Radley-Hiles making strong impression
Freshman defensive back Brendan Radley-Hiles is already impressing Oklahoma coaches in early spring practice.
NORMAN — Long before Brendan Radley-Hiles jammed a crimson Oklahoma hat over a head of thick, curly hair at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, Kerry Cooks had a good feeling the versatile five-star prospect would be arriving on his campus for spring practice.
The OU defensive backs coach felt he and the staff had made solid inroads in landing the IMG Academy product, so when Radley-Hiles officially picked the Sooners on national television, Cooks was hardly surprised.
“I’m always happy to get those four, five-star guys,” Cooks said. “Guys that can be differencemakers. I think everybody in the staff, we were elated. I know there was a lot of rumors out there that he was going to go here or go there, but we had known probably months in advance that we had a great shot at getting him and felt pretty secure in that position.”
Now, just a couple practices into Radley-Hiles’ collegiate career, Cooks is already impressed with the freshman’s ability.
“I can’t say it enough: his football IQ is very high,” Cooks said. “He’s probably on the level of a third year player, at least just with understanding the game. He doesn’t understand our system in totality, but he understands football.”
At a stocky 5-foot-9, Radley-Hiles, who goes by “Bookie,” is built like a cornerback, but the defensive staff is using the spring season to experiment with him at different positions.
During Oklahoma’s first practice nearly two weeks ago, Radley-Hiles worked out with the safeties. He’s also practicing with the nickels.
With the departures of nickel Will Johnson and safety Steven Parker, there are starting spots in the secondary up for grabs, and Radley-Hiles is working his way into being in the mix for both jobs.
While some rookies might be timid entering their first collegiate season, Radley-Hiles is practicing with the confidence of a veteran.
“You know how a young freshman comes in, a little iffy about things, coming to the field not playing to their full potential?,” cornerback Parnell Motley said. “Well, Bookie comes to the field with his full potential ready to work like he’s still in high school. He’s out there fighting (for a) position and being the best he can be.”
While he doesn’t fully understand Oklahoma’s system yet, Radley-Hiles has shown defensive coordinator Mike Stoops that he can pick up on the necessary concepts quickly.
“He’s very gifted,” Stoops said. “The game comes easy to him. He’s easy to coach. He’s not one of those guys that you have to coach every foot on the field. He’s not struggling to process it all. He understands concepts well.
“Once he sees things, he learns awfully quick, and he’s intent with what he wants to do. He’s very focused. He’s got a lot of improving to do, but he’s definitely on the right track.”
Radley-Hiles is one of four early enrollee defensive backs — Cooks’ biggest group of early enrollees to date.
The newcomers, like Radley-Hiles, not only give themselves an opportunity to learn the system before fall camp, but they also give Cooks a chance to build depth in a group that’s been faced with a lot of attrition in the last two seasons.
“Those guys are getting 15 practices to get better,” Cooks said. “So it’s going to make you better in the long run, even if they’re not ready right now. They don’t have to be ready right now.
“You’ve got 15 practices to get ready and then they’ve got all summer and by fall camp, it adds another layer of comfortability for those guys to come in and play fast and play aggressive.”