SIGNED: LB Ovie Oghoufo
Farmington Hills (Mich.) Harrison linebacker Ovie Oghoufo has submitted his National Letter of Intent to Notre Dame on Wednesday.
RANKINGS
Rivals: 3.0-star (No. 9 player in Michigan and No. 36 outside linebacker nationally)
BGI Grade: 3.5-star
Upside Grade: 4.5-star
MEASURABLES
At Nike Football The Opening Chicago Regional, Oghoufo recorded a 4.85 40-yard dash, 4.09 shuttle, 39-foot power ball toss and 34.5-inch vertical. His 4.09 in the pro shuttle drill was tied for the third-best of any linebacker at any The Opening Regional event, which shows his top-level athleticism.
His outstanding performance at the event earned him an invitation to the Nike Football The Opening Finals in Beaverton, Ore.
STATISTICS
SENIOR SEASON: Compiled 106 stops, 31 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, five passes defended and one forced fumble. On offense, he caught 32 passes for 529 yards, and had 921 all-purpose yards and seven touchdowns.
JUNIOR SEASON: Registered 56 tackles, 20 stops for loss and five sacks.
HONORS
SENIOR SEASON (2017)
Linebacker MVP at Nike Football The Opening Chicago Regional
Nike Football The Opening Finalist
Named to Dick Butkus High School Award watch list for the nation’s top linebacker
2017 Detroit Free Press All-State Dream Team Selection
Michigan Division 3-4 Associated Press All-State Team (picked by media)
JUNIOR SEASON (2016)
Earned All-Association Honors from the Oakland Activities Association
RECRUITMENT
POWER FIVE OFFERS: Notre Dame, Boston College, Indiana, Iowa State, Michigan, Michigan State and Syracuse.
Oghoufo was one of the first commitments in the 2018 class, making a pledge to the Irish on July 22, 2016, shortly after an unofficial visit. The three-star linebacker has been an active recruiter for Notre Dame throughout the process and never wavered from his commitment.
He was primarily recruited by current defensive line coach Mike Elston, but linebackers coach Clark Lea took over upon his arrival.
NOTABLE
· Born March 27.
· Former high school teammates of current Notre Dame sophomore defensive end Khalid Kareem.
· His parents were born in Nigeria.
• He grew up a Michigan fan and is cousins with former Wolverines defensive lineman Mario Ojemudia.
2018 PROJECTION
Oghoufo is an athletic and rangy player that projects at both the Buck linebacker and rover positions. He is athletic and experienced, but he is still on the thin side. A year in the weight room would do him a lot of good, and so would a redshirt season.
BGI ANALYSIS
“Oghoufo finished his season off in impressive fashion, but it began well before the fall. The athletic linebacker started to show off a much improved skill set going back to last February, when he earned Linebacker MVP honors at The Opening Regional in Chicago. At that event, he showed off the combination of skills that made him a hot target for Notre Dame in the first place.
“He is an athletic defender that shows off highly impressive quickness and agility. He posted an extremely quick 4.09 in the pro-shuttle at the Chicago regional, and he puts that quickness on display on the football field. Oghoufo shows outstanding lateral quickness and good open field speed. That allows him to cover a lot of ground, and his improved instincts as a senior also made him a highly impactful edge player this season.
“There is a lot of growth needed from a physical standpoint, but Oghoufo is willing to mix it up. His pass game ability is inconsistent, but when he is confident and his technique is sound he's very good in coverage, and his potential in that department is outstanding. He needs work, but his combination of attitude, athleticism and playmaking ability is why his upside grade is so much higher than his current grade.” — BGI football analyst Bryan Driskell
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