Take Two: Will it be Oklahoma for Brendan Radley-Hiles?

Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and a local expert from the Rivals.com network of team sites.

MORE: If Nebraska opens, could Scott Frost say no?

Brendan Radley-Hiles is one of the best cornerbacks in the 2018 class and his recruitment had been shut down with a commitment to Nebraska.

But the high four-star from Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy who will be in the discussion for a five-star ranking recently backed off his pledge to the Huskers - and opened up what could be one of the more interesting recruitments this cycle.

Radley-Hiles - known by everyone as “Bookie” - decommitted from Nebraska shortly after an excellent trip to Oklahoma. Close friend T.J. Pledger, also a four-star, a teammate at IMG and a California native, is committed to the Sooners and that could help the Big 12 power.

But others are involved as well. The four-star cornerback has visited Clemson before and it is also thought to be high on the list. According to Radley-Hiles, Notre Dame, Texas and UCLA have also reached out in the past week since backing off his pledge.

Does Oklahoma have Radley-Hiles all but locked up? Is this really now a two-horse race between Oklahoma and Clemson? Or will one of the top cornerbacks in this class take a lot of time in making his next commitment, opening the door for teams across the country to get involved in his recruitment?

“Though I’m relatively new to the Radley-Hiles sweepstakes, I’m quickly learning that things move and change quickly. Coming out of the Oklahoma official visit, there was ample reason to believe that the Sooners were going to be the choice for him. And that thought only gained momentum with his decommitment from Nebraska. However, as time goes on, obviously others become truly involved and the confidence wanes a bit. However, the relationship with T.J. Pledger is impossible to ignore and could be the thing that tips the scales in Oklahoma’s favor.”

“He’s probably going to take all of his officials and I’m not sure who else could emerge here. I’m not saying he’s a lock for Oklahoma. He’s friends with Pledger, he’s friends with Reuben Unije, who could be a lock for Oklahoma.

“What I’ve heard is that he kind of told Clemson he was coming on that visit and now he’s told Oklahoma he’s coming on that visit. You have to like the chances for Oklahoma because he decommitted after that visit and they have a good California connection. But I have a feeling he’s going to take his remaining visits and there’s going to be a whole lot of drama before he makes a commitment again.

“He reminds me of a smaller Jamal Adams that plays corner. He’s not big enough to play safety but he plays with that safety mentality, that leadership, physical all the time, always around the football. He really had a great season at IMG. A Lamont Wade-type player, just a similar guy who’s not a tall corner. He’s not as big nor thick as Wade but he’s a bigger hitter. He’s a potential five-star guy.”