Eyabi Okie

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Eyabi Okie
Eyabi Okie (November 26, 2022).jpg
Okie with the Michigan Wolverines in 2022
Personal information
Born: (1999-06-07) June 7, 1999 (age 25)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school: St. Frances Academy (MD)
College: Alabama (2018)
Houston (2019–2020)
UT Martin (2021)
Michigan (2022)
Charlotte (2023)
Position: Defensive end
Career history
Career highlights and awards

Eyabi Okie (born June 7, 1999), formerly known as Eyabi Anoma, is an American football defensive end who is a free agent. He played college football for Alabama, UT Martin, and Michigan. He was also one of the highest rated recruits in the 2018 college football recruiting class, ranked No. 3 nationally by USA Today and No. 4 by 247Sports.

Contents

Early life

Okie attended Saint Frances Academy in Baltimore. He was selected by The Baltimore Sun as its Defensive Player of the Year in December 2017. [1] He was also one of the highest rated recruits in the 2018 college football recruiting class, ranked No. 3 nationally by USA Today , [2] No. 4 by 247Sports, [3] and No. 7 by Rivals.com. [4]

College career

Alabama

Okie committed to Alabama in December 2017. [5] He starred at the Under Armour All-America Game, tallying two sacks. [6] He played at the linebacker position for Alabama in 2018 and received SEC All-Freshmen honors at the end of the season. [7] In July 2019, Alabama newspapers reported that Okie was not attending classes, jeopardizing his ability to participate in the team's preseason training camp. [8] In August, head coach Nick Saban announced that Okie had been dismissed from the university but refused to elaborate further on the reason for the dismissal. [9]

Houston

During the 2020 season, Okie redshirted for Houston. He was unable to play due to NCAA transfer rules. [10] He was dismissed from the Houston program due to "off-field problems." [11]

UT Martin

Okie then joined UT Martin in 2021. After tallying eight tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks and blocking a potential game-winning field goal attempt against Austin Peay, he received multiple honors as the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) Defensive Player of the Week and Newcomer of the Week, [12] and FCS National Defensive Player of the Week. [10] He helped lead the 2021 UT Martin Skyhawks football team to the OVC championship and the second round of the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs. At the end of the season, he was selected to the OVC All-Newcomer team at the outside linebacker position. [13] He received a degree in interdisciplinary studies from UT Martin. [14]

Michigan

In August 2022, Okie transferred to Michigan, [15] [16] enrolling as a graduate student at the university's School of Social Work. [14]

After the death of his grandmother early in the summer of 2022, Okie rededicated himself and was inspired to transfer to Michigan. [17] [11] Early in the 2022 season, he changed his surname from "Anoma" to "Okie", [18] intending to recognize his mother who lives in Africa. [11]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span
6 ft 4+1⁄2 in
(1.94 m)		260 lb
(118 kg)		33+1⁄2 in
(0.85 m)		9+1⁄2 in
(0.24 m)
All values from NFL Combine [19] [20]

On July 17, 2024, Okie was selected by the Houston Roughnecks with the second overall selection in the 2024 UFL draft. [21] He was signed on July 23. [22] He was released on April 1, 2025.

References

  1. ↑ "Defensive Player of the Year: Eyabi Anoma St. Frances". The Baltimore Sun. December 15, 2017. p. D7 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "USA Today Sports' 2018 Composite Football Player Recruiting rankings". USA Today. February 7, 2018.
  3. ↑ "2018 Top Football Recruits". 247Sports. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  4. ↑ "Rivals 250". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  5. ↑ Katherine Dunn (December 21, 2017). "Anoma is bound for 'Bama: Nation's No. 7 recruit picks Crimson Tide over Terps". The Baltimore Sun. pp. D1, D4 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "St. Frances DE stars in All-America Game". The Baltimore Sun. January 6, 2018. p. D2 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Gamecocks' Horn, Wonnum earn SEC All-Freshmen honors". The State. December 7, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Alex Byington (July 27, 2019). "Alabama's Anoma could miss start of camp: Linebacker 'currently not attending classes'". Montgomery Advertiser. p. C2 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ John Zenor (August 4, 2019). "Saban denies job offer to ex-Ohio State assistant". Ledger-Enquirer. p. B4 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. 1 2 "Eyabi Anoma". UT Martin. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  11. 1 2 3 Angelique S. Chengelis (October 5, 2022). "Inspired by late grandmother, Eyabi Okie driven to change his narrative at Michigan". The Detroit News.
  12. ↑ "Eyabi Anoma Claims OVC Defensive Player and Newcomer of the Week Honors". UT Martin. October 31, 2021.
  13. ↑ "All-Newcomer team". The Leaf-Chronicle. December 1, 2021. p. B3 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. 1 2 "Eyabi Okie". University of Michigan. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
  15. ↑ Ryan Zuke (August 20, 2022). "Michigan football players welcome Alabama transfer Eyabi Anoma 'with open arms'". Ann Arbor News.
  16. ↑ Aaron McMann (October 5, 2022). "At Michigan, Eyabi Okie is out to change the narrative about him". Mlive.com.
  17. ↑ Josh Taubman (October 4, 2022). "How Eyabi Okie's grandmother helped revitalize his career". The Michigan Daily.
  18. ↑ "A bigger role is coming for Michigan EDGE Eyabi Okie (don't call him Anoma)". Mlive.com. September 27, 2022.
  19. ↑ "Eyabi Okie-Anoma Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  20. ↑ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Eyabi Okie-Anoma College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  21. ↑ "2024 UFL College Draft: Showboats select Kansas QB Jason Bean with No. 1 pick". FoxSports.com. July 17, 2024. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  22. ↑ "UFL Transactions". UFLBoard.com. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
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