Oklahoma State signed one of the best recruiting classes in the Big 12.
In his first year as head coach at Oklahoma State, Steve Lutz excelled in recruiting.
Lutz and his coaching staff successfully secured three new players in the 2025 high school signing class: four-star center Ben Ahmed, four-star shooting guard Ryan Crotty, and three-star center Mekhi Ragland. Ahmed was the last to finalize his commitment, with his paperwork officially signed on Wednesday, as announced by the program.
Ahmed is a 6-foot-9 center from Nigeria who spent the past three seasons at Putnam Science Center in Connecticut. While with the Mustangs, he amassed over 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds.
“Ben is a strong, left-handed post player joining us from one of the top prep school programs in the nation,” Lutz stated in a press release. “He is a dedicated worker and tenacious rebounder who knows what it takes to train, compete, and succeed at the highest levels, having played in three consecutive national championship games. I’m thrilled to officially welcome him to the Cowboy Basketball family!”
During his senior year, Ahmed averaged 12.3 points and 8.2 rebounds with an impressive shooting percentage of 57%. He was named MVP of the 2025 National Prep Championship game after contributing 20 points to the victory.
Ahmed has secured two national championships and finished as a runner-up in 2024. In his junior season, he established single-season program records for points (654) and rebounds (422).
Ahmed is rated as a four-star prospect, ranked No. 105 in the 2025 signing class and No. 16 among centers, according to 247Sports. He was previously committed to Miami before the Hurricanes underwent a coaching change.
“Ahmed is a large-bodied center with a significant physical presence,” said Adam Finkelstein, Director of Scouting at 247Sports, in his evaluation. “He possesses a wide frame with broad shoulders, long arms (almost a 7-foot-3 wingspan), and is virtually immovable in the paint (he weighed 303 pounds in July). Although he can sometimes play at a slower pace and needs to focus on his conditioning, he’s surprisingly agile for his size when he chooses to sprint.”
In total, the Cowboys have assembled the No. 28 high school signing class in the nation and the No. 6 class in the Big 12 Conference, showing significant improvement after not securing any high school prospects in the 2025 class.
Additionally, Oklahoma State has brought in four players from the transfer portal: guard Kanye Clary from Mississippi State, guard Isaiah Coleman from Seton Hall, guard Vyctorius Miller from LSU, and guard Anthony Roy from Green Bay. Currently, the Cowboys hold the No. 23 spot for transfer portal classes.
Leave a Reply