2022 Recruit Emeka Megwa Explains Growing Up an LSU Football Fan and Why the Tigers Were His “Dream Offer”
When he was younger, Emeka Megwa didn't watch too much football, college or pros. The 2022 running back, who's turned into one of the better running back prospects in the country didn't start watching until his first coach, Robert Pope, turned on the TV to an LSU game.
Pope and fellow coach Rhett Taylor were mentors for a young Megwa, who was just starting out in his football career and eventually turned him on to the Tigers.
"I didn't know too much about football and he [Pope] was a big fan of LSU which kind of helped me get into not only football but become an LSU fan as well," Megwa said. "I used to always go over to his house and he would always point out guys like Leonard Fournette on the LSU team. Ever since then, LSU's a place I wanted to be."
Megwa has since become a star at Nolan Catholic High School in Fort Worth, Texas and has some of the top programs in the country wanting him to join their 2022 class. Georgia, Oklahoma, LSU, Ohio State, Penn State and Washington are schools that have not only offered Megwa but have also expressed the most interest in the Fort Worth native.
LSU focused on Megwa fairly early in the recruitment process, offering him of May, 2019. Megwa was at school when his high school coach put the Tigers on the phone to give him the news.
"That was my dream school and that was my dream offer and I was really excited," Megwa said. "It was really one of those first offers that genuinely excited me."
Since that time, Megwa has made sure to keep in consistent contact with coach Ed Orgeron as well as running backs coach Kevin Faulk. Faulk really likes that Megwa is a big back, comparing his frame, coincidentally, to that of Fournette. While Megwa certainly has seen a lot of Fournette highlights in his day, the two running backs he closely studies are Le'Veon Bell and Marshawn Lynch.
Whether it's running between the tackles or catching passes in the backfield, Megwa believes his sophomore tape really showed just the kind of talent he is and wants to continue to grow into a more explosive back.
"I don't want to be known as just a big, bruising back, I want to be known as an all-around back," Megwa said. "I feel like my vision is already pretty good and that's honestly one of the most important things a running back needs. No matter if you're big, fast, small or slow, if you can't read the plays, then you're not going anywhere."
In order to become the player he ultimately wants to, Megwa said he'll wake up, go for a run and then later in the day, head over to a local gym where a number of Division I players work out, including Nana Osafo-Mensah, a defensive lineman at Notre Dame.
After the workout, he'll train with a few of his coaches on running back specific drills. All of the various workouts he goes through on a daily basis are in a consistent effort to get faster.
He's now had numerous conversations with Faulk and Orgeron since his offer but also was able to make his first trip to Baton Rouge back in March for Junior Day, one of the last recruits to visit before the coronavirus induced dead period.
"I thought there were only going to be like 20 people there but there ended up being a lot more so I didn't really get too much time to talk with the coaches like they wanted to," Megwa said. "We did watch practice and that was lit."
As far as the future for his recruitment as it pertains to LSU, Megwa said he's hoping to get back down for a game in the fall but hasn't locked in on a specific date.
"That's probably the best fan base that I've seen, the crowd is always crazy," Megwa said. "They have a great history of successful running backs and I'd be playing in Baton Rouge so it would honestly be a dream come true."
