The Longview, Texas to Norman, Oklahoma pipeline continues! DeMarco Murray continues to build a dominant running back room, landing five-star running back and baseball star (OF and 2B) Taylor Tatum, who chose the Sooners over USC. Although Tatum is the top-ranked running back in the country, he values his baseball experience at the next level just as much, if not even more. Taylor Tatum narrowed his recruitment to two schools with two official visits: USC on June 2nd and Oklahoma on June 16th.
Skip Johnson and Reggie Willits
However, after a visit to Oklahoma, things changed for Tatum. The realization that Big Ten baseball is not an ideal fit with the cold weather, and if he plays for USC, the jetlag of the 20,000 miles worth of travel caused Tatum to reconsider things as he arrived in Norman for ChampU BBQ. Oklahoma is heading to the SEC, the premier College Football conference, and the elite College Baseball conference.
The realization, accompanied by the excellent recruiting skills of DeMarco Murray, Skip Johnson, and Reggie Willits, made Oklahoma the clear-cut best option for Taylor Tatum. DeMarco Murray knows how to close on a recruit at the ChampU BBQ, landing JoVantae Barnes in 2021 and Daylan Smothers in 2022 at the biggest recruiting event of the year for Oklahoma. Skip Johnson knows how to make a two-sport athlete succeed arguably better than anyone else. Johnson coached Kyler Murray, who became the first and only player selected in the top-ten of the MLB (9th) and NFL Draft (1st).
SEC Baseball
As the Sooners head into the SEC, the conference’s dominance in baseball cannot be ignored. In 2022, the SEC had four members make the College World Series; six, if you include future conference members in Oklahoma and Texas. Oklahoma made it to the CWS Championship Series, where Ole Miss won the National Championship in two games—in 2023, the SEC led the country with three members making the field of eight. The final two teams standing in 2023 were LSU and Florida, both SEC powerhouses.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1274354616389965
The last time a Big Ten team made the College World Series was Michigan in 2019. USC has not made the College World Series since 2001, a 22-year drought for the 12-time National Champions. Oklahoma takes the significant advantage in Tatum’s recruitment, being the best team of the three in recent years and heading to the conference where baseball means everything.
Junior Season
Taylor Tatum, 5-foot-10.5 and 205-pounds, led Longview High School to a 14-1 record in 2022. Tatum won the Texas District 7-5A D-I Overall MVP in his junior season by rushing for 1,891 yards and 33 touchdowns, catching 12 passes for 160 yards and three additional touchdowns. Tatum plays with great patience, waiting for holes to open, but can also take off with a quick burst right to the hole, breaking into the open field. After making it through the second layer of defense, Tatum makes quick, sharp cuts to glide past the defense. Overall, Tatum is an endzone magnet, constantly finding his way into the endzone. It is clear why he is the top-ranked running back in the country, an All-American, and a top priority for DeMarco Murray.
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