2024 Rankings – Tight Ends Breakdown
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October is here and we have begun updating all of our prospect rankings throughout the website. Two weeks ago, we released our first watch list for the 2026 class. The first rankings for that class will come out in January. Last week, it was all about the 2025 class. We’ve updated those rankings to feature the top 75 sophomores in the state. You can check out the full rankings RIGHT HERE. This week, we take a look at some of the top juniors in Oklahoma with an update to the 2024 rankings. You can check out the full rankings RIGHT HERE.
In this post, we’re taking a look at the tight end position. In most classes, we don’t have enough tight ends that warrant a breakdown and they get lumped in with the wide receivers. That’s not the case with the 2024 class. We’ve already identified several that could make it to the next level. Stay tuned throughout the week for more 2024 prospect breakdowns. And keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma next week when we release our 2023 prospect rankings.
There are a few things that jump off the page when it comes to Washington junior tight end Cooper Alexander Cooper Alexander 6’4″ | 205 lbs | TE Washington | 2024 State OK and we’ve just been waiting for him to get clear from an injury and get on the field. First, yes, he is the son of former OU and NFL tight end Stephen Alexander, so the DNA is there. Then he moved from Norman to Washington and is now teammates with another top tight end in 2025 TE Nate Roberts Nate Roberts 6’4″ | 235 lbs | TE Washington | 2025 State OK , who was offered by OU earlier this month. Washington is currently the #1 team in Class 2A and it’s easy to see why as they have arguably the two best tight ends in the state, regardless of class. They have plenty of other standouts as well, but watching Alexander and Roberts play together within the Washington offense is going to be a fun thing to watch as they look to make another run to Edmond.
One of our favorite parts about the offseason and spring practices is finding new prospects that were either under the radar or have grown into new roles within a team’s offense. That second part is the case for Stillwater junior Josh Ford Josh Ford 6’3″ | TE Stillwater | 2024 State OK , who we feel like has grown another inch or two since we just saw him at a team camp back in May. While watching the Pioneers, Ford immediately stood out to us just based on his size and skills alone. Then when asking around the Stillwater sideline, there was a consensus thought that Ford has the chance to be the next good prospect to come out of Stillwater. Watching him a few times earlier this season, fellow Prep Redzone writers felt the same way. If he continues to progress on the field, he could end up having not only D1 but Power 5 potential.
Another prospect that we didn’t know about until earlier this year was Ponca City tight end Kooper Rich Kooper Rich 6’5″ | 240 lbs | TE Ponca City | 2024 State OK . We did a series in March and April looking for prospects that were under the radar and came across Rich’s film from his sophomore season while playing 8-man ball at Waynoka. We’ve written quite a bit about his dominance against 8-man competition and you throw on the film and it’s hard not to be impressed. And as we wrote over the summer, we were looking forward to seeing how Rich would look as he moved up to not only 11-man football but 6A football with Ponca City. After somewhat of a slow start, the Wildcats are now winning. And in addition to being a standout tight end, we’re also starting to see him play a little on the defensive side of the ball. Something to keep an eye on with him moving forward.
Highlights
One of the first tight end prospects in this class that we recognized was Lane Wood Lane Wood 6’4″ | 235 lbs | ATH Union | 2024 State OK out of Union. Similar to his 2024 teammate Jino Boyd Jino Boyd 6’0″ | WR Union | 2024 State OK , Wood also got onto the field as a freshman. And Union coaches were quick to point out how rare that was for freshmen at a program like Union. Wood hasn’t grown much physically since early on in his prep career but his play on the field continues to get better. In Union’s offense this season, the Redhawks have weapons everywhere. So Wood isn’t going to have some of the production that others might have this year. But every time we’ve seen Wood and the Redhawks in person, when his number is called, he seems to always make the play. He’s an impressive prospect that has been on the radar for a while and definitely belongs with the other names here.