Dean Blevins: Oklahoma lands No. 1 recruit Aaliyah Chavez as Sooners prepare for Sweet 16

Jennie Baranczyk is on a roll — and so are her Sooners, both on and off the court.

A blowout home win last night has sent Oklahoma to the Sweet 16 this weekend. Moments ago, the nation’s No. 1 recruit, Aaliyah Chavez, announced she is signing with OU.

Now, Baranczyk faces the challenge of securing three key players who could elevate her program even further. Only in the 2025 world of NIL and the transfer portal would a coach have to worry about convincing three standout players on a Sweet 16 team to return for another season — with games still left to play. Those players are Raegan Beers, Sahara Williams and Payton Verhulst.

Chavez’s commitment cannot be overstated. The 5-foot-9 point guard from Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas, chose the Sooners over nearly every major program. It came down to a few schools with NIL resources that Oklahoma and others struggled to compete with for the bluest of blue-chippers. In the end, OU beat Texas and hometown Texas Tech — as well as national powerhouses like South Carolina, LSU and, UCLA.

Chavez is a game-changer. She led her team to a 37-5 state championship season and was named the National Gatorade Player of the Year. She also earned Texas Gatorade Player of the Year honors for the 2023-24 season. No telling exactly how much NIL money OU secured to land the most coveted recruit, but Sooner fans now hope the NIL well isn’t drained too dry to re-secure commitments from the trio that has led Oklahoma to face UConn for a spot in the Elite Eight.

As much as I’m impressed with Baranczyk, the program, and the bond within this OU team, it would still be an upset if Oklahoma makes a much deeper run at a national title this year.

However, with Chavez on board — and if Beers, Verhulst, and Williams decide to return — a deeper run in 2025-26 seems very likely. Add in quality roster depth and two other blue-chip commits in this class, Zeziah Lofton and Brooklyn Stewart, and the future looks brighter for Oklahoma than it has in a long time.