Oklahoma and Brent Venables in the Bedlam battle for the Class of 2025 in the state of speed

With the Oklahoma Sooners heading to the SEC, Bedlam is gone, at least for now. However, OU and Oklahoma State are still in a fierce competition, with Brent Venables and Porter Moser battling Mike Gundy and Steve Lutz for two-sport star CJ Nickson.

Nickson, an Oklahoma native, is a 6-foot-6 220 wide receiver who plans to play both basketball and football at the next level. According to On3 Hayes Fawcett, he has narrowed his top two destinations to Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.

Brent Venables is on track for his fourth consecutive top-10 high school recruiting class in 2025 with 12 players already committed to play for the Sooners, but there are still some big holes on his roster and in that class. The Sooners need to improve in the trenches to compete in the SEC and edge rusher has been a position of need this recruiting cycle.

Nickson’s long frame and athleticism make him a perfect fit for Venables, who has prioritized players with similar measurables on the edge since his time as defensive coordinator at Clemson. He would pair well with Adepoju Adebawore, who emerged as the leading pass rusher in his freshman season and would be the top-ranked tight end in Oklahoma’s 2025 class.

While football is his primary sport, Nickson could help Porter Moser in the frontcourt, but would almost certainly be forced to decide between one or the other after his first year in Norman or Stillwater.

It will be a few years before Oklahoma can avenge last season’s loss to the Cowboys on the football field, but a recruiting win of this magnitude, nabbing the No. 1 player in the state, is at least an appetizer for revenge.