Ogbongbemiga back where he grew up
Oklahoma State has five players on its roster who came from high schools in the Houston metro or the nearby area, but that doesn't include junior linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga.
Born in Nigeria, Ogbongbemiga's family moved to Houston when he was 3 years old, then moved to Canada when he was 12, settling in Calgary.
Back in Houston for the Texas Bowl against Texas A&M at 5:45 p.m. Friday inside NRG Stadium, Ogbongbemiga will be a key player in the Cowboy defense's plan to contain the Aggies.
Q: What challenges does Texas A&M present?
A: “They got good players. We gotta come ready to play. This is a different challenge than we've seen most of the time, with the tempo of the offense and their system. But I know they're gonna come ready to play, so we gotta be ready to play as well.”
There is some familiarity between these programs. Do you like that?
“Yeah, I love this. I grew up in Houston. This is pretty much a home game for me with all the people that are coming to support, so this is like a dream come true for me. I kind of grew up an A&M fan. My uncle is a huge A&M fan. He's gonna be at the game, so it's gonna be my school against his.”
How tough is it for the defense to be without Kolby Harvell-Peel?
“Man, I felt so bad for him. Kolby is such a down-to-Earth guy. This is really a home matchup for him, playing against the hometown Aggies. It sucks to see that happen, when guys have a chance to play against teams they probably looked up to their whole life. So we're gonna go out there, gonna represent him and play like he was with us.”
Are you excited to play at NRG Stadium?
“This was another dream of mine, and playing against a team I grew up loving, and was kind of a dream school, this is a big game for me and my family. I'm very excited.”