2021 Rankings: Linebacker Breakdown

Prep Redzone Oklahoma has updated our 2021 Prospect Rankings for the final time. The list now stands at 150 players, ranging from the top tier D1 prospects, all the way down to small college recruits. You can check out the full rankings <strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/oklahoma/rankings/2021-rankings/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RIGHT HERE. </a></strong>Today we will be highlighting five linebackers who were not only great at their position, but they were among the best overall prospects as well. All five were in the Top 50 of our Top 150. Stay tuned to Prep Redzone Oklahoma over the next few days as we close out our evaluations for the class of 2021! <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38609" first="Caden" last="Harrell"] - Cashion (Ranked #43 Overall)</strong></span> There are some hard hitters in Oklahoma and the majority of the cats on this list are hard hitters, then you have Cashion's [player_tooltip player_id="38609" first="Caden" last="Harrell"]. The Cashion standout delivered blow after blow to opponents all season, helping lead Cashion to the first ever 16-0 season in state history. What's so impressive about Harrell is he did it on offense and defense and played the same way, regardless of which side he was playing on. He took all of that physicality and strength that makes him one of the best linebackers in the state and used it on offense as well. There aren't too many players that hit harder than Harrell and he has certainly been fun to watch grow and develop over the last few seasons. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38489" first="Collin" last="Oliver"] - Edmond Santa Fe (Ranked #5 Overall)</strong></span> Edmond Santa Fe made it all the way to the state championship game and had some absolute stars taking them there. One of the leaders on the defense was Oklahoma State signee [player_tooltip player_id="38489" first="Collin" last="Oliver"], who has been one of the top overall prospects since his breakout season as a sophomore. Despite suffering an injury as a junior, he still put up big numbers and did it again as a senior, with most opposing offenses focused on limiting him. Oliver is one of a handful of prospects in this senior class that have been absolute locks for being in the top ten since his sophomore season. Oliver has really had a stranglehold on the top spot at the linebacker position. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38571" first="Darius" last="Moore"] - El Reno (Ranked #40 Overall)</strong></span> El Reno had high expectations coming into this season with a wealth of talent returning, especially in the senior class. One of those standouts was linebacker [player_tooltip player_id="38571" first="Darius" last="Moore"], who has been one of the most consistent linebackers in the state over the last two seasons. El Reno dealt with injuries to key positions and nearly had their season ended early due to Covid. However, despite all of those hurdles to overcome, Moore still played his tail off and remained that consistent presence on the El Reno defense. Moore is a hard-hitting athlete that is one of the more underrated athletes in this linebacker breakdown. Watch him jump on the basketball court and you'll see what we mean. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38516" first="Emaud" last="Triplett"] - Owasso (Ranked #16 Overall)</strong></span> Owasso's [player_tooltip player_id="38516" first="Emaud" last="Triplett"] has been right there with Santa Fe's [player_tooltip player_id="38489" first="Collin" last="Oliver"] as the top linebacker in this senior class. Triplett and Oliver have similar careers as they both were instant impact players as sophomores and it was evident that both would be among the top players in the state. Triplett came into the 2020 season with high expectations after leading the Rams to a title as a junior. However, nagging injuries early on kept Triplett from being at 100 percent. However, he still had a very productive senior season and it was impressive to see how much Triplett grew as a leader on this team. He and [player_tooltip player_id="45655" first="Brenden" last="Dye"] made up two of the better linebacker tandems in the state. <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="38498" first="Rejhan" last="Tatum"] - Del City (Ranked #20 Overall)</strong></span> We finish off the breakdown with another versatile athlete who was just an absolute wrecking ball for Del City. [player_tooltip player_id="38498" first="Rejhan" last="Tatum"] transferred to Del City a couple seasons ago and quickly became one of the more dominant faces of this Eagle defense. While 2020 didn't work out quite the way the Eagles envisioned, this defense was still loaded with talent. We'll end up looking back on this team and be amazed at how many future D1 prospects were on this defense. One of the more consistent players in that group was Tatum. Whether he was strictly at linebacker or moving closer to the line of scrimmage, Tatum was nothing more than a heat-seeking missile.