Week 6 recruiting winners and losers: A&M, OU, Iowa make statements that will resonate on trail

Things could not have gone any better Saturday for Oklahoma and Texas A&M’s recruiting momentum. On the flip side, things couldn’t have gone worse for Texas. Not only did the Sooners rally to beat the Longhorns, the Aggies upset top-ranked Alabama in College Station.

Recruits normally don’t make decisions based on a one-game performance. But make no mistake, these games will have an impact on the recruiting trail. That’s especially true in the heated recruiting rivalry between OU, UT and A&M. It’s why the Sooners and Aggies join Iowa as the recruiting winners for Week 6 of the college football season. It’s also why the Horns are the biggest losers this week.

WINNERS

Oklahoma

Texas was the home team for this season’s Red River Showdown. But the Sooners are leaving the Cotton Bowl with momentum over their rivals on the field and on the recruiting trail.

So many top targets – including a number from the 2023 and 2024 classes – were in the stands Saturday. And what they witnessed left a positive impression for the Sooners. OU rallied from 21 points down to win in the final seconds, and the Sooners did it with a complete effort on both sides of the ball.

In addition, something that will catch recruits’ attention is that the rally came with a true freshman quarterback leading the way. After relieving Spencer Rattler, Caleb Williams, On3’s No. 1 player in the 2021 class, finished with 212 passing yards, 88 rushing yards and three total touchdowns.

Coaches sell prospects all the time about playing as true freshmen. But Oklahoma can point without hesitation that it’s not afraid to do it in the biggest game of the season.

With so many recruits picking between OU and UT in the stands – like No. 17 overall OL Devon Campbell of Arlington (Texas) Bowie and No. 121 overall OL Kam Dewberry of Humble (Texas) Atascocita – this game can send Sooners coaches out on the recruiting trail with everything they need to win over the remaining top targets on their board.

Texas A&M

As with OU, A&M’s victory over Alabama will influence recruits’ decisions. With the eyes of college football on College Station and the stands full of blue-chip targets in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 cycles, the Aggies sent a message that they’re on the up.

Powell (Tenn.) High five-star DT Walter Nolen was one of the 106,815 people in attendance at Kyle Field and suffice to say the trip made an impression on him. Walter Nolen’s father, also named Walter, said that the atmosphere in and around Kyle Field was incredible.

“The environment here and atmosphere even before the win was spectacular,” he said. “I’m sure it helped their recruitment of him.”

Texas A&M has been one of Walter Nolen’s top teams for months and is the favorite for him. But he wasn’t the only top defensive line target who walked away impressed.

Senior four-star DL Bear Alexander, senior five-star DL Anthony Lucas and 2023 five-star EDGE Lebbeus Overton all had positive things to say about their time in College Station. A&M must feel good about the momentum with each, especially Alexander.

Kennesaw (Ga.) North Cobb CB Marquis Groves-Killebrew, Houston Clear Lake CB Julian Humphrey and Missouri City (Texas) Fort Bend Marshall WR Chris Marshall were among the other On300 recruits in attendance Saturday night. Even coveted targets who weren’t at the game – like five-star linebacker Harold Perkins – celebrated the moment for A&M.

Dickinson (Texas) High four-star TE and A&M commitment Donovan Green told On3’s Jeremy Johnson he felt the game was a massive recruiting pitch.

And you know what? He’s right.

Iowa

Iowa City was hopping Saturday, especially after No. 3 Iowa’s 23-20 comeback victory over No. 4 Penn State. In the stands were many of the Midwest’s top 2023 prospects and key 2022 targets like four-star S Xavier Nwankpa of Altoona (Iowa) Southeast Polk.

All indications are the Hawkeyes made some major headway with the players on visits, especially Nwankpa. They have positioned themselves as front-runners for more than a handful of the best players WHO were there. A big reason is the crowd that packed Kinnick Stadium.

“What stood out to me most was just how many people were there, how loud they were and how it really had an effect on Penn State,” four-star offensive lineman Cadyen Green of Lee’s Summit (Mo.) North said. “I’d heard how crazy games were there, but I did not expect it to be that crazy. The stands were packed out; it was great. Iowa has always been very high on my list, and they will continue to be. I think Iowa is a very cool place and it has a very cool environment.”

That type of statement was echoed by almost every other recruit at the game. It’s a big reason the Hawkeyes are big recruiting winners after Week 6.

Utah

The Utes aren’t going to beat USC – even though the Trojans are going through a coaching change – head-to-head for too many recruits. But Utah competes with the rest of the Pac-12 for prospects. Going into Los Angeles and beating the Trojans on their own turf is a recruiting pitch prospects certainly will respond to. And it couldn’t have come at a better time. The Utes have only seven commitments for the Class of 2022. They are looking for something big to move them up the charts with their remaining prospects.

LOSERS

Texas

Heading into the Red River matchup, the Texas Longhorns were riding high on the recruiting trail. With the Wednesday commitment of On300 No. 40 Brenen Thompson, Texas’ class climbed to the No. 3 spot nationally. The Longhorns were poised to make a big-time push toward a “monster class” with a packed crowd of top recruits in the stands at the Cotton Bowl.

But after giving up the big lead against the Sooners and seeing many top prospects at the game walk away impressed with OU, the Horns have to push hard to turn the momentum back in their direction.

The good news is that many of the top prospects left on the board for Texas – guys like five-stars WR Evan Stewart and CB Denver Harris – continue to say the right things about the Horns. It’s the type of situation that’ll truly showcase how good of a recruiter coach Steve Sarkisian is.

If he can deflect the impact the gut-wrenching loss left on his program, then he’ll prove he’s among the best of the best. But if he can’t, then we’ll look at Saturday as the day Texas’ chances at the No. 1 recruiting class died.

LSU

Let’s make it clear that LSU has recruited just fine under Ed Orgeron. The Tigers have a top-10 class for 2022 after signing a top-five class last year. But the critics are out in full force after a 42-21 loss to Kentucky. The loss dropped the Tigers to 3-3, and the noise about Coach O’s job security has gone from whispers to a loud roar.

“Orgeron is almost certainly going to join former Auburn coach Gene Chizik in getting fired just two years after winning the national title, and the only question is when and how,” USA Today’s Dan Wolken wrote on Sunday.

That’s the type of headline that rival coaches will pounce on, especially in the cutthroat world of SEC recruiting. If (when?) a change is made, it’ll be open season on LSU’s talented commitment list and top recruits.

North Carolina

North Carolina suffered its worst loss of the season in Week 6 against Florida State. The loss drops the Tar Heel to 3-3 with losses against Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech and now Florida State. After the loss, North Carolina coach Mack Brown again said his team was overrated entering the year, blaming the media for setting expectations that were “too high.”

That’s something that rival recruiters will surely gravitate toward and make top prospects aware of. And things could get even rockier with games against Miami, Notre Dame, Wake Forest and Pitts still on the schedule.