Sooners Commit Zion Ragins Runs Wild

On Tuesday afternoon Oklahoma landed a commitment from Gray (Ga.) Jones County four-star wide receiver Zion Ragins. The explosive pass catcher picked Oklahoma over Florida State, Georgia, and numerous other offers.

A big part of his choice came from his June 9 official visit to Norman and the relationship he has built with Emmett Jones. But for now we’re going to focus on the Sooners choosing to focus on Ragins and add him to Jones’s big first class in Norman.

What’s on Tape for Zion Ragins

There are certainly a number of aspects that make Ragins so coveted but when one player has such a strong trait, it’s hard to move past it. For Ragins, that trait is elite speed. Not just ‘football speed’ but Ragins is a player that has gone below 10.4-seconds in the 100-meter dash.

Time and time again you can see the new Sooners commitment’s acceleration outrunning angle after angle in open space. In short he’s a player that defenses have to account for on every snap.

While that is an elite trait that people can’t ignore what is a bit surprising is that for a long-strider with speed Ragins does an outstanding job with change of direction. The Oklahoma pledge is always moving upfield but does a nice job setting up defenders to get them off balance. When you mix that cut back ability with the speed defenders are trying to cope with he becomes near impossible to deal with in space.

Ragins also does an outstanding job with his hands, he makes several catches but one in particular is notable. At the 1:28 mark while at full speed on a post pattern Ragins turns himself near fully around to catch the ball behind him. It’s a difficult catch for anyone but for a player like Ragins at the miles-per-hour he’s moving at, it’s near a breakneck move.

It goes without saying that Ragins is a smaller-framed guy and will need to get bigger and stronger to be an every snap player. That said, he moves so explosively he can make up for some physical shortcomings.

OU Commit Comparison

It’s pretty hard to watch his size, speed, and even the way he runs – to some degree- and not see some comparison with Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown.

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