'The ceiling is unlimited': Vols can't say enough about Emmanuel Okoye

The talk surrounding Emmanuel Okoye continues to get more outlandish. Teammates and coaches can’t seem to say enough about Tennessee football’s 6-foot-5, 230-pound athlete and freshman tight end.

It started last month at SEC Media Days in Nashville. 

“Emmanuel is one of the most pure athletes I’ve ever seen in my life,” Tennessee tight end Jacob Warren said at the time. “Being completely real the way he runs, the way he jumps, cuts and move, everything about him is super athletic, super twitchy.”

It continued last week during tight ends coach Alec Abeln’s press conference. 

“He’s got a chance to be the most athletic guy to play the position,” Abeln said. “I truly believe that. He is as physically gifted as anyone I’ve ever been around. He’s got to continue to make steps every day, but just from a raw athletic standpoint, the ceiling is unlimited.”

Emmanuel Okoye: ‘I have to do my best to make the best of this’

While the ceiling may be unlimited, Okoye is just now on the ground floor of his football career.

He was initially spotted in 2021 on a basketball court in his native Nigeria, turning heads with his athleticism and dunking ability. The scout earned him a spot at Osi Umenyiora’s ‘The Uprise’, a football talent evaluation camp held in Nigeria and from there he went to the NFL Academy in London, where he was recruited by Tennessee.

He was at first part of the 2024 recruiting cycle, but reclassified to 2023 and signed with Tennessee in May, ranked No. 258 overall in the On3 rankings and No. 9 overall among athletes.

It’s the traits that Okoye showed on the basketball court that led the Vols to starting him out at tight end during his first training camp.

“Being able to watch his hands a little bit on the basketball court too,” Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said last week, “we felt like that would transition over. With his length and athleticism, that’s why we started him at the position we did.”

But what does Okoye think of all the hype and praise that seems to follow him? More than anything, he said, it’s a blessing. 

“Having someone like Coach Alec have so much faith in me, invest his time in me is a really huge thing,” Okoye said. “I have to do my best to make the best of this.”

That’s exactly what he’s doing. 

“They have really high expectations for me,” Okoye said. “Recruiting me from overseas, they definitely had expectations. Working my ass off every day, doing the best I can do the rest of the times. We just do what we’re supposed to do and we should get there, hopefully.”

First on the to-do list for Abeln and the Vols was just continuing Okoye’s education in the game. A lot of one-on-one time, Abeln said, and explaining Tennessee football’s bigger picture.

“That takes precedent over everything,” Abeln said. “At the same time, for him to get the most out of this fall camp he has to be at a certain level of understanding.”

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Abeln is already seeing progress being made at that base level.

“When he first got on campus, you’re drawing 22 bodies on a board and you’re talking about alignments and you’re talking about big-picture coverage, whether it’s single-high or two-high (safeties) and how the box is affected by that,” Abeln said. “Very base level, down to labeling the guys, to the point now we are starting to learn how to operate. 

“We’re starting to learn not just what the route is but how coverage dictates what I’m doing on it. Not just understanding what my assignment on the run is, but how my technique will change. The technique piece is probably the biggest thing, just because everything is brand new. 

“When you’re out there thinking about what I’m supposed to do, the how to do it gets really tough.”

What Okoye is not thinking about is what everyone is saying about him and his potential. He’s just trying to use his speed and athleticism to keep turning heads.

“Using what I have, the gifts I have, to build me to become the best player I can become,” Okoye said. “Using me for the benefit of the program and just making me become the best player I can be, possibly.”