2022 Rankings - Wide Receiver Spotlight

Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy! On Wednesday, it was national signing day and 2022 prospects from all over the state signed with their future college programs. On Friday, we made our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/oklahoma/rankings/2022-rankings/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">final update to the 2022 rankings</a>. These rankings have been updated multiple times a year since our website launched in the summer of 2020. We can't wait to look back on this final update and see what each guy did at the next level and see just how accurate or inaccurate they were. But over the next several days, we'll spotlight several players at each position that have stood out to us in one way or another. In this post, we take a look at the wide receiver and tight end positions. Overall, 24 pass catchers made it into the final Top 200. A wide receiver moved into the top overall spot of the rankings as Edmond Santa Fe's [player_tooltip player_id="38667" first="Talyn" last="Shettron"] was rated at #1 overall. Joining him in the top ten was Broken Arrow's [player_tooltip player_id="61133" first="Robert" last="Spears-Jennings"]. You can read about those three players <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/02/2022-rankings-top-ten-spotlight/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RIGHT HERE</a>. But here, we put a spotlight on 10 wide receivers who have stood out to us over the last few seasons. You can check out all of the pass catchers in the Top 200 at the bottom of the post. 13) [player_tooltip player_id="48668" first="Gavin" last="Freeman"] - Heritage Hall What can we say here about Heritage Hall wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="48668" first="Gavin" last="Freeman"] that we didn't already say over the last two seasons? Simply put, Freeman was one of the best football players in Oklahoma over the last two years and there were very few players that were as dangerous as he was with the football in his hands. Whether it was on offense at receiver or on defense or special teams, if Freeman got the ball, there was a decent chance you weren't going to keep him out of the end zone. Freeman is also betting on himself by turning down scholarship offers to accept a preferred walk on spot at Oklahoma. We'll go ahead and back that bet as we believe that Freeman will end up earning a scholarship spot sooner than later. 15) [player_tooltip player_id="38670" first="Andre" last="Dollar"] - Mustang Mustang tight end [player_tooltip player_id="38670" first="Andre" last="Dollar"] finally got to show what he could do during the 2021 season and that was fun to watch. After having so much hype around him following his sophomore campaign, Dollar missed his junior season and we had to wait to see the explosive tight end return to the football field. Dollar had another surprise for us when it came to his recruitment as he was a longtime commit to Oregon but late in the process, he would switch and eventually sign with Washington State. Dollar is an extremely physical football player and has really good hands, making him an unbelievable target in the red zone area. Once Mustang's offense got down inside the opponent's 10, it was pretty obvious where they would try to go. 18) [player_tooltip player_id="59991" first="Mason" last="Gilkey"] - Pawhuska There's no question that Pawhuska has had one of the more explosive offenses over the last two-three seasons and wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="59991" first="Mason" last="Gilkey"] has certainly benefitted from that as he's been their top target in the passing game. However, Gilkey is much more than just video game-like statistics and he would still be considered one of the top wide receivers in the state in just about any other offense in the state. That's a big reason why Oklahoma State jumped on Gilkey even though his recruitment hadn't really taken off. They landed his commitment immediately and it's paying off for the Cowboys as they get yet another wide receiver weapon from the state's 2022 class. Gilkey's trading in Pawhuska orange and black for OSU orange and black. 24) [player_tooltip player_id="64382" first="Oscar" last="Hammond"] - Collinsville Halfway thru his junior season, I knew that Collinsville wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="64382" first="Oscar" last="Hammond"] had the chance to be a special talent. After a growth spurt that saw him grow six inches before his junior season, Hammond became an unbelievable playmaker for the Collinsville offense. He helped lead them to their first ever state championship in 2021 and had a great performance in the state title game. Hammond has signed to play college ball at UCO and once again we'll say it, they're getting an absolute steal. In my opinion, Hammond is without a doubt a D1-caliber prospect and borderline P5 prospect. But for whatever reason, he never got those looks and it's an absolute shame because he is that guy. But their loss is UCO's unbelievable gain. 26) [player_tooltip player_id="101410" first="Khelil" last="Deere"] - Eufaula One of the top playmakers in Class 2A this season was Eufaula wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="101410" first="Khelil" last="Deere"]. Whether it was on offense or defense, this playmaker was nearly impossible to stop. One of the best individual performances in a game was his work in their quarterfinal win over OCS where he was a one-man wrecking crew. Deere brings that kind of versatility to the field and is also a big asset on special teams in the return game. Deere signed with NEO and will go ahead and put this on the