Blue White Illustrated

Penn State fans are already familiar with Nashville safety JoeJuan Williams, but there is another Tennessee defensive back they should keep an eye on: three-star safety prospect Ikenna Okeke of Smyrna. Okeke, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound senior at Smyrna High, picked up an offer from the staff this past spring and has been building a strong relationship with Nittany Lion defensive coordinator Bob Shoop. In fact, Okeke said the two of them are speaking almost daily. "I've been talking to Coach Shoop a lot. He's the main coach that I talk with from Penn State," Okeke said. "I think we pretty much talk to each other every day or two. Most of the time, when we talk now, it's just about catch- ing up and seeing how each other are doing. We talk about how practice is going, who they play that week, stuff like that." Okeke has never been to Penn State and admits that he still has a lot to learn about both the football program and the campus. However, he's going to get his chance to see everything firsthand in a few weeks, as he is scheduled to make an official visit Nov. 20-22. That is the weekend Penn State will face Michigan in this year's White Out game. "I don't really know much right now," Okeke said. "I know they're a great school and they're doing well since Coach [James] Franklin went there from Vander- bilt. I've also heard about their White Out games, which is when I'm coming. I've just heard it's a great time, a crazy atmos- phere, so I'm looking forward to checking that game out. That's one of the main rea- sons I picked that weekend." During the past two years, Okeke has re- ceived 15 scholarship offers, most of them from schools in the Southeastern and At- lantic Coast conferences. He said he hasn't eliminated any schools so far, but he does have a group of five that are stand- ing out, and that list includes Penn State. "I'm still really open to everyone, but I do have five schools that are kind of stand- ing out right now," he said. "I put a top five out there, and Penn State was definitely in there. Also: Notre Dame, Tennessee, Stanford and [Missouri]. I've taken one official visit so far, and that was to Notre Dame. I enjoyed that trip. I have the Penn State trip set and now I think I'm going to set one to Texas A&M on Nov. 7. They just offered me not that long ago." Okeke said he would like to have every- thing wrapped up a few weeks aAer his trip to University Park. However, he added that he won't rush into anything just to bring an end to the recruiting process. "I'm going to make my decision when- ever I feel comfortable, but I am kind of shooting for the end of November," he said. "I'd like to get it done around then, but I'm going to do it whenever it feels right. This is a very important decision." Okeke is Rivals.com's 32nd-ranked safety nationally. He's also the 15th- ranked prospect overall in Tennessee for the Class of 2016. PENN STATE RADIO NETWORK WAEB............. 790-AM....... Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton WVAM............ 1430-AM....................................... Altoona WRKY............. 104.9-FM............... Altoona/Hollidaysburg WILK.............. 103.1-FM.........................................Avoca WAYC............. 1600-AM.......................................Bedford WAYC............. 100.9-FM......................................Bedford WBYB............. 103.9-FM.....................................Bradford WBUT............. 1050-AM..........................................Butler WCPA............. 900-AM...................................... Clearfield WQYX............. 93.1-FM..................................... Clearfield WZDB.............95.9-FM........................ DuBois/Sykesville WHGL............ 102.9-FM................................ Elmira, N.Y. WPSE............. 1450-AM.............................................Erie WFRA............. 1450-AM...................................... Franklin WGET............. 1320-AM.................................. Gettysburg WJEJ.............. 1240-AM.Hagerstown, Md./Chambersburg Sports Radio..1400-AM...................................Harrisburg Sports Radio..95.3-FM.................................... Harrisburg WKZN............ 1300-AM..................................... Hazleton WLAK............. 103.5-FM................................ Huntingdon WNTJ............. 1490-AM...................................Johnstown WBYB............. 103.9-FM.......................................... Kane WLPA............. 1490-AM....................................Lancaster WNPV.............1440-AM.....................................Lansdale WLBR............. 1270-AM..................................... Lebanon WMRF............ 95.7-FM.................................... Lewistown WMGW...........1490-AM....................................Meadville ESPN Radio....97.3-FM................................ Millville, N.J. WJST.............. 1280-AM.....................New Castle/Sharon WVNJ............. 1160-AM.......................... New York Metro WNTP............. 990-AM..................................Philadelphia KQV............... 1410-AM................................... Pittsburgh WAVT..............101.9-FM.................................... Pottsville WPPA............. 1360-AM.....................................Pottsville WRAW............ 1340-AM...................................... Reading WBZU.............910-AM....................................... Scranton WBYB............. 103.9-FM................................. Smethport WQWK............1450-AM.............................. State College WBUS.............93.7-FM................................State College WZDD............ 101.3-FM....................Stratonville/Clarion WKOK............ 1070-AM...................................... Sunbury WLLI.............. 990-AM...................................... Somerset WTIV.............. 1230-AM..................................... Titusville WHGL.............100.3-FM............................... Troy/Canton WTRN.............1340-AM......................................... Tyrone WTRN.............100.7-FM........................................ Tyrone WNBT............. 104.5-FM...................................Wellsboro WNBQ............ 92.3-FM....................Wellsboro/Mansfield WILK.............. 980-AM................................. Wilkes-Barre WKSB.............102.7-FM.............................. Williamsport WSBA............. 910-AM.............................................. York WJST.............. 1280-AM........................Youngstown, Ohio N O V E M B E R 4 , 2 0 1 5 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 10 Tennessee safety set to visit PSU for White Out R E C R U I T I N G R Y A N S N Y D E R | B L U E W H I T E I L L U S T R A T E D 2016 STANDOUT Ikeke has been talking frequently to Penn State de- fensive coordina- tor Bob Shoop. Photo courtesy of Rivals.com

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