Fall Camp Wide Receiver Room Competition

Emmett Jones has a lot to sort out with his wide receiver room as fall camp progresses. Not only are coaches wondering who is going to step up, the fans are as well. Can Jalil Farooq develop as a star at wide receiver one, will Gavin Freeman live up to the off-season hype, and can Jayden Gibson breakthrough this upcoming season? Jones has a lot of weapons at his disposal, but there is still proving to be done by the receivers.

Jalil Farooq

Oklahoma looks for Farooq to step up even more this upcoming season. Last season, he had 37 receptions, 466 yards, and 5 receiving touchdowns. He is being counted on to help fill the void that the departure of Marvin Mims leaves. Mims accounted for over 1,000 yards last season.

“Big strong, physical receiver that can dominate perimeter blocking, that can be an intimidating player also,” Jones said. “But his job is he got to continue to do a great job as far as interviewing on a day-to-day basis. And letting everyone know he needs the ball in his hands, right now.”

Gavin Freeman

Farooq mentioned that Nic Anderson, Gavin Freeman, and Brennan Thompson were a few of the players that impressed him the most over the summer. Freeman has been highly talked up all summer by Jeff Lebby and Brent Venables. He always seems to make the most of his opportunity when he gets the chance. Freeman also has separated himself because of his mindset of being a former walk-on and attacking every day with a killer mentality.

“He wins everything out there,” Venables said. “If Strength and Conditioning coach Jerry Schmidt stood up here right now wanting to talk about Gavin Freeman, he’d be here until midnight.”

“The best receiver coming out of spring was Gavin Freeman by a long way,” Venables said.

Freeman, last season, had 3 receptions for 46 yards. He also had seven carries for 71 yards and one touchdown. In his limited opportunity last season, he was able to make an impact. I expect Freeman to be top five in receiving yards on the team by the end of this upcoming season while making his name known nationally.

Battle for wide receiver three

There is a lot of chatter about who will be the third starter next to Jalil Farooq and Drake Stoops. Will it be Michigan transfer Andrel Anthony, true freshman Jaquaize Pettaway, or Nic Anderson? Anthony was wide receiver three all spring. Anderson was banged up some of the spring, and Pettaway was a summer enrollee. Each one of these guys brings a unique skill set that can translate into an elite wide receiver. Those unique skill sets include: Anthony’s combination of size and speed, Pettaway’s speed and route running, and Anderson’s size and route running. If Jayden Gibson can decrease the drops, he will also be in the mix for this spot as well. I expect a great battle as fall camp progresses, and I am excited for what each one of these receivers can do.

Oklahoma also has Stoops and LV Bunkley-Shelton who both are exceptional route runners. They both have lots of experience and are leaders in this wide receiver room. With the question marks about experience and proven depth in the wide receiver room, Oklahoma is going to look for consistency from both Stoops and Farooq. Who is going to step up and emerge as the other leaders and be contributors this upcoming season?

cover photo credits: sports illustrated