Samson Okunlola is starting to look like the kind of offensive tackle who can climb all the way into the first round.
CBS Sports’ latest 2027 mock draft has the Miami redshirt junior going No. 31 overall to the Baltimore Ravens, making him the only Hurricanes player included on the board. For a player who has spent much of his college career waiting for a bigger runway, that projection says plenty about how far he has come.
At 6-foot-6 and 330 pounds, Okunlola has the kind of frame teams chase, but the appeal goes beyond size. He’s been able to line up inside and outside, and this season he has settled in as Miami’s starting left tackle. Through the first four games, the 21-year-old has given up four pressures and no sacks in 218 snaps.
That kind of start is a big step for a lineman who spent last season in a very different role. Before this year, the Brockton, Mass., native had mostly appeared in limited action for the Hurricanes.
In 2025, he was asked to adjust on the fly and split snaps with Matthew McCoy at left guard. Even while learning a new spot, he held up well enough in both pass protection and run blocking.
The road to this point has been a little unusual for a former five-star, too. Okunlola missed spring practices, then returned to Coral Gables for fall camp and kept earning the staff’s trust.
Miami also entered the season with four starters gone to the NFL, so the offensive line had a new look and plenty of open questions. Because of the program’s cross-training approach, there was no immediate certainty about where Okunlola would land.
Now the answer is clear, and it has him on the radar in a major way. Okunlola came out of Thayer Academy as part of the 2023 high school class, ranked among the elite recruits in the country. Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Ohio State, Oregon and Texas A&M were among the schools that offered him, before he committed to Miami after being recruited by offensive line coach Alex Mirabal.
CBS Sports’ early board has him as the sixth offensive tackle selected, a sign that the long path to steady playing time may be paying off. He’ll get another chance to strengthen that case Saturday against Clemson, where senior edge rusher Will Heldt - projected by CBS Sports to go No. 16 to the New York Jets - will be on the other side.
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