While Samuel Okunlola looked absolutely incredible in Tiger black-and-orange, he’s looking pretty sharp in Panther blue-and-gold. 

Okunlola, a tri-captain on Thayer Academy’s 5-3 football team this year and a prized national recruit, committed to the University of Pittsburgh and its football program Wednesday afternoon on the Thayer campus. 

“It just felt right to me,” said Okunlola, seated at a table flanked by family members before signing his National Letter of Intent (NLI) on National Signing Day 2021. 

But that was after the young man thanked his family, his friends, his coaches, his classmates, and others for the support both over the years and during the recruiting experience. The senior even thanked the many other colleges who took an interest in him. 

At Thayer, Okunlola proved a leader in the locker room and a fearsome presence on the field. A tight end and defensive end, the Brockton native was named Team MVP this fall to go along with ISL All-League, ISL Co-MVP, and ALL-NEPSAC honors. 

Students, faculty, and staff attended the NLI signing ceremony, which was streamed live by CBS HQ.