Oklahoma Sooners

After recruiting them for several months, Oklahoma's coaching staff was finally able to talk publicly about the players the Sooners added to the program on signing day. Over the next week or so, SoonerNation will review some of the key things coaches had to say about the players signed at each position group during their signing day webcast on Soonersports.com.

Oklahoma is looking to get tougher, more physical along its offensive front. Guard Dionte Savage (Flint, Mich./Arizona Western) should help the Sooners reach that goal. At 6-foot-5, 340 pounds, Savage brings unique size to OU's interior line.

"This guy has size on top of size," co-offensive coordinator Jay Norvell said. "What a physical presence he brings. When you say full-grown man when he walks in a room, this kid is a full-grown man. We had a lot of injuries last year and it was tough at the end getting healthy bodies out there. This guy is a big strong guy who can help us with our running game and depth."

After ending the 2012 season with very limited bodies at guard, Savage joins returning starters Adam Shead and Bronson Irwin along with Tyler Evans and Nila Kasitati, who are returning from injuries. Savage brings a better body than any of the Sooners returnees.

"He is a specimen," running backs coach Cale Gundy said. "He’s someone we expect can come in and give us some help, possibly be one of our starting guards.”

The Sooners were impressed by Savage's dedication, as the former 400-pounder lost more than 60 pounds to get into better shape for his second season at Arizona Western.

"Dionte Savage is a big, strong, physical guy," head coach Bob Stoops said. "A huge weightlifter and a powerful, strong guy. He’s got great ability to move and great strength, so I believe he is going to help us be more physical in there. Just really powerful, an excellent young man. Loved having him on campus, he loves to work. He’s going to help us be more physical."

NORMAN, Okla. -- Anyone who watched Oklahoma’s defense in the final four games of the season knows that the Sooners were in dire need of help in the secondary and along the defensive line. West Virginia’s Tavon Austin and Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel torched the Sooners’ defense on their way to record-breaking performances, as OU had no answer for the dynamic playmakers.

The Sooners hope they’ve addressed those needs with their defensive line and secondary signees in the Class of 2013 and will see immediate dividends on the field this fall.

“You’re never going to get everyone you want but we feel like we’ve helped ourselves in some critical areas,” defensive coordinator Mike Stoops said.

Cornerback Stanvon Taylor (Tulsa, Okla./East Central) joins safeties Ahmad Thomas (Miami, Fla./Central) and Hatari Byrd (Fresno, Calif./Central East) as signees who appear poised to step right in and play in the secondary. Taylor, in particular, drew a lot of praise from Mike Stoops while drawing comparisons to All-Big 12 cornerback Aaron Colvin from OU head coach Bob Stoops on signing day.

“We’re projecting him to come in and solidify that corner position for us,” Mike Stoops said. “I can’t say enough about this guy, he has all the qualities you want in a superstar.”

Yet those impact signees in the secondary won’t mean much if the Sooners cannot solidify their defensive front. To that end, OU signed seven defensive linemen (four defensive tackles, three defensive ends) on Wednesday, with junior college transfer Quincy Russell (Athens, Texas/Trinity Valley) looming as the biggest potential impact player along the defensive interior.

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Three-star offensive lineman Dionte Savage (Yuma, Ariz./Arizona Western) entered his official visit to Oklahoma this weekend as a Baylor commitment.

Now he's a Sooner. Savage confirmed on Monday afternoon he has switched his commitment and will sign with the Sooners on national signing day.

“Sold out for 14 years. More than 88,000 people. It really doesn’t get any better than that,” Savage said.

Savage committed to Baylor two weeks ago but admitted earlier in the week he almost wished he hadn’t. His trip to Waco, Texas, was his first official visit, and he said he had no idea what other opportunities were going to be coming his way.

The OU opportunity, though, was far from guaranteed. Savage, who is 6-foot-5 and 340 pounds, had not heard from any of the Sooners coaches until OU quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel called him Tuesday.

A point of concern for Savage is the depth chart. He doesn’t have a redshirt season left. He must play his two years. OU has a lot of depth in the interior, but there have been some injuries to Tyler Evans and Adam Shead that helped open the door for Savage.

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