Samson Okunlola's five-star ranking as a college football recruit a notable achievement

Massachusetts isn't necessarily known for producing high-profiled college football recruits.

But Brockton's Samson Okunlola, a 6-foot-6, 295-pound junior offensive tackle who plays at Thayer Academy, is certainly changing that viewpoint as he may just be the biggest prospect from the commonwealth in decades.

Already a coveted recruit with over 40 scholarship offers from some of the most elite college football programs in the country, including this year's national champion Georgia, Okunlola gained more acclaim recently by getting bumped up to being a five-star recruit by 247Sports Composite.

More: Brockton's Samson Okunlola is a big deal at Thayer

It is believed Okunlola is the first five-star recruit from the state since recruiting services were established around the turn of the millennium.

“I stay as humble as possible,” Okunlola told the Enterprise back in Oct. 2020. “I got to keep on pushing. I can’t stop now. I just got to keep on getting better and better. I have big aspirations to go to the NFL. I know if I keep on grinding and grinding, and putting the work in, I’ll be at that point at some point.”

Okunlola is currently the 35th best prospect in the nation in the class of 2023, according to 247 Sports, and is ranked as the third-best recruit at the offensive tackle position. As for his state ranking, the recruiting site has Okunlola in second behind safety Joenel Aguero, who will return to play at St. John's Prep, where he began high school career, for his senior season after transferring from IMG Academy.

It's worth noting that Okunlola is still a four-star recruit by 247Sports and Rivals -- the two main recruitment ranking platforms. Okunlola's five-star rating comes from an aggregation done by 247Sports across several recruiting services.

More: Brockton and Thayer Academy's Samuel Okunlola picks his college football destination

On the gridiron, Okunlola turned in another impressive season this past fall at Thayer as he was named the NEPSAC Class B Co-Lineman of the Year.

“He really grasps the concepts quickly and then he commits to every play,” said Thayer Academy football coach Jeff Toussaint nearly a year and a half ago. “He competes all out on every play and he delivers some devastating blocks and some devastating plays on defense as well. He’s just really accomplished so much in a short period of time.”

In December, Okunlola watched his brother, Samuel, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound high-prized defensive end, finish off his own recruitment by signing a national letter of intent to play at the University of Pittsburgh.

Okunlola does have an offer from Pittsburgh along with LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame and Oklahoma among others, but Okunlola hasn't yet verbally commit to a school.

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Brockton's Samuel Okunlola now a five-star college football recruit