Okeke picks Texas AM

Heading into his official visit to Texas A&M earlier this month, three-star Smryna (Tenn.) safety Ikenna Okeke wasn't sure where the Aggies stood in his recruitment. By the time he left campus in College Station, Okeke knew it wouldn't be his last trip to Texas. Just a few weeks later, he announced his intentions to spend the next four years there.

"I'm officially an Aggie," Okeke said Wednesday. "Texas A&M was home for me. That's where I got that home feeling from and after talking to the coaches and my family and praying on it, I knew it was going to be my home for the next four years."

Following his official visit, Okeke said the trip had given him something to think about and after talking with his family and thinking, he scrapped scheduled visits to Penn State and Tennessee and put an end to his recruitment.

"I cancelled them because I felt like after thinking over some things, I knew that Texas A&M was the place I could be successful," he said. "You have to go where you're going to be successful for the long haul and after thinking about, both about football and in the classroom, I felt like Texas A&M was that place for me."

Okeke added most of his scholarship offers during the spring, but the Aggies didn't make an official offer until mid-October. While that made him initially hesitant about his spot on the Aggies' board, all those concerns were quelled on his visit.

"They told me when the need for my position came up I was the top guy," Okeke said. "I don't know how many others they offered at my position, but I looked at it and they said I'm the No. 1 priority at the position and they kept nailing that into my head on the whole visit."

Defensive coordinator John Chavis played a major role in Okeke's recruitment and his ties to Tennessee were also a major factor in making Okeke and his family feel comfortable.

"Since they offered I've been talking with Coach Chavis and Coach (Terry) Joseph a lot," Okeke said. "Knowing that he's familiar with me and people I know in Tennessee really helped me out. I've trained with guys who he has recruited and I used all the resources I could to make sure I was making the right decision."

Okeke plays wide receiver and defensive back for his high school team, but said that Chavis has a clear vision for his role in the Aggies' scheme.

"They told me I'll be playing the nickel position and that really interests me because that's one of my favorite positions," Okeke said. "Tyrann Mathieu is my favorite player and that's what he plays, so hopefully I can be a playmaker like him."

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Okeke is the second player from Tennessee to join the Aggies 2016 class, joining Tyrel Dodson.

"He was in my ear every day," Okeke said of Dodson. "I didn't make the decision because of him, but it's cool knowing that I have another Tennessee guy going there with me."

Okeke becomes the 17th commitment in the Aggies Class of 2016. He joins Dodson, three-star tight end Irvin Smith and three-star offensive lineman Colton Prater as the only players in the Aggies' class from outside Texas.