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What are the Oklahoma Sooners getting with new four-star QB commit Jackson Arnold?

After a week that saw two predictions sending him to Oklahoma, 2023 four-star quarterback Jackson Arnold did just that Monday by committing to Oklahoma.

Arnold is the top QB in the state of Texas for the 2023 class and has a lot of potential. He gives the Sooners some major recruiting momentum as they look to close out their 2022 class and go full steam ahead with the 2023 class.

The question is: What are the Sooners getting in their newest signal-caller? Let’s take a look at what the recruiting industry says about him.

Arnold stands about right at 6-foot-2 and somewhere hovering at or around 200 pounds. He’s by no means the best athlete on the field but he certainly has plenty of athleticism to make throws out the pocket and off-platform. He can use his feet to get the job done if necessary.

Below is an example of it as Arnold is forced to relocate with the pocket collapsing. Instead of panicking, he calmly slides to his right, resets his base, and delivers a strike to his target for a touchdown.

Arnold was highly productive against some of the elite high school competition in the country while playing at the 6A level in Texas. A shade under 4,000 passing yards, 34 passing touchdowns, only 5 interceptions and he also ran 208 times for 659 yards and 12 touchdowns.

He’s already committed to playing in the Under Armour All-American game next year as well.

This was his first season as a full-time starter as he sat behind current Texas A&M QB Eli Stowers his first few years. An entire offseason and a college decision behind him should really help Arnold as he can continue focusing on his individual game, recruiting his future teammates, and doing whatever he can to help his team get over the state championship game hurdle.

Ultimately, Arnold is the exact type of QB that Lebby favors in his veer and shoot system. The dual-threat ability is paramount even if Arnold isn’t Kyler Murray as a runner. The ability to keep the defense off-kilter because of the quarterback’s ability to throw or run the ball just opens up so many options. Having a quarterback with excellent deep-ball accuracy as Lebby loves to take shots down the field is key. Arnold has been commended for his deep ball accuracy per Gabe Brooks of 247Sports.

Presumed starter for the 2022 season, Dillon Gabriel, isn’t the biggest or most athletic guy but he can use his feet and is able to make whatever throw Lebby asks of him. Arnold looks to be in a similar mold in that regard.

The Sooners landed a good one and continued to build their QB room, which is now in a much better place than it was a few months ago. They can take a deep sigh of relief as their future at the QB position is more stable than it was before the day started.

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Oklahoma Sooners 2023 Recruitment Tracker