HOUSTON — The first of two weekends in Texas of the 2020 Rivals Camp Series is in the books. The weekend that was in Houston included a great turnout of ranked prospects that discussed their recruitments before challenging each other on the field. Now that the dust has settled on the event, we have a look at the college programs that should be most pleased with what transpired.
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OHIO STATE
It is strange to see a Midwest school being mentioned for a camp in Houston, but Ohio State has consistently recruited Texas well, most recently signing five-star Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the 2020 class.
The Buckeyes also have a commit from the Lone Star State in 2021. Four-star offensive lineman Donovan Jackson was just edged out of the position MVP award by fellow Rivals100 lineman Bryce Foster, but had another outstanding performance and punched his ticket to the Five-Star Challenge.
Class of 2022 offensive lineman Kameron Dewberry will be joining Jackson at the Five-Star Challenge after he was in the conversation for offensive line MVP honors late as well. Dewberry called an offer from Ohio State the most surprising thus far because it is not an offer many in this region receive. Dewberry has reciprocated the Buckeyes' interest and said to expect them among his top schools as the recruiting process progresses.
OKLAHOMA
Cody Jackson is an Oklahoma commit and he put on a show with his speed in Houston. He was in the MVP discussion until the end, and finished second in that race, but he left with an invite to the Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge. He flashed that burst off the line of scrimmage, he was crisp out of his breaks and he received the ball well.
Five-star offensive lineman Bryce Foster was, like always, dominant, and he left as the MVP and earned that invite for the second year in a row. Terrence Cooks was the linebacker MVP, and the Sooners are involved here too. Foster and Cooks are 2021 targets, and you can even look a little further down the road to offensive lineman Kameron Dewberry (2022) and running back Reuben Owens II (2023) for others Lincoln Riley and his staff like.
OKLAHOMA STATE
Offensive tackle Kelvin Banks had a performance on Sunday that would have won position MVP honors at a lot of camps on the circuit, but the group of linemen in Houston was among the deepest we have seen. Banks did earn the Gatorade Award for his play and poise during the camp. He committed to Oklahoma State early in his sophomore season, and was a big reason the Cowboys were among the schools that should be most pleased with the outcome of the Houston Rivals Camp.
Oklahoma State was talked about by several other prospects, however, and clearly has some buzz in Houston and the surrounding areas. Running back Jonathon Brooks and tight end Ben Postma both mentioned plans to visit Stillwater this spring, and in-state linebacker Rejhan Tatum counts Oklahoma State as one of his first offers.
TEXAS
The Texas Longhorns had two commits in action Sunday, and bother performed well. Offensive tackle Hayden Conner was in a loaded group of offensive linemen, and for the second year in a row, earned an invite to the Five-Star Challenge. Derrick Harris Jr. is an athletic outside linebacker and he was the leader in that group all day. He is very vocal about his love for the Longhorns and he was recruiting all day.
One of his friends is Terrence Cooks, the one who won the linebacker MVP, and he said those two will end up in Austin together. Reuben Owens II, the 2023 running back is an early target for Texas as well and he shined all day.
