Recruiting - Samson Okunlola
I was reading on ESPN and they were talking about the 5 starts for the 23 class that still haven't committed. Michigan is apparently in the running for one, Samson Okunlola. He's an OT at 6'5" 305 lbs. I haven't seen anything about him and Michigan before. The only reference of him on here was as a visitor in March. ESPN states he's choosing between, Michigan, MSU, Miami, GA, FL, and AL. On 247 though, Michigan isn't listed as a potential school. There he's crystal ball'd to Miami, but it's not a very strong prediction. So is this something ESPN screwed up, or is something they know that we don't?
Here's some highlights. https://247sports.com/Player/Samson-Okunlola-46102278/Videos/
September 22nd, 2022 at 10:50 AM ^
This is the second recruiting thread in as many days. Have the recruiting windows shifted such that I should be paying attention to recruiting beyond the standard 'which recruits are attending which games' (if at all)? I'm conditioned to not pay any attention to recruiting until the off season.
September 22nd, 2022 at 10:55 AM ^
Recruiting never sleeps
September 22nd, 2022 at 11:09 AM ^
I'd also say for how much I love MgoBlog, we do not do consistent recruiting conversations well in the slightest.
September 22nd, 2022 at 1:51 PM ^
Unless it's on Quinn Nordin's bedroom floor, that is.
September 22nd, 2022 at 5:15 PM ^
First of all wah.
September 22nd, 2022 at 10:52 AM ^
Literally zero mention of him from any Michigan recruiting source for the entire summer. ESPN has not cared about recruiting coverage for years and are probably only including mention of Michigan because he’s a five star and Michigan is a top 5 team. We can believe we have a shot if he takes an OV, which he hasn’t and hasn’t scheduled.
September 22nd, 2022 at 12:36 PM ^
Not to be too cynical, but I also suspect simply suggesting Michigan is "in" on a 5-star will drive a disproportionate amount of clicks from a devoted maize and blue fan base.
September 22nd, 2022 at 12:52 PM ^
Yeah that was the implication. ESPN does this frequently with recruiting, trying to drop brand name programs into fluff articles to add content to the fan algorithm feed.
September 22nd, 2022 at 10:52 AM ^
Georgia or Bama is my guess.
September 22nd, 2022 at 11:34 AM ^
I'd say throw in OSU and USC and you can make this statement for ALL 5*'s.
September 22nd, 2022 at 2:47 PM ^
Have you ever scrolled MGoBlog........ on weed?!?
September 22nd, 2022 at 6:27 PM ^
Its hard being black and gifted. Sometimes I just want to throw it all down and get lifted!
September 22nd, 2022 at 11:18 AM ^
I think for the most part, if it is from ESPN, you can ignore it and it does not deserve a thread.
If On3 or 247 are reporting or showing higher interest for the recruit to Michigan, than i think it could be a discussion point and thread worthy.
September 22nd, 2022 at 11:31 AM ^
He did visit Michigan -- Touch the Banner reported it after the fact in March -- but it was an unofficial visit (on a Monday), which is why 247 doesn't list it.
By July, however, he had a short list of nine schools that did not include Michigan, according to a Massachusetts news site. (https://www.enterprisenews.com/story/sports/college/football/2022/07/07/brocktons-samson-okunlola-choose-nine-college-football-teams-alabama-georgia-florida-penn-state-ohio/7817708001/) He's done officials to Bama, MSU and Miami.
September 22nd, 2022 at 5:40 PM ^
If he's considering MSU I feel like we have a chance.
September 22nd, 2022 at 12:01 PM ^
Getting an MSU mention in the same list that includes Miami and Bama pretty much means that MSU is throwing a non-zero amount of NIL at him as a down payment.
September 22nd, 2022 at 1:35 PM ^
Maybe they mean Mississippi State University?
September 22nd, 2022 at 12:01 PM ^
The only blue-chip guys that the recruiting sites give us a chance with is Nyckoles Harbor.
Things can obviously change closer to Signing Day, but the landscape is not good for us right now.
September 22nd, 2022 at 12:51 PM ^
Yeah, that's surprising and disappointing, isn't it? I know we pulled several rabbits out of the hat late last year. You'd hope that staff could move away from that modus given the team's recent success and to make the operation more sustainable.
September 23rd, 2022 at 11:29 AM ^
We lost both coordinators, our HC flirted with the NFL, and we are behind in NIL. That should hopefully not be a problem moving forward but is the reality of this recruiting class.
September 22nd, 2022 at 12:59 PM ^
Right now Miami is in strong position for him. The best thing that could happen for Michigan recruiting is for Notre Dame to pile up the losses as about half of their class is Michigan plan A's.
September 22nd, 2022 at 2:13 PM ^
Only five starts? He can’t be that good.
September 22nd, 2022 at 4:23 PM ^
Not happening for M. My guess is either Miami (NIL) or one of the SEC big boys.
On the bright side M and M fans seem to have figured this out early. I still see MSU fans that tweet/retweet recruiting graphics at him WEEKLY thinking they have a shot. ….(I guess if immediate PT was the primary decision driver - the kid did see what UW did to the MSU line….. maybe?!……nah..)