Lawrence Okoye

Lawrence Okoye

refer to caption

Okoye with the San Francisco 49ers in 2015
No. 79 Chicago Bears
Position: Defensive end
Personal information
Date of birth: (1991-10-06) October 6, 1991
Place of birth: Croydon, England
Height: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight: 304 lb (138 kg)
Career information
High school: London (UK) Whitgift
Undrafted: 2013
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Roster status: Practice squad
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com
Lawrence Okoye

Lawrence Okoye in 2012
Personal information
Nationality British
Born (1991-10-06) 6 October 1991
Height 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Weight 138 kg (304 lb)
Sport
Sport Track and field
Event(s) Discus throw
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s) 68.24 m
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Great Britain
European U23 Championships
2011 Ostrava Discus throw

Lawrence Okoye (born 6 October 1991) is a British track and field athlete and an American football defensive end for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). He is the British record holder in the discus event and had a promising career in junior rugby union.[1]

Education

Born in Croydon in south London to Nigerian parents of the Igbo ethnic group,[2] Okoye was educated at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Junior School, a Voluntary Aided Roman Catholic state primary school in Croydon, followed by Whitgift School, an independent school for boys (also in Croydon), in South London. Lawrence is also a keen academic, with an outstanding offer from Oxford University Law school which he is keen to take up in the future. Also, Okoye is an honorary member of the St. Peter's College JCR. He played rugby union as a winger[3] for Whitgift School playing in the Daily Mail Schools Rugby Under 18 final at Twickenham in 2010, he was also a member of the academy teams of both London Irish and London Wasps.[4]

Discus

Okoye began training full-time in the discus in September 2010 after a promising career as a junior rugby union player.[5] In his first international outing he came sixth in the discus throw at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics. He won a gold medal at the 2011 European Athletics U23 Championships in July 2011 at the age of 19.

Later on that season, Okoye threw a new British record of 67.63m at the McCain Jumps & Throws Fest. He then bettered that mark with another British record of 68.24 m at the Hallesche Werfertage meeting in May 2012.[6]

In the 2012 Summer Olympics, Okoye competed in the discus, reaching the final with a throw of 65.28m. In the final he finished in twelfth place with a throw of 61.03m. After the competition he expressed disappointment with his placing in the final.[7]

NFL career

2013 NFL Combine

Pre-draft measurables
Ht Wt 40-yd dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert Broad BP
6 ft 6 in 304 lb 4.78 s 1.67 s 2.75 s 4.65 s 6.69 s 36 in 10 ft 7 in 30 reps
All values from Central Florida Pro Day.[8]

2013 NFL Draft

In March 2013, Okoye announced his intentions to play in the National Football League, despite having never played American football in high school or college; he stated that five NFL teams expressed interest in him, and planned to sign after the 2013 NFL Draft.[9] At the NFL Super Regional Combine, Okoye ran the 40-yard dash in 4.78 seconds, while scoring 36 inches on the vertical jump and 10 feet, 7 inches on the broad jump.[10][11] Okoye was signed on April 27 by the San Francisco 49ers.[12]

San Francisco 49ers

On August 27, 2013, Okoye was placed on Injured Reserve after sustaining an injury in the preseason.

On August 31, 2014, the 49ers announced that Okoye was added to the practice squad.[13]

On August 31, 2015, Okoye was waived in order for the 49ers to make the 53 man roster.

Arizona Cardinals

On September 7, 2015, the Arizona Cardinals signed Okoye to their practice squad.[14]

On October 21, 2015, the Cardinals released Okoye from their practice squad.[15] Head coach Bruce Arians said that a leading reason for Okoye's release was because Okoye parked his car in Arians' parking spot at team facilities.[16]

New York Jets

On November 13, 2015, the New York Jets signed Okoye to their practice squad.[17]

Okoye signed a reserve/future contract on January 11, 2016.[18]

The Jets released Okoye on June 1, 2016.[19]

Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys signed Okoye on June 8, 2016,[20] but was released on September 3, 2016 during final roster cuts.[21]

Chicago Bears

On November 23, 2016, Okoye was signed to the Bears' practice squad.[22]

References

  1. ↑ Okoye Lawrence. IAAF. Retrieved on 2012-05-21.
  2. ↑ Chadband, Ian (14 July 2012). "London 2012 Olympics: Team GB's Lawrence Okoye hopes to repay headmaster's faith with discus medal". The Daily Telegraph.
  3. ↑ http://melosport.com/2012/08/06/london-2012-meet-team-gbs-very-own-beast-in-lawrence-okoye/
  4. ↑ "Discus finalist Okoye considers rugby return after Olympics disappointment". Daily Mail. London. 15 August 2012.
  5. ↑ Anna Kessel (5 August 2011). "Discus thrower Lawrence Okoye has belief to be a world beater". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  6. ↑ German discus star Harting over 70 metres in Halle. European Athletics (2012-05-20). Retrieved on 2012-05-21.
  7. ↑ Hart, Simon (7 August 2012). "Lawrence Okoye bows out of London 2012 discus final". The Telegraph. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  8. ↑ http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=97501&draftyear=2013&genpos=DT
  9. ↑ Copeland, Kareem (31 March 2013). "Lawrence Okoye hopes to move from Olympics to NFL". National Football League. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  10. ↑ Brooks, Bucky (9 April 2013). "Lawrence Okoye, Cody Davis shine at Super Regional Combine". National Football League. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  11. ↑ http://nesn.com/2013/04/lawrence-okoye-british-discus-thrower-runs-4-78-40-yard-dash-at-6-foot-6-308-pounds-during-nfl-regional-combine/
  12. ↑ Wesseling, Chris (27 April 2013). "Lawrence Okoye to 49ers leads free-agent rookie deals". National Football League. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
  13. ↑ "49ers Sign 7 Players To Practice Squad".
  14. ↑ Urban, Darren (September 7, 2015). "Practice Squad Set For Cardinals". AZCardinals.com. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  15. ↑ url=http://www.azcardinals.com/news/transactions.html|title=Arizona Cardinals Transactions
  16. ↑ "Bruce Arians Cut Practice Squad Player Over Parking Spot".
  17. ↑ Slater, Darryl (November 17, 2015). "Meet Lawrence Okoye, former British Olympian signed by Jets". nj.com. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  18. ↑ Lange, Randy (January 11, 2016). "Jets Sign 4 More to Reserve/Future Contracts". New York Jets. Archived from the original on January 14, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  19. ↑ "Jets release former English discus-thrower Lawrence Okoye". ProFootballTalk.com. June 1, 2016. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Cowboys sign Lawrence Okoye, two others". ProFootballTalk.com. June 8, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Dallas Cowboys Roster Cuts Tracker". bloggingtheboys.com. 3 September 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  22. ↑ Mayer, Larry (November 23, 2016). "Bears re-sign Fales, put Miller on IR". ChicagoBears.com.
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