Deer Creek four-star offensive lineman Jacob Sexton is hard to miss at 6-6 and 300 pounds. He’s also one of the most sought-after 2022 football recruits in the Midwest. He made headlines recently by announcing his top five schools.
Sexton, who has collected more than 20 offers from many of the top schools in the country, has paired his impressive list down to Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M and Alabama.
“I didn’t really want to set any dates because I didn’t want to rush myself, but I was ready probably two or three weeks before I announced anything,” said Sexton, who was recently selected to participate in next month’s Under Armour All-America Camp Series in Dallas.
The recruiting process can be demanding for young athletes and while Sexton has enjoyed the process, he’s looking forward to dealing with a smaller number of suitors.
“At first it was definitely pretty hectic and it was a lot of phone calls,” claimed Sexton, who’s also one of the state’s top high school wrestlers in the heavyweight division. “Now that there’s five, a lot of the other schools have kind of slowed down with their communication with me, so it’s been good to just focus on these five and talk more with them.”
“OU and OSU are both close to home and really great schools,” remarked Sexton. “They’re great at football, and just a place where I could see myself playing and going to school.”
Sexton’s connection with Texas A&M is with offensive line coach Josh Henson, who previously played and coached at Oklahoma State before moving to College Station two years ago.
“Coach Henson is a great dude,” stated Sexton. “I enjoy talking with him. He looks like he’s going to do some great things. They’ve been playing great recently.”
After winning another national championship this season, the opportunity to potentially play at Alabama is a no-brainer for any prep recruit.
“That’s the biggest part of it right there,” said Sexton on the Crimson Tide’s annual success. “They’re so good at football and the fact they’re bringing in some NFL coaches to work with Coach Saban is pretty impressive and exciting to see.”
Sexton admitted that the final team on his list, the Texas Longhorns, is a team he grew up admiring. He also had a previous relationship with offensive line coach Kyle Flood, who was recently hired away from Alabama as a member of Steve Sarkisian’s new staff at Texas.
“As a kid, I was a fan of Texas, but I also have a pretty good relationship with Coach Flood from before he went to Texas. I’m really excited to get to know the new staff.”
Despite travel and recruiting restrictions in place due to COVID-19, Sexton believes schools are doing a good job adjusting to current recruiting protocols and promoting their schools from afar.
“I guess I’m used to it now,” admitted Sexton. “It’s kind of normal recruiting for me because it’s the only time I’ve been through it. Schools have been really good adapting to it and doing virtual visits and sending pictures of the weight room and locker room and sending video from practice. It’s been better than I would have thought, if you would have told me what was going to happen a year ago.”
As for when Sexton’s plans on deciding where he’ll spend his college career, he’s got a timetable he’s hoping to stick to.
“The next six months is when I’d like to do it,” said Sexton. “Sometime before football season.”
