Brendan Smith

Following an official visit to Arkansas this past weekend, Caleb Okechukwu, a 3-star DE/OLB from Washington D.C., has announced through Twitter that he will be deciding between Syracuse, Arkansas, and Texas on Wednesday.

Syracuse has long been targeting Okechukwu, who took an official visit on the weekend of January 26th. Okechukwu would be the second D.C. area commit in the 2018 class, joining Edward Hendrix, a 3-star Wide Receiver. Despite posting just 17 sacks in the 2017 season, Syracuse has not gained a pledge from any defensive linemen so far, but three linebackers have signed a National Letter of Intent. Currently, three prospects, Akeem Dixon, Jawhar Jordan, and Jarveon Howard, all 3-star running backs, are set to sign with Syracuse on Wednesday. Syracuse.com’s Stephen Bailey estimates that a maximum of six players can sign on National Signing Day and keep the Syracuse roster at or under the 85 scholarship limit.

An interesting note in Okechukwu’s case is that he has yet to receive an offer from Texas, yet still listed them in his final three. Texas currently has three committed defensive linemen in the class, with 4-star DE Joseph Ossai (TX) projected to commit to the Longhorns as well. Four commits at one position would seemingly eliminate any chance at an offer for Okechukwu.

For Syracuse, both Fitzroy Gardner, a 3-star defensive end from Florida, and Okechukwu remain high-priority targets with National Signing Day just two days away. Gardner has visited Maryland and Syracuse the last two weekends, and 247sports is projecting him to sign with the Orange. 247sports also has the Orange as the favorites to land Okechukwu, although that is likely to change if Texas decides to extend an offer. Getting both to sign NLIs would greatly improve a weak defensive line, but even one commit would boost the unit.

National Signing Day is this Wednesday, so don’t forget to visit Student Union for recruiting analysis.