Both PJ Adebawore and Danny Okoye arrived at Oklahoma with high hopes and even higher expectations. Both were ranked among the top 150 overall players in their respective recruiting classes, but it was Adebawore who arrived with the five-star moniker attached to his name.
At this point in the two Oklahoma edge rushers’ careers, however, those recruiting rankings are in the past. It is put-up-or-shut-up time, and both have done their part during fall camp, according to sources.
Even with both defensive ends putting together stellar camps, one question remains: Who will take the field first when Oklahoma opens the season against UTEP on Sept. 4?
And will it really matter if both Sooners defenders play up to their capabilities?
Those answers will come in the weeks and months ahead.
For now, a major topic of conversation is how much both players have grown this offseason. Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables recently noted the maturation he has seen from Okoye and Adebawore.
“[Danny Okoye] has [matured a lot], how he talks, how he thinks, how he competes, how he shows up everyday. He’s listening for the right things. He’s listening for the correction,” Venables said of what he has seen from Okoye through the first half of fall camp. “He does hold himself to a really high standard. He’s become a consistent player and more than at any point in time than he was last year. I also think he sees opportunity, and sometimes that’s a big part of it.”
As for former five-star defensive end PJ Adebawore?
“It’s an opportunity for him to show he’s a guy that can be a pillar for us on our defense. [PJ Abebawore] has got the talent, the want-to, the ability. He’s put in a tremendous amount of work,” Venables said of the fourth-year edge rusher. “that is a reason to believe good things are in front of him — with the talent and desire, things of that nature.”
The coaches are not the only ones who have noticed the growth. Both edge rushers have taken stock of the competition between them and the way each has attacked fall camp.
“PJ pushes me, I push him,” Okoye said of his competition with Adebawore. “It’s honestly great seeing the competition. He teaches me something, I learn something, I see something, I tell him about it, he tells me what he thinks about it. I honestly think iron sharpens iron.”
“He has work ethic. He has drive. Just a very driven player,” Adebawore said of Okoye when he met with the media earlier this fall. “And you know, just seeing that from a younger guy just makes me want to elevate all the time. Those guys come in, and they do so much for me. I see their work ethic, and it makes me want to try even harder to make sure I’m the example with me being older.”
The competition between the two has become a talking point among fans and media members alike. Based on the buzz OUInsider has heard surrounding both players throughout fall camp, however, the good news for Oklahoma is that the defensive end spot opposite Taylor Wein — previously held by All-SEC selection R Mason Thomas — appears to be in good hands regardless of who takes the field first against UTEP on Sept. 4.