record right now. Deere will be one of the more coveted juco transfers out of NEO within the next few seasons. Plenty of in-state prospects have started at NEO and moved on to D1 opportunities and we think that Deere is the next one up. 33) [player_tooltip player_id="38734" first="Collin" last="Matteson"] - Oklahoma Christian School Sorry to the OCS fans who might be reading this and just got flashbacks from that Eufaula game. But in that same game, we saw another outstanding playmaker who did just about everything from offense, defense to special teams in [player_tooltip player_id="38734" first="Collin" last="Matteson"]. Over the last two seasons, there are very few players who had more of an impact for his team compared to Matteson. The OCS standout was an outstanding wide receiver but he also was near the top of the state in interceptions as well. But when it comes down to him as a prospect, we love what he brings to the table as a wide receiver. A slot receiver who can absolutely get physical and is not afraid of contact. But if you're not careful, he can also run right by you and into the end zone. 61) [player_tooltip player_id="30990" first="Jalen" last="Reed"] - Ardmore Ardmore has turned into quite the passing offense after being a traditional run-first team for so many years. With a fantastic quarterback in 2023 prospect [player_tooltip player_id="98174" first="Cal" last="Swanson"], the Tigers aired it out in 2021 and nobody benefitted from that more than [player_tooltip player_id="30990" first="Jalen" last="Reed"]. We knew that Reed was a pretty good prospect at the wide receiver position but we wanted to see him take that next step and really start producing on Friday nights. That's exactly what happened as the big receiving target made big plays throughout the season and had Ardmore as one of the better teams in Class 5A. Reed climbed up the rankings again in the recent update and solidified himself as one of the top wide receivers in this class. 74) [player_tooltip player_id="61141" first="Kelan" last="Carney"] - Owasso It's hard to argue the body of work that [player_tooltip player_id="61141" first="Kelan" last="Carney"] put together over his career at Owasso. Very few players can say that they were a four-year starter in an offense as explosive as Owasso's but Carney holds that title. He's been a playmaker for the Rams since he was a freshman and a receiver that they relied on over the last three seasons. Over the last two years, Carney didn't put up eye-popping numbers because of the other receivers within the offense. But any time the ball went his way, he was making the catch and making something happen with it. When it comes to the state's 2022 class, Carney might be somewhat overlooked but anybody who has watched him in person knows that he's the real deal and one of the better receivers in this class. 75) [player_tooltip player_id="38694" first="Makhai" last="Belt"] - Union And right behind Carney is a player that has a very similar story with Union's [player_tooltip player_id="38694" first="Makhai" last="Belt"]. As prospects, Belt and Carney are very similar and there isn't much that separates them. Literally, one is 74 and the other is 75. Carney got the nod because of the experience but Belt is no slouch in that category either. He's been a longtime producer within this Union offense. Even last year when it was mostly a rushing offense, Belt was a player that would still find ways to not only make an impact, but make plays. In the state championship against Jenks, Belt caught the bomb for a touchdown on the opening play and showcased what he could do in the biggest environment. And we'll say it again, UCO got a steal with this signing. 103) [player_tooltip player_id="61135" first="Ethan" last="Roush"] - Holland Hall Our final spotlight is on yet another athlete who showed not only that he was versatile but he could do just about whatever needed to be done, leading his team to a state championship. Holland Hall went back to back in Class 3A and [player_tooltip player_id="61135" first="Ethan" last="Roush"] had a big hand in doing so. Not only was he one of the top offensive weapons at receiver and a safety on defense, late in the year he had to move to quarterback due to an injury and the offense did not miss a step. The Dutch dominated their way to another championship and we can't say enough good things about the type of player and overall athlete that Roush clearly is. Whatever the team needed from him, not only did he do it, he did it at the highest level and it was impressive to watch. Other Wide Receivers/Tight Ends Ranked In The Top 200 [player_tooltip player_id="129097" first="Jonathan" last="Hatton"] - Edmond North (Ranked #77 [player_tooltip player_id="188008" first="ElTramane" last="Neal"] - Edmond Santa Fe (Ranked #97) [player_tooltip player_id="38721" first="D'Angelo" last="Mitchell"] - Sapulpa (Ranked #98) [player_tooltip player_id="38737" first="Hayden" last="Hack"] - Norman North (Ranked #104) [player_tooltip player_id="101405" first="Tabry" last="Shettron"] - Edmond Santa Fe (Ranked #121) [player_tooltip player_id="188003" first="Xazavier" last="Ware"] - Westmoore (Ranked #131) [player_tooltip player_id="160660" first="Ronnie" last="Thomas"] - Owasso (Ranked #140) [player_tooltip player_id="61147" first="JaRay" last="Austin"] - Owasso (Ranked #143) [player_tooltip player_id="283222" first="Luke" last="Hendrix"] - Washington (Ranked #148) [player_tooltip player_id="283223" first="Landon" last="LaGasse"] - Cashion (Ranked #149) [player_tooltip player_id="112477" first="Da'Monn" last="Sanders"] - Union (Ranked #166) [player_tooltip player_id="38711" first="Teagun" last="Jordan"] - Newcastle (Ranked #172)