the two would go in separate directions.

Out of state signees included talented Kansas quarterback Blake Bell, who was the first to get his papers in – clocking in at 7:52 a.m. – and Pflugerville, Texas offensive lineman Tyrus Thompson.

Oklahoma State University Signing Day
While there were plenty of positives for Oklahoma State, the Cowboys’ day was maybe best known for the player that got away. Booker T. Washington’s Calvin Barnett, considered one of the best defensive players in the state, went against his previous commitment and signed with the University of Arkansas.

His friend, teammate and fellow Razorbacks commit Eric Bennett may have played a crucial role in the change of heart.

Another flip-flop came from Union’s Thomas Roberson. After changing his commitment from the University of Tulsa to Oklahoma State, he opted to, in fact, sign with Tulsa.

The Cowboys did nab Wichita Southeast’s Joseph Randle as part of a strong class including Sand Springs’ Johnny Deaton at quarterback and Tahlequah’s Chris Littlehead at defensive tackle.

On Tuesday, the Cowboys made a splash by getting a verbal commitment from junior quarterback J.W. Walsh.

University of Tulsa Signing Day
The Tulsa Golden Hurricane proved again that it has rock-solid roots in its backyard. Among its signees included a wealth of Tulsa Union players Alec Henry, Deonte Morris, James Roberson, Thomas Roberson, Luke Snider and Cole Way.

Jenks center Jake Alexander and Bixby safety Dewitt Jennings will join Muskogee’s Brenton Bogar and Glenpool’s Marco Nelson.

Among their new teammates will be Sooners-transfer Jameel Owens.

Oklahoma High Schools Signing Day
Plenty of talented student-athletes will be traveling to smaller in-state or out of state programs.

One of the state’s best players, athlete Demarco Cobbs made his commitment official, signing with the University of Texas.

A pair of Edmond North seniors will be heading to strong D1 programs. Defensive back Xavier Smith is heading to Missouri while kicker Austin Brasher signed on with Brigham Young University as a walk-on.

Edmond Santa Fe held a ceremony for the Wolves’ seven football signees. Norman North celebrated its six signees, including the talented Nick Canavan. Del City was also proud to announce six football players signing. Oklahoma Sports’s Jessica Coody spoke to each one of them.

Edmond Memorial was also busy, signing Landon Hallam, D’Juan Brooks and Nelson Medeiros.

Ending a series of back-and-forth decisions, Texas Tech was the ultimate landing spot for Tre Porter of Carl Albert, which also celebrated Markell Walker’s signing with East Central.

Jenks had its share of talented players signing on the dotted line, including David Lore with Air Force and Tyler Ott with Harvard.

Oklahoma Sports National Signing Day Live Chat
11 different signees joined Oklahoma Sports’s National Signing Day Live Chat, which ran nearly seven hours.

Four Oklahoma commits joined the chat: Julian Wilson, Aaron Colvin, Bronson Irwin, Kale Sawatzky and Torrea Peterson, who joined us from San Antonio, Texas.

Chris Littlehead spoke to the Oklahoma State fanbase, saying he was excited to get going. The Golden Hurricane was represented by Jake Alexander.

David Lore (Air Force) and Xavier Smith (Missouri) each joined to share their thoughts on signing with out-of-state teams.

Arkansas signee Eric Bennett was one of the most vocal in the chat, sharing some candid opinions about the recruiting trail and Oklahoma college football programs.

Last, Demarco Cobbs hopped on the chat to bravely answer questions from some Oklahoma fans and Texas fans alike.

Read a full replay of the Signing Day chat.

A (Signing) Day to Remember
When all is said and done, regardless of college football allegiances, it was a day of progress and celebration throughout the state of Oklahoma. On our full list of recruits, Oklahoma Sports listed about 300 players that will be moving on to a college football team either as Oklahomans or to a program in Oklahoma.

Some will likely get more playing time than others. Some of those players will see more success. And some of those might make it on the game's grandest stage.

But, Wednesday was about that all important - and exciting - first step.

It was a day to celebrate, and everyone can sign off on that.