Elite 4-Star Commit To Oklahoma….
Elite 4-Star Commit To Oklahoma….
Four-star running back Tory Blaylock announced his commitment to Oklahoma on Friday. The 6-foot, 197-pound running back is from Atascocita High School in Houston, Texas.
He committed to the Sooners over Alabama, Texas, Oregon, and Tennessee.
Blaylock is the No. 291 overall prospect and No. 22 running back in the class of 2025. He ranks as the No. 4 running back and No. 47 player in Texas, according to the On3 industry rankings
As a sophomore, he was named the Texas District 21-6A Offensive Newcomer of the Year. Blaylock finished his junior season with 616 rushing yards, 11 rushing touchdowns, 268 receiving yards, and three receiving touchdowns.
Following Blaylock’s commitment, Oklahoma’s 2025 recruiting class ranks No. 12 nationally and No. 6 in the SEC. He is the fifth Top 300 player to commit to the Sooners.
NORMAN — Woodi Washington’s decision to return to Oklahoma for a sixth season boiled down to one thing: value.
Washington has been one of Oklahoma’s starting cornerbacks for the better part of the last four seasons, starting 36 of the 42 games that he was healthy for during that stretch. Instead of pursuing the NFL this offseason, though, Washington chose to delay the start of that pursuit with his future in mind.
“(I’m) just trying to have more value, play as many positions as I can as far as the next level,” Washington said.
The idea came to mind for Washington in December, as Oklahoma was preparing to close out its season in the Alamo Bowl against Arizona. Washington considered whether that bowl game would be his final time in an Oklahoma uniform, and in the process, he approached Brent Venables and the Sooners’ defensive backs coaches — cornerbacks coach Jay Valai and safeties coach Brandon Hall — and presented his pitch. If he returned for another year, he wanted to expand his horizons beyond just playing cornerback.
***JOIN SOONERS ILLUSTRATED NOW AND GET 30% OFF AN ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP***
He wanted to learn other positions in the secondary and put his versatility to the test.
“Once they said that it was a go, I was all in for it,” Washington said. “I didn’t even ask about a draft grade at all. I just was at home one day and thought about it and decided to come back…. I feel like I can play any position in the secondary, but (it’s about) having more value.”
He has appeared in 46 games over the last five seasons, with 36 starts at cornerback. He played some safety as a true freshman in 2019, but the majority of his experience — 2,587 career defensive snaps, in total — has come at cornerback, leading the position in snaps each of the last two seasons for the Sooners.
This spring, though, Washington has been moving around in the secondary, spending time at safety and at Cheetah during practices while still working with his primary position group at corner. It’s a look that has provided the Sooners with some different looks on the back end, especially with star safety Billy Bowman Jr. playing the role of “coach” while being limited in practices.
“I’m just trying to compete and learn as many positions as I can,” Washington said.
The process of learning the safety spots hasn’t been too challenging for Washington. After all, it’s still a defensive back position — though it certainly has its differences, like playing more in space and taking on responsibilities as the quarterback of the defense, so to speak.
The multi-positional role for Washington this spring has done more than add value to his prospective NFL resume, though. Oklahoma’s safeties have found Washington to be a sound resource of their own in the process.
Related Posts
About The Author
