Tennessee Commit Chidi Okonya a 'Warrior' on the Field Who Puts Academics First

The Atlanta area continued to prove fruitful for Tennessee on Friday night when impact defensive end Chidi Okonya pledged to the Vols following his spring game.

The 6'5.5", 230-pound lineman from Riverdale, Georgia, committed to UT over other finalists Clemson, Ole Miss, Stanford and Duke. A host of other schools such as Georgia, Florida, LSU, Notre Dame, Oregon, Penn State and others also offered the prospect.

"Tennessee has the right balance of things I was looking for in a school," Okonya told Bleacher Report. "Right off the bat, I had a good relationship with the coaches. I looked at the academics to see if everything was in order for me to be successful, because that’s the first thing I'm looking for."

In what is expected to be a small class where the Vols are extremely selective, Okonya is somebody UT really wanted.

Name	Ht. Wt.	Position	Ranking
Marquill Osborne	5'11", 185	Cornerback	4-star No. 21 CB
Chidi Okonya	6'5.5", 230	Strong-side defensive end	3-star No. 19 SDE
Bailey Phillips	5'7", 165	Cornerback	3-star No. 85 CB

On top of being an athlete who drew attention from some of the nation's top programs, he is an exceptional student.

According to Riverdale coach Terry Herrod, the versatile athlete has a 4.0 grade-point average, scored a 24 on his ACT and is a member of the Beta Club and National Honor Society.

When B/R contacted his school for an interview earlier this week, Okonya was unavailable because he had volunteered to show fifth- and sixth-graders around the school. That's just a typical day for arguably one of the most impressive all-around prospects in this cycle.

"He's an Ivy League-type of student with SEC ability," Herrod said. "He's just a great kid, too.

Credit: 247Sports

"Through this process, the one thing I was most impressed with was just how smart he is and how he went about it," Herrod continued. "It's almost been a scientific process going through it in terms of what he's looking for in a school. He built a matrix and considered football, academics, life after football. That played a big, big role."

Don't let the model schoolboy fool you, though. When Okonya gets on the field, he is a force to be reckoned with.

Herrod credited the way Okonya and his brother—Furman redshirt freshman Chinedu Okonya—played for him in high school to a demeanor change once they stepped between the lines.

"They play the game like warriors," Herrod said. "They have a warrior-like mentality. They are very focused and determined in everything that they do."

Okonya chuckled when told of his coach's comments, replying, "Me and my brother, we have a pretty good mean streak at times, so I'm sure that's what my coach is talking about.

"In my home, we're disciplined in what we do every day."

That determination, Okonya said, was passed down honestly from his parents. Though he was born in the United States, parents Romanus and Patricia came over from Nigeria at 17 years old seeking the prosperity the United States can offer.

Things weren't always easy for them at the beginning, but they've built a very successful life with five impressive children, Chidi, Chinedu, Chika, Ikechi and Chigozie. Okonya's father works in customer service for Delta Airlines, and his mother is a nurse.

They've hammered home the importance of academics throughout Okonya's life.

"It's about academics first," Okonya said. "My parents have instilled that in us since the beginning. They came over here looking for an opportunity, and they realized pretty early on that academics was the most important thing in all of this.

"I couldn't be more proud of my parents, and I couldn't be more thankful. Literally nothing could be possible without them in all of this."

Credit: 247Sports

Now, if Okonya follows through with his verbal commitment, he'll move to the next chapter of his football career in Knoxville. Though he is too undersized right now to be a factor on the line at the next level, adding weight shouldn't be an issue.

Herrod said when Chinedu Okonya left Riverdale for the Furman Paladins, he weighed 185 pounds. After a redshirt season at Furman, he is at 240 and primed to battle for a starting defensive end spot. Though Chidi is currently around 230 (or less), he can get much bigger.

"The biggest thing for him is, physically, he's just so much better than the kids he's playing against now," Herrod said. "He's got to add weight to his frame. He's got the frame where he could be 260-270 after one year."

He's got time to develop. The Vols are loaded at defensive end, and they'll still have Derek Barnett, Kyle Phillips, LaTroy Lewis, Corey Vereen, Dimarya Mixon, Darrell Taylor and Andrew Butcher on the roster when Okonya arrives.

Once he gets into a college weight program, Okonya has the size, athleticism and wingspan to be a premiere edge-rusher. Though he's only a 3-star prospect on the 247Sports composite rankings, 247 has him rated as a 4-star player and the 15th-ranked strong-side defensive end in the country.

He'll join players from his area in which he's played with or against growing up such as Cameron Sutton, Cortez McDowell, the Berry twins and Preston Williams in Knoxville.

Okonya credited the familiarity with some players as a factor, but he was most impressed by the academics, the coaching staff and the upward direction of the Vols.

"Coach Jones creates an electric atmosphere at Tennessee," Okonya said. "He has the coaching staff fired up. It's a serious but fun mood up there. They're getting better recruits up there every year, and I really believe the program is on the upswing."

Quotes and observations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. All recruiting information obtained from 247Sports.

Brad Shepard covers SEC football and is the Tennessee lead writer for Bleacher Report. Follow Brad on Twitter @Brad_Shepard.