Red River Shootout impresses DT

One of the many recruits on hand Saturday for the big Red River Shootout was the nation’s No. 2 defensive tackle Franklin Okam. The 6-foot-5, 300-pounder said he came away impressed with both teams – but was especially impressed with the atmosphere.

“That’s the type of game as a big time player that you want to play in,” said Okam, who is from Richardson (Texas) Lake Highlands. “It was a great atmosphere, the crowd was into it and that’s the reason why you pick either Texas or Oklahoma. As a big-time recruit, you want to play in a game like that.”

Okam said he saw positives from both teams, despite the dominance of the Sooners on the scoreboard.

“I was thinking Oklahoma was going to win the game, but I thought the game would be closer than that,” Okam said. “But when they started Chance Mock instead of Vince Young and then Derrick Strait intercepted that first pass it really set the tone for the rest of the game.

“I was looking hard at the defensive line and seeing how they use their tackles to make big plays. When looking at that alone, it was pretty even, but OU dominated in everything else.”

When asked what he saw that he liked with Texas, Okam said he really liked the play of Vince Young.

“Even as a defensive player, you’d like to play with a guy like that,” Okam said. “He can turn a whole game around. He’s really exciting, and I think the Texas defense is still one of the best in the nation.”

Oklahoma impressed him with its overall team effort and a surprising offensive attack.

“I watched Tommie and Texas wasn’t allowing him to do much with two or three guys on ever play,” Okam said. “But the rest of their defense was incredible. They play really hard, but what impressed me the most about Oklahoma was their defense. They impressed me more than their defense. I already knew the OU defense was great, but I didn’t know the offense was that good, too.”

Okam said he has one official visit lined up and that’s to Oklahoma on December 19. He also wants to visit Texas and Texas A&M again unofficially before the season is over. Along with the trip to Oklahoma, he’s thinking of taking official visits to A&M, UT, Notre Dame, Stanford, Florida, Miami, Oklahoma State and Arkansas.”