Inside The Process That Led Elite OL Olu Olubobola To Notre Dame

At last May’s New Jersey Under Armour Regional, I recognized Latish Kinsler and introduced myself to the President of LifeStyle Sports Agency who had quickly been building his reputation as an influential figure in high school recruiting within the state.

I swear, the very first thing he said to me was that he wanted me to meet somebody. He took a step forward and grabbed the attention of a mammoth figure who would just about block out the sun as he turned to greet me.

It was Oluwasemilore Olubobola‍.

Once Kinsler learned I covered Notre Dame, he wanted me to meet a client who was that caliber of prospect. But it quickly became clear he also wanted Olu to experience that interaction himself as a preview of the spotlight that would be coming.

Kinsler thanked me for taking the time to chat with Olubobola, who hadn’t yet been pegged as a can’t-miss elite national prospect.

Then he paused briefly before adding one more thing.

“He’s going to be big time.”

I was reminded of that interaction and how prophetic it’d been when I returned to this year’s Regional where I would catch up with Olubobla again. But even as the elite 2027 New Jersey offensive lineman gave me glowing answers about his first trip to South Bend just hours after returning, I had no idea just how prophetic it’d be.

At the time, the Irish still seemed like a longshot to land Olubobla, but that’s exactly what they did as he made his commitment to Notre Dame public on Tuesday. 

For Kinsler, the road to that decision was built less on one defining moment and more on the gradual realization that Notre Dame consistently checked the right boxes throughout the process.

“The main thing was to make sure that, for one, we got on campus with schools,” Kinsler told Irish Sports Daily. “The unofficials are more like officials in today’s day and age.”

Notre Dame’s climb in the recruitment was not immediate.

In fact, there was a stretch earlier in the process where there appeared to be uncertainty on both sides about how realistic the fit actually was. Part of that disconnect came from circumstances outside anybody’s control after a snowstorm prevented Marcus Freeman from making it to New Jersey during the winter evaluation period.

“That kind of delayed just getting to know Olu as well as Olu getting to know the program,” Kinsler explained.

Once communication accelerated, though, so did Notre Dame’s momentum.

“Once we had the conversations, they definitely moved forward to expedite their interest and to show their interest once Olu showed mutual interest in the program,” Kinsler said.

That process became easier once Olubobola finally made it to South Bend for the Irish’s Blue-Gold Game. Everything was somewhat accelerated since Kinsler had dealt with the program over the winter during another client, wide receiver Quincy Porter’s transfer from Ohio State to Notre Dame. 

“Having Quincy go through the process and transfer there, these are things where we already had the base of a relationship with the program,” Kinsler said. 

“So it was a good opportunity for Olu once that ball started rolling.”

Kinsler approaches recruiting through a relatively straightforward lens.

For him, the process starts with leadership.

“Some of the factors for my athletes are number one, making sure that the head coach is a leader of young men,” Kinsler explained. “Then number two, the strength and conditioning program as well as number three, the position coach.”

When those priorities were stacked against what mattered most to Olubobola and his family, Notre Dame kept resurfacing.

“When you look at all those boxes, it was something that just seemed to more and more come back to Notre Dame,” Kinsler said.

One of the more interesting turns in the process came late.

Originally, the expectation was that Olubobola’s parents would eventually need to make another trip to campus before any final decision could happen. Instead, Notre Dame managed to create enough comfort without it.

“The landscape just continues to evolve,” Kinsler said. “We had the Zoom calls and things of that nature. Mom and Dad were able to see and talk and communicate. We did the virtual tour of the new facilities and things of that nature. So the parents were very, very comfortable at that point in time.”

That comfort level extended beyond football.

Kinsler described Notre Dame’s communication style as one of the biggest reasons trust developed so quickly between both sides.

“I think it’s very progressive,” Kinsler said. “The GM, Mike Martin, is very easy to talk to, very straightforward. I think they communicate well and it just aligns with how I like to do business.”

More importantly, Kinsler said Notre Dame consistently delivered honesty throughout the process.

“When it’s something where I feel that what they say is actually what they mean and how it’s going to be, those things matter,” he said. “Marcus Freeman seems to be a very straightforward and honest man.”

Kinsler’s role throughout Olubobola’s recruitment extended well beyond scheduling visits and handling communication.

With Olubobola’s parents unfamiliar with much of the recruiting landscape after immigrating from Nigeria, Kinsler became a central figure in helping the family navigate the process from every angle.

“After every visit, the father and myself would talk at the airport about the visit, about pros and cons,” Kinsler said. “So keeping them fully informed and also talking during the week.”

That guidance also extended into Olubobola’s physical development.

Kinsler said the two have worked together for more than two years, dating back to when Olubobola was still relatively unknown and only beginning to understand his long-term potential.

“At the time, he was really new to football,” Kinsler said. “But when you’re that size and you have that much athleticism, once we agreed to take the journey together, meaning his parents, Olu and myself, we wanted to make sure that we put him in the best position to be successful.”

According to Kinsler, what ultimately separated Olubobola was not simply the physical tools, but the willingness to maximize them.

Kinsler set Olubobola up with a strength coach at Chiseled Health & Fitness Facility and also got him working with Next Level Culture and ProEdge for individual position training. 

“He has a certain desire to be great,” Kinsler said. “He’s serious about being the best version of himself, serious about the sport and learning and understanding that he’s not perfect, but he continues to work and work every day.”

Now, one phase of that journey is complete, but it’s likely the rest of his journey will include far brighter lights than the ones that come with chatting with one lowly journalist at a high school camp.