Becoming a Saint, via Nigeria and Winnipeg
David Onyemata on taking unusual path to NFL, New Orleans
David Onyemata hadn’t played a single down of football when he arrived at the University of Manitoba in 2011. More interested in quarterly reports than quarterback blitzes, Onyemata originally came to Winnipeg from Nigeria to pursue an economics degree.
Seven years later, Onyemata is making key contributions to a New Orleans Saints team with designs on a Super Bowl title.
The defensive lineman starred in a nationally televised NFL game last Thursday night, racking up three sacks against the Dallas Cowboys.
Onyemata’s journey from his native Nigeria to the NFL, by way of U Sports’ Manitoba Bisons, is one of the league’s most unique stories, one that would have played out much differently had he not had the confidence to show up in person to Bisons head coach Brian Dobie’s office to ask for a tryout.
“When I got (to Manitoba), there was another international student who was trying out with the team at that point,” the 26year-old Onyemata said from Metairie, La., after Thursday’s practice as the Saints (10-2) geared up for Sunday’s road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. “I talked to him and he was like ‘Give it a shot.’ So I did that. I called a couple of times, didn’t hear from coach (Dobie) so I went to his office myself.
“He told me to come out to practice that same day, and that’s how it all started.”
Onyemata went on to have an outstanding career with the Bisons and was named the top lineman in Canadian university football in 2016. It was a feat made more impressive by the fact that Onyemata had to start from scratch learning football’s myriad complexities.
“I saw the game on TV, but at that point I didn’t really understand what was going on,” he said. “I didn’t understand the schemes and game plans and all that.”
Onyemata graduated from Manitoba with a bachelor’s degree in environmental science after switching his academic focus, but by then his pro football options were looking bright. He was the top-ranked prospect for the 2016 CFL draft.
New Orleans traded up to pick Onyemata in the fourth round, 120th overall, in 2016, making him the first Bison ever taken in the NFL draft.
Most Canadians who get drafted come out of American programs, and Onyemata said taking the U Sports road to a pro career south of the border is tough.
“It’s not the easiest environment,” he said. “You don’t have all the nice things you have out here. You’ve still got to work during the summer time, you still have to work during school.
The six-foot-four, 300-pound Onyemata said he still makes it back to Winnipeg every year for a visit, and likes to take in a Blue Bombers game when back in Manitoba.
And he had some advice for Laval Rouge et Or defensive lineman Mathieu Betts, who is the first U Sports athlete to be named the top-ranked prospect for the CFL draft since Onyemata. Betts has been selected to play in the Shrine Game on Jan. 19 in St. Petersburg, Fla.
“Go out there and give it your all, and the rest will fall in place,” Onyemata said.