Editor’s note: This story originally published last fall. Okoye is listed by ESPN as Oklahoma’s top recruit in the Class of 2024, and Okoye recently took a recruiting visit to Colorado where he met new coach Deion Sanders. According to ESPN, Okoye has offers from Arkansas, Tennessee, Tulsa, USC, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma among others.
Danny Okoye’s day always starts with 300 push-ups.
Sit-ups and other various body-weight exercises soon follow. “I can do 50 pull-ups at a time,” said Okoye, a 6-foot-5, 240-pound junior at NOAH.
They are impressive numbers for Okoye, who said he has been training using calisthenics since he was 5. He immerses himself into his training, working out both with his team and alone.
But he’s quick to point out he’s not in the gym as much as people think.
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He reserves time for lifting weights to team practices, where his numbers are just as jaw-dropping. He bench presses 335 pounds. He back squats 455. His deadlift — a massive 685 pounds — laps most teammates.
But he attributes most of his strength to his calisthenics.
“I feel like my arms aren’t as big as maybe somebody who benches 315 pounds, but I’ll be able to throw somebody around a lot easier than someone who has a lot of mass on them,” Okoye said.
That strength has made Okoye a force on Friday nights for NOAH, despite his name not being well-known in the Oklahoma high school landscape. He can play nearly any position his coaches want, and he hits hard.
It has led to an abundance of interest from Power 5 Division I colleges.
According to 247Sports, the junior has received 10 offers, scoring interest from Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Missouri, USC and Arkansas among others.
“I like the unpredictability of it,” said Okoye of recruiting. “Like, I have to prove myself.”
He isn’t set on a specific college yet, saying other schools are still reaching out to him. NOAH coach James Ballinger said Okoye remains level-headed throughout his recruitment, a process that can get overwhelming at times.
Whenever Okoye does decide on a college, his goal is to major in kinesiology, the study of muscles and human movement, and eventually become a strength and conditioning coach.
Because strength has always enamored him.
He admires former boxer Mike Tyson and how he trained, with Okoye saying it’s something he tries to replicate during his own practices.
“When he was my age, he didn’t touch weights,” Okoye said. “His coach didn’t let him, and you saw how big he was.”
Okoye works out so much because of the strength advantage it gives him on the football field. He lays out punishing hits on defense, which landed him the nickname “Danny Phantom.”
The nickname — a nod to an old Nickelodeon cartoon of the same name — was bestowed to Okoye during NOAH’s spring camp, after teammates started likening his hard hits to “taking somebody’s soul.”
It steadily molded from “soul” to “ghost” then “phantom” before his first name was tagged on.
“It just sort of went together,” Okoye said. “It just stuck. I love it. I think it’s pretty cool.”
And in one season, Okoye has stuck with the Jaguars team.
NOAH is used to fielding a team of roughly 30-40 players, but once COVID-19 hit — and parents realized they were capable of homeschooling their children — Ballinger said the roster grew to 62.
Okoye was one of them. After attending public school his whole life, he transitioned to homeschooling for his sophomore year, joining the Jaguars to continue playing competitive sports.
“We’ve been really active in getting kids recruited and getting kids opportunities if they do play for us,” Ballinger said.
Okoye plays a bevy of positions for the Jaguars, lining up at defensive end, tight end, running back and as a slot receiver occasionally. He also serves as NOAH’s punter.
“He’s actually a good punter,” Ballinger said. “This is his first time doing it, but with a little bit of work I think he could be a college-level punter.”
Ballinger hopes to shovel more offensive work onto Okoye over the next two seasons, but knows Okoye will likely be a defensive player come college time.
For Okoye, it doesn’t matter where he lines up. He’s just focused on “bullying” his opponent.
“I want to do my job, first and foremost,” he said. “But I still want to be able to impose myself on the other team.”
Those 300 push-ups aren’t just for fun. They are a reminder of what’s needed for the next level.
