DULUTH, Ga. -- The Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl camp series made stops in the Atlanta area, Sacramento and Greenville, South Carolina, over the weekend with nearly 500 prospects taking part.
At Northview High in Duluth, the Atlanta area camp featured a number of talented prospects from the states of Georgia, Louisiana and South Carolina with a second invite to the 2016 Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl being handed out to defensive end Chidi Okonya.
For the 6-foot-6, 220-pound Atlanta-area defender, he accomplished the goal he set out to achieve.
“I came out here to accomplish the goal of being an All-American, and I’m blessed to receive and invite to the Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl,” Said Okonya. “This means that my hard work has paid off.”
Okonya is one of more than a dozen heavily recruited defensive line prospects out of the Peach State in the 2016 class. Sporting a 4.0 grade point average, competitiveness and a frame with considerable upside has college programs lining up in hopes of signing the talented end.
“Right now, I’m just in the process of evaluating schools and trying to get out to some places. I’m going to start building that list that I will become focused on in the summer. I have been to Tennessee and Clemson recently, but I will probably be going back to Clemson soon when more coaches are on campus. Then I will probably head south to hit Florida and quite possibly Miami. I also want to get back to North Carolina and hit a couple of schools. I want to go back to Duke and one or two others,”
Okonya has a very good feel for the schools that are placing an emphasis on recruiting him versus the programs that have offered but aren’t going all out for his signature.
“A lot of schools are on that playing field in terms of how hard they are recruiting me. I would say Tennessee, Clemson, Miami, Duke, North Carolina and Ole Miss are all constantly on me.”
Hilton Head High boasts four FBS prospects
Hilton Head High has speed, as in serious speed in the 2016 and 2017 classes. On Saturday, a trio of 2016 defensive backs and 2017 wide receiver Tyler Hamilton showed exactly why they are among the best in The Palmetto State.
Jestin Morrow – The 5-foot-9, 160-pound corner has offers from Purdue, Marshall, Charlotte, Toledo and Buffalo with the Thundering Herd currently recruiting the hardest on a daily basis. Tennessee, Missouri and North Carolina are among the schools showing interest that have yet to offer.
John Baty – The 6-foot, 165-pound corner with 4.45 speed has offers from Toledo, Ohio and Charlotte, along with interest from Purdue, Washington State and others.
Jeremiah Maddox – The 6-foot, 180-pound Maddox may have the highest upside of the trio of future FBS defensive backs. He currently holds offers from Purdue, Ohio, Buffalo, Toledo, Charlotte and Appalachian State, with programs such as Tennessee, Texas, Washington State, Missouri, North Carolina and others taking a long look. He plans to visit Texas and Tennessee this summer. Duke is his childhood favorite and hopes to hear from the Blue Devils.
Tyler Hamilton – The junior to be with 10.8 100-meter speed has an impressive offer list that includes Tennessee, Missouri, Texas, West Virginia, Arizona, Purdue and Wake Forest among others. The Volunteers are the heavy favorite and could be in line for a commitment when Hamilton makes his next trip to Knoxville with his parents in tow. That will be a very key visit in Hamilton’s recruitment with the understanding that a visit to Austin to see Texas and a stop in West Virginia are also likely this summer.