Krystian Oakley is not new to Brebeuf Jesuit, but college football coaches visiting the school this spring to recruit might think they are watching a different player.
The 6-foot-6, 310-pound Oakley feels different. And he certainly moves and looks like it, too, after dropping nearly 40 pounds since the end of his junior season. Oakley, who will not turn 17 until the summer, has watched his hard work pay off with several scholarship offers rolling in this spring.
“I feel great,” Oakley said. “I can move around way better and I’ve gotten stronger, to be honest. I feel more fluid.”
Though Oakley was already considered a Division I prospect before this spring (he had offers from Louisville and Toledo by the end of his junior season), his physical makeover is impressive. Brebeuf coach Matt Geske said part of it was just the natural maturation process of a teenager.
“He was never not working hard,” Geske said. “It was just that he grew so quickly and put on that weight. He put a huge focus on nutrition and has great natural discipline. The weight started falling off because he works his tail off in the weight room and in conditioning.”
Oakley went to work right after his junior season, working out with a trainer on strength and conditioning. But the real key was linking up with a nutritionist, who was able to map out a meal plan attack he could follow.
“It sounds simple but it’s really not,” Oakley said. “The one thing I was struggling with is that I wasn’t getting enough sleep at night. I started to get eight hours of sleep and get to sleep at a reasonable time. When I was around 350-ish, I wasn’t eating breakfast. I would snack constantly throughout the day, which adds up to high calories and low protein.”
He made the adjustments of drinking protein shakes and opting for healthy snacks instead of chips. Zero sugar electrolyte drinks replaced the full sugar drinks he opted for previously.
Guess what? College coaches have noticed a difference.
“I think (coaches) saw him moving with a new body almost,” Geske said. “He’s dropped almost 40 pounds, which is showing up in his speed and explosiveness. His lifts are all tracking in the right direction. All the things he had (previously) that are great – his length, his IQ, his intangibles, all of those cool things about him – are now in a package that is moving so much faster and better.”
Oakley, who was named to the Indiana Football Coaches Association Junior All-State team last season, picked up an offer from Kentucky in January and has since added offers from Akron, Ball State, Bowling Green, Illinois State, Kent State, Liberty, Ohio, UConn and Western Kentucky. He was also re-offered by the new staff at Toledo.
Oakley has an official set to UConn the weekend of May 29-31 and is in the process of setting up others. There are several Power Four programs with interest that have not yet offered, including Indiana, Purdue, Minnesota, Kansas State and Central Florida. He anticipates he will take an official visit to Western Kentucky.
“It would be great to have the opportunity to play in the Big Ten,” said Oakley, whose older brother Kris Oakley played at Lawrence Central (2016 graduate) and Marian. “Best conference in college football.”
Oakley started on Brebeuf’s offensive line since early in his freshman year. His freshman and sophomore seasons, he played mostly with upperclassmen. The 2024 team went 8-3 and averaged more than 46 points per game. Last year, after graduating much of that offensive talent, the Braves dropped to 3-8 and averaged 26 points per game.
But despite the drop in the win-loss column, it was a breakthrough year for Oakley on a personal level as he became a vocal leader and team captain.
“Freshman and sophomore year, I was playing with a lot of seniors,” he said. “They didn’t really need a voice. Last year, I had to be the voice for the O-line group. … I’ve never been the loudest guy in the room. I’m kind of a lead by example guy. But I feel like that (leadership) is starting to come a little naturally now.”
That can happen when you are confident.
“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to watch him work out at our prospect day and for guys to go, ‘Holy smokes, he looks like a different dude,’” Geske said. “He had a bunch of good things on film already. Now he’s moving so much better with his new weight. Putting two and two together, he’s going to be a pretty special player.”
Oakley has his sights set on making to the NFL someday. But he would also like to give back to the game after his playing career, possibly in the sports medicine or sports science field. In the short term, he has to sort through with getting his recruitment set and preparing for his senior season.
“We’re going to be back as a high-scoring team like my sophomore year,” Oakley said. “We get our quarterback back (Keegan Bouwkamp played in just four games as a junior due to injury) and he can really sling the ball. Our defense is going to be good. We have some guys who can really get after the passer. We’re going to be a really good team.”
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649. Get IndyStar’s high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter. And be sure to subscribe to our new IndyStarTV: Preps YouTube channel.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Brebeuf Jesuit lineman Krystian Oakley drops weight, gains confidence … and offers
Reporting by Kyle Neddenriep, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
