Official visits are popping up all over the country right now, but not every recruitment moves at that pace. Some still take the slower, relationship‑first route, and that’s where Ole Miss finds itself with Chicago linebacker Roman Igwebuike, a blue‑chip defender who isn’t rushing anything.
Igwebuike trimmed his list to 12 schools, and it’s a who’s‑who of college football. Ole Miss made the cut, sitting alongside USC, Michigan, Florida, Tennessee, Miami, Clemson, Georgia, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Missouri, and Indiana.
Where 🏠??
Blessed to have this choice! #AGTG https://t.co/kBwepnof4j— Roman igwebuike🇳🇬 (@roman_igwebuike) February 27, 2026
When you’re the No. 6 linebacker in the 2027 class and a 6‑foot‑3, 225‑pound athlete who looks the part already, that kind of list comes with the territory.
But this stage of his recruitment isn’t about commitments or top‑five graphics. It’s about who can build something real before the official‑visit calendar fills up. Programs like Ohio State, Michigan, and Miami have started generating early buzz, especially Michigan.
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“It’s been good,” Igwebuike said to Rivals. “It’s to be determined right now, but I’m probably going to come to Michigan for a spring ball practice.
“I definitely want to just learn more about the program. Obviously, because they’re a big program, I know a lot about them, but just the individual parts — the practices, the coaches, how they coach, how they teach the players, how they develop — just the little things that would be important to me when I commit.”
That’s the challenge for Pete Golding and Ole Miss: staying in the conversation long enough to earn the trip to Oxford. Igwebuike reportedly already has two official visits scheduled to Clemson and Tennessee.
That’s the part that gets lost this time of year. Fans see official visits being scheduled left and right and assume every recruitment is moving at warp speed. But for prospects like Igwebuike, the visit comes after the groundwork is laid, after the staff proves it’s invested, consistent, and worth spending a weekend with.
Ole Miss is doing that work.
The Rebels have momentum with several 2027 targets, and Igwebuike remains one of the names they’re quietly pushing hardest for. Getting him on campus would shift the tone of the recruitment in a hurry, but they have to win the relationship first.
And that’s the story here: in a cycle where official visits are becoming currency, Ole Miss is still grinding to earn the ones that matter.
