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Coveted Defense End Looking to Virtually Visit Syracuse

Samuel Okunlola is one of the most heavily recruited defensive ends in the 2022 class.
Mike McAllister|
Coveted Defense End Looking to Virtually Visit Syracuse
Coveted Defense End Looking to Virtually Visit Syracuse

Brockton (Mass.) Thayer Academy defensive end Samuel Okunlola has his share of collegiate opportunities. Despite it being relatively early in the 2022 recruiting cycle, he already holds nearly three dozen offers. They include Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, Duke, Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Nebraska, Penn State, Syracuse, Texas, Vanderbilt, West Virginia and many others. 

Syracuse extended an offer in December, and has remained in contact. In fact, Okunlola spoke with Syracuse defensive line coach Vince Reynolds earlier this week. 

"He just checked in with me," Okunlola said. "Mentioned academics and how he likes my workout videos. We should have a virtual visit coming up soon." 

The virtual visit has not yet been officially scheduled, but Okunlola says he is aiming for Sunday. 

"Looking forward to seeing the facilities, culture and learning more about the school," Okunlola said. "I've never been on campus before." 

The NCAA does not allow face to face visits currently, forcing schools to use virtual visits in order to show off their program. Okunlola has been learning more and more about Syracuse, and is looking forward to continuing that education. 

"I'm definitely interested in learning more about 'Cuse," Okunlola said. "They have great academics and play high level football." 

While the relationship with Okunlola and coach Reynolds is still developing, he has a good early impression of the Orange assistant. 

"Just started talking to him recently," Okunlola said. "We have been talking for about a month. He seems like a good person and coach." 

Okunlola has also taken note of two Syracuse defenders currently having success in the NFL in Chandler Jones and Alton Robinson. 

"I like both of them a lot," Okunlola said. "Coach Ferri mentioned Alton and sent me some film on him. And everybody likes Chandler Jones. He's one of the best pass rushers in the NFL."

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Mike McAllister
MIKE MCALLISTER

Title: Publisher All Syracuse Education: Roberts Wesleyan College Location: Syracuse, New York Expertise: Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting.  EXPERIENCE Mike McAllister has been covering Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting for more than a decade. Mike's career started with his own free blog as a way to vent following sporting events. Shortly thereafter, a network of basketball sites called Coast 2 Coast Hoops asked him to run their Syracuse site. That site was called Nation of Orange, and Mike quickly established it as a go-to for Syracuse fans.  After running Nation of Orange for several months, a position with the Syracuse site on the Scout network became available. After one year as the recruiting expert with Cuse Nation, he was named the publisher. Mike oversaw the transition from Scout to 247Sports, and ran the site on that network for years.  Presented with the opportunity to join one of the biggest names in the sports journalism industry, Sports Illustrated, Mike jumped at the chance. All Syracuse was started from scratch by Mike and the Fan Nation team. It has now become a staple for Orange fans of various sports.  Mike has broken news on recruiting, Syracuse basketball and football team information and has established himself as the top recruiting inside in the market. He has appeared on local radio shows, television broadcasts, national radio shows and much more. Mr. McAllister has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and Information Management from Roberts Wesleyan College. 

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