After suffering four decommitments on Sunday, Oklahoma received more bad news on Monday when ESPN 300 defensive end Derrick Moore and offensive lineman Demetrius Hunter both announced they were decommitting from the Sooners.
The exodus is coming after head coach Lincoln Riley accepted the same position at USC as the Oklahoma recruits are now reevaluating their position.
Moore is the No. 23 recruit in the 2022 class and was the second-highest ranked commit for the Sooners behind five-star defensive tackle Gabe Brownlow-Dindy. Moore is a 6-foot-4, 250-pound defensive lineman from St. Frances Academy in Baltimore, Maryland, who had offers from some of the top programs in the country, including Georgia, Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Michigan among others.
Thank you Norman❤️ pic.twitter.com/KvpXw1bsoG
— 🎱 (@Big8DMoore) November 29, 2021
Hunter also decommitted on Monday, saying he believes it’s in his best interest to consider other options. He is the No. 281 recruit out of West Orange-Stark High School in Orange, Texas, and one of the top interior offensive lineman in the class.
Thanks Sooner Nation❤️ pic.twitter.com/7JFOhlWMoP
— 𝓓𝓮𝓶𝓮𝓽𝓻𝓲𝓾𝓼 “𝓟𝓪𝓷𝒸𝒶𝓀ℯ”𝓗𝓾𝓷𝓽𝓮r (@Pancakehunter59) November 29, 2021
These announcements are following four decommitments on Sunday, including ESPN 300 linebacker Kobie Mckinzie, the No. 95 recruit out of Lubbock, Texas.
It wasn’t just the 2022 class that took a hit from the news, either. Riley and his staff had gotten a head start on 2023 recruiting, but with Riley leaving for USC, quarterback Malachi Nelson announced his decommitment from the program.
Nelson is the No. 3 recruit in the 2023 class and the No. 2 quarterback, behind Arch Manning. He’s from Los Alamitos, California, and Riley has already been in contact with Nelson about joining him at USC.
In addition to Nelson, ESPN 300 receiver Brandon Inniss and ESPN 300 running back Treyaun Webb also decommitted on Sunday, leaving the 2023 class with four total commitments.
With Moore and Hunter decommitting in 2022, that leaves the Sooners with eight ESPN 300 commitments and 15 total commitments.