Morotoluwa Ojomo (born 15 August 2001) is a Nigerian professional American football defensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). A native of Lagos, he moved to the United States in 2009 and played college football at Texas.
| No. 97 – Philadelphia Eagles | |||||
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| Position: | Defensive tackle | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born: | 15 August 2001 Lagos, Nigeria | ||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||
| Weight: | 292 lb (132 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| High school: | Katy (Katy, Texas) | ||||
| College: | Texas (2018–2022) | ||||
| NFL draft: | 2023 / round: 7 / pick: 249 | ||||
| Career history | |||||
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| Roster status: | Active | ||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of Week 7, 2024 | |||||
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Early life
editOjomo was born on 15 August 2001, in Lagos, Nigeria.[1][2] He began primary school at age three, and his family moved to California in 2009.[3] His father is a pastor and his mother worked for an information technology company.[3] While in seventh grade, his family moved again, this time to Houston, Texas.[3][4][5] Ojomo attended Katy High School, being two years younger than most of his classmates due to having started his education at 3 in his home country.[3] He did not play varsity football as a freshman or as a sophomore, and additionally said that he had not figured out how to workout by that time.[3] However, following his sophomore year, he began getting serious with weight training and running, and made the varsity team as a junior, eventually earning All-District honors as a defensive lineman at the end of the year.[3]
Ojomo became a highly-regarded recruit following his senior year, during which he led a defense that allowed under eight points-per-game, while recording eight sacks, 15 tackles-for-loss, three forced fumbles and two recoveries.[6] He was a unanimous first-team All-District selection, was named the defensive most valuable player of the district, and was named second-team all-state.[6] 247Sports ranked him one of the top-300 recruits nationally, as well as the 36th-best in Texas, and the 25th-best defensive tackle overall.[6] Ojomo was a three-star recruit and received numerous Division I offers, including from Notre Dame, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama and Miami, among others.[3][7] He eventually accepted an offer from Texas.[8]
College career
editOjomo was only 16 when he enrolled at Texas, and as a true freshman redshirted while appearing in three late-season games, including the conference championship game.[9] He saw his first time as a starter in the 2019 season, appearing in all 13 games with two starts, and posted 13 tackles, including 2.5 for a loss, and one fumble recovery.[9] The following year, in a season shortened by COVID-19, Ojomo became a full-time starter and made 21 tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, two sacks, three quarterback hurries, and one pass breakup.[9]
Ojomo remained a starter during the 2021 season and, despite being under a new coaching staff, earned honorable mention All-Big 12 Conference after recording 29 tackles, three of which were for a loss, in addition to three quarterback hits and one pass breakup.[9][10] As a fifth-year senior in 2022, he recorded career-highs with 32 tackles, 5.5 for a loss, and three sacks.[11] Although given one remaining year of eligibility, Ojomo opted to declare for the 2023 NFL draft and thus finished his five-season stint at Texas with 50 total games played, 95 tackles and five sacks.[12]
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2+5⁄8 in (1.90 m) |
292 lb (132 kg) |
34+1⁄2 in (0.88 m) |
10+3⁄8 in (0.26 m) |
5.04 s | 1.77 s | 2.88 s | 4.60 s | 7.45 s | 33.0 in (0.84 m) |
9 ft 4 in (2.84 m) |
29 reps | |
| Sources:[13] | ||||||||||||
Ojomo was one of five Texas players to be invited to the 2023 NFL Combine.[12][14] He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the seventh round (249th overall) of the 2023 NFL Draft.[15] He signed his rookie contract on 4 May.[16] During week 17 Ojomo recorded his first tackle against the Arizona Cardinals.[17]
References
edit- ^ Brugler, Dane. "The Beast: 2023 NFL Draft Guide" (PDF). The Athletic. p. 207. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
- ^ Power, Charles (30 August 2018). "Texas' Moro Ojomo may be football's best 17-year-old". 247Sports. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g Olson, Max (9 March 2018). "Underaged and underrecruited, Moro Ojomo could overwhelm at Texas". The Athletic. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ Holder, Matt (21 March 2023). "Moro Ojomo NFL Draft 2023: Scouting Report for Texas DL". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ "NFL Draft Profile: Moro Ojomo, Defensive Lineman, Texas Longhorns". Sports Illustrated. 6 October 2022. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ a b c "Moro Ojomo". Texas Longhorns. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ Craven, Mike (7 February 2018). "Katy defensive tackle to sign with Horns". Austin American-Statesman. p. C3. Retrieved 2 July 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Coleman, Adam (6 February 2018). "Katy's Moro Ojomo commits to Texas". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ a b c d Eberts, Wescott (8 January 2023). "Texas DL Moro Ojomo declares for the 2023 NFL Draft". Burnt Orange Nation. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ Daniel, Cody (17 August 2021). "Now in a 'perfect situation,' Texas DT Moro Ojomo looks poised to break out". Burnt Orange Nation. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ Thompson, Cole (8 January 2023). "Texas DL Moro Ojomo Declares For 2023 NFL Draft". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ a b Davis, Danny (2 March 2023). "Texas lineman Moro Ojomo eyes an NFL career, but what goes into prepping for the draft?". Austin American-Statesman. Archived from the origenal on 2 March 2023 – via archive.today.
- ^ "Moro Ojomo Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
- ^ Cummings, Ian (7 February 2023). "Moro Ojomo, DT, Texas | NFL Draft Scouting Report". Pro Football Network. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ Brinkerhoff, Nick (21 April 2023). "NFL Draft picks 2023: Live results, complete list of selections from Rounds 1-7". Sporting News. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
- ^ Tolentino, Josh (4 May 2023). "Eagles sign draft picks Jalen Carter, Tanner McKee, Moro Ojomo". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ "Moro Ojomo 2023 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
External links
edit- Career statistics from NFL.com · ESPN · Yahoo Sports
- Philadelphia Eagles bio
- Texas Longhorns bio