Analysts will tell you that football games are decided in the trenches. If that’s the case, the Oklahoma Sooners will be racking up victories to end the 2020s.
On Thursday morning, less than 20 minutes apart, Brent Venables secured 2 of the best offensive linemen in the 2027 recruiting class. Cooper Hackett (No. 10 overall) and Kaeden Penny (No. 45 overall) are both inside the top 50 of the 247Sports Composite rankings.
Hackett (6-foot-6, 250 lbs.) is the country’s No. 2 offensive tackle. Penny (6-foot-4, 265 lbs.) is the No. 3 interior lineman in the nation. Perhaps more importantly for Venables, Hackett and Penny are the top 2 players in the state of Oklahoma. When you have talent like theirs is in your backyard, you’ve got to keep them home. For the moment, he has successfully done so.
It’s still early, but the Sooners’ 2027 recruiting class is in great shape. Hackett and Penny give Oklahoma 4 commitments for 2027. The Sooners’ first commit, Luke Wilson, is an offensive tackle (6-foot-6, 290 lbs.) from Southlake, TX. Their other commit is wide receiver Demare Dezeurn out of Pacific Palisades, CA.
With any luck, Oklahoma will have its offensive line of the future solidified in no time. As for the 2025 season, the Sooners are on a bye this week before hosting Kent State (4 p.m. E.T., SEC Network) on Oct. 4.
