Valor Christian 4-star RB Gavin Sawchuk sticks with Sooners
HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. (BVM) — Some Oklahoma Sooners fans were likely worried that four-star running back commit Gavin Sawchuk would consider reopening his recruitment after former OU head coach Lincoln Riley left to take the USC job in late November. But the Valor Christian senior quelled those concerns on Dec. 15 when he officially signed with the Sooners and new head coach Brent Venables.
✒️📄✉️ #BoomerSooner pic.twitter.com/8I2RgQRw5e
— Gavin Sawchuk (@G27football) December 15, 2021
Sawchuk was the most heavily recruited high school player in Colorado with more than two dozen scholarship offers, including some of the most elite Power 5 programs in the country such as Alabama, Michigan and Ohio State. And the high level of interest in Sawchuk was unquestionably warranted. Ranked as the No. 5 running back in the Class of 2022 by 247Sports, Sawchuk — who verbally committed to Oklahoma last summer — rushed for 2,004 yards and 28 touchdowns this past season for the Eagles, who won their first 13 games before falling to now three-time defending state champion Cherry Creek in the Class 5A title game earlier this month.
A two-time Gatorade Colorado Football Player of the Year, the 5-foot-11, 190-pound running back will leave Valor as the school’s all-time leading rusher after breaking the record previously held by current NFL star Christian McCaffrey. Sawchuk finished his prep career with 5,724 rushing yards — with an average of 8.2 yards per carry — and 77 touchdowns.
“Gavin is an exceptional talent,” Valor head coach Donnie Yantis said in a Gatorade press release. “He is, without question, the best running back I have ever coached.”
Sawchuk will head to Norman with the talent, accolades, and an impressive school record to back up such high praise. And the Sooners faithful can now look forward to seeing how well Sawchuk’s stellar skills will translate to the college level.
