For 2022 recruit Paul Oyewale, TCU football had ‘everything I wanted’
Paul Oyewale didn’t expect to take part in the early signing period, but that mindset changed this week.
Oyewale found a school and a football program at TCU that checked every box he had for his next step. So he’ll be signing his national letter of intent with the Horned Frogs on Wednesday.
“TCU had everything I wanted,” said Oyewale, a three-star defensive lineman out of Houston Langham Creek.
“Proximity to home. Education. Relationship with the coaching staff. How they’re going to set me up for life after football. Everything about TCU fits what I’m looking for.”
Oyewale, who is 6-foot-4, 250 pounds, chose TCU after drawing interest from other schools including Baylor, Duke and SMU. He described the relationship he’s built with TCU’s new defensive line coach Chidera Uzo-Diribe as a significant factor in his decision.
“He’s an amazing person, an amazing coach,” Oyewale said. “They’re going to be tough on you on the field. Off the field, he has your back. He cares about you. You’re not just another body out there.”
Oyewale feels he brings a quick first step and plays with a high-effort level on the field. He finished his senior season with 56 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, three sacks and five quarterback hurries.
Asked where his self-described high-effort level comes from, Oyewale said: “I think it’s just part of who I am. Everything wasn’t handed to me in life. I had to work for a lot of things and that’s kind of translated into football. I have the physical capabilities, so why not use that to the fullest extent that I can?”
Oyewale is the second defensive lineman to join TCU’s 2022 class along with Rowlett’s Michael Ibukun-Okeyode. Both recruits, as well as Uzo-Diribe, are of Nigerian descent, something that brings a chuckle to Oyewale.
“It’s just kind of interesting,” he said. “We moved here when I was about to turn 6. I’ll be the first in my family to go to a four-year university.”
Oyewale is undecided on his major, although psychology is an early favorite.
“That’s definitely a field I’m interested in,” he said.
This story was originally published December 14, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
