Five most important visitors for Oklahoma/Tennessee

Oklahoma will welcome Tennessee to Norman this weekend for what will make one of the weekend’s biggest matchups both on the field and in recruiting. The visitor list headed to Norman is expected to be one of the more stacked groups they have hosted in years.

Here are my five most important visitors at Oklahoma this weekend:

Deuce Geralds will be the highest ranked uncommitted prospect in attendance on Saturday. Both Oklahoma and Tennessee are high on the list for the No. 12 overall prospect in the 2026 cycle. The feeling is that Oklahoma may be the team to beat at this juncture and a successful visit could further move the needle for Brent Venables and the Sooners. With Tennessee in the picture as well, a Vols win potentially bolster their efforts with him just the same. With an atmosphere that will take place in Norman with College GameDay as well as what is expected to be a raucous, sold out stadium, it will surely appealing for recruits.

Geralds will get the chance to see an Oklahoma defense that is thought be one of the strongest in the SEC as well as a Tennessee defensive line that is one of the best in the country. He will of course be an Oklahoma visitor, but both programs are looking to impress.

Peyton Houston has been arguably the Sooners’ top 2027 target since this spring. We can also now label Houston as a blue-chip prospect as he is the No. 15 overall prospect in the 2027 class, and the second ranked quarterback. Houston has been to Norman in the past and has publicly said many times they are among his best relationships in his recruitment. Many of Houston’s values align with how Venables is building his program and he is of course aware of the rich quarterback tradition the Sooners have built.

This will be the first game day experience in Norman for Houston, who like Geralds, and all the others on this list, also hold an offer from Tennessee.

Cooper Witten has been discussed at length in recent weeks but the new No. 49 overall prospect has quite the perspective on this game. His father, Jason, is a legend of Tennessee, while the Sooners were his first offer earlier this offseason. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound sophomore is eager to watch the defenses and will be joined by his parents, both Vols alum, so there will be a fun family dynamic playing out.

Oklahoma has a real chance to potentially separate early in this race as Witten, like Houston, has similar values and culture fit as what Oklahoma is looking to build with.

Oklahoma is branching out into Georgia a bit this weekend, first with Geralds, now with Jorden Edmonds. The word is that the top-100 prospect in the 2026 class is someone the Oklahoma staff has really taking a liking to. Getting him on campus is a great start for their efforts in recruiting him, so it will be intriguing to see his thoughts coming out of the weekend.

Alabama and Georgia have taken up majority of the talk in Edmonds’ recruitment, so the Sooners will try to shake it up a bit.

The important of the visit for four-star linebacker Jakore Smith comes in the fact that this recruitment may boil down to an Oklahoma vs. Tennessee battle. Smith has raved about each of the programs and while the final score may not determine who leads, the visit will likely be crucial in how things stand at the point.

Smith is the teammate of 2025 four-star Oklahoma commit Omarion Robinson who has been vocal in his recruitment of Smith. You can be sure Robinson will be in the ear of Smith while on the visit.