MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Obinna Eze had never played a snap of varsity football, yet there was Lane Kiffin with a scholarship offer to Alabama in the spring of 2016.
Heck, Eze had played football for only one year on the junior varsity squad at Davidson Academy in Nashville. But by the summer of 2016, he had scholarship offers from nearly everyone in the SEC.
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Born in Nigeria, Eze arrived in the United States in the summer of 2015. He didn’t know much about the country and was still learning football, but he knew what an Alabama offer meant.
“That’s when it dawned on me, they see something in you for real,” he says. “You might be just as talented.”
Eze came to the U.S. to play basketball, but it was quickly evident his 6-foot-8 frame would be well-suited for football. That body type and athleticism made him highly sought-after because of his raw potential, even if his play on his JV film was sloppy at times.
When August 2016 came around, Eze made his college decision. He didn’t choose Alabama or another SEC school.
He chose Memphis, a Group of 5 school with a new coaching staff. He became one of the highest-ranked recruits in the history of the program, a four-star Class of 2017 prospect ranked as the No. 21 offensive tackle by the 247Sports Composite.
Three years since that decision, his time has arrived. After redshirting and sitting behind an all-conference player, Eze is expected to take over the starting left tackle position for the Tigers. And his first test will come against an SEC team, Ole Miss, in Week 1.
He brings hype and praise from the coaches, but he’s still relatively new to the sport. That’s what makes everyone so excited.
“With what he showed on the field in spring, the continued development in summer, the sky is the limit,” Memphis head coach Mike Norvell says. “I won’t put limits on what he can do.”
But Eze has dreams and plans much bigger than just football.
Eze hasn’t seen his family in more than four years. It’s a sacrifice he’s had to make.
At 16 years old, he attended an open basketball camp in Nigeria, a year after picking up the sport. He impressed so much that he was invited to a closed camp for 50 players. From there, he made a team that traveled to the United States to play an AAU circuit. American interest in him blew up from that tour, with high schools in Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina and Tennessee offering scholarships.
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Eze’s mother has a master’s degree in English, and the opportunity to get an education in the U.S. was something Eze’s family felt he shouldn’t pass up. He opted for Davidson Academy in Nashville and was paired with Maurice and Jennifer Fitzgerald as his guardians. He left Nigeria, uncertain of his future, unsure of when he’d see his family again. It’s too expensive for them to visit him or for him to go back right now.
“Certain sacrifices are necessary,” Eze says. “I’m glad they understand it, even though it’s hard for them and me too. We chose a path.”
He arrived in Tennessee to play basketball, but two weeks in, Fitzgerald approached him with an idea: What about playing football? Eze knew nothing about the sport.
Eze could continue to play basketball as planned, but he could also play a sport Fitzgerald thought would be a better fit. Fitzgerald is a former Tennessee player and runs National Playmakers Academy, a football training organization in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
“A 6-8 athlete is more special in football than basketball,” Fitzgerald says. “He could be a good basketball player and a great football player, and a professional football player, in my opinion. That resonated. To his credit, he analyzed what I was saying and did research.”
Fitzgerald enlisted former Tennessee offensive lineman Antonio Richardson to train Eze. It wasn’t pretty at first as he learned footwork. When the school year came around, Eze was classified as a high school junior, but he was required to play junior varsity because of transfer rules. It turned out to be a blessing as he learned the game in a low-pressure environment.
“I realized how hard football was and how behind I was.” Eze says.
His coach, Jonathan Quinn, told Eze that if he didn’t know what to do, he should just go lay out someone. When he didn’t know what to do on a screen pass in an early game, he tackled a linebacker. The official told him he wasn’t allowed to do that. Eze laughs about it now.
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“You talk about raw. He had no knowledge of American football,” Quinn says. “I like to remind Obinna of where he’s come from on the field.”
There were growing pains on the field, but as he bulked up — thanks to American food, Eze says — his potential was evident.
The roots of Eze’s commitment to Memphis came before Memphis even knew about him.
Memphis hired Norvell in December 2015. Later that month, he hired former colleague Ryan Silverfield as the offensive line coach. Silverfield was assigned to recruit Nashville, an area the Tigers hadn’t recruited well in a long time. Silverfield reached out to the local high school coaches to introduce himself and start a relationship. One of those coaches was Stratford High School’s Maurice Fitzgerald Sr., the father of Eze’s guardian.
“My father was so impressed by Coach Silverfield,” Maurice Fitzgerald Jr. says. “He picked up the phone and called me and said, ‘You need to deal with this guy Silverfield.”
When Silverfield saw Eze on tape, the potential was obvious. His technique needed work, but a 6-8 player with the movement and body control of a basketball player had clear potential.
Eze’s first offer came from Kentucky in November 2015. He called his mom about that one, and they got emotional over what it meant for his future. Duke and Vanderbilt offered later in the month. LSU came in January 2016, then Auburn and Mississippi State.
Silverfield didn’t care who else offered. He also didn’t blow smoke. He told Eze he’d be given a fair shot but would probably redshirt as he developed. He told Eze about his seven years coaching in the NFL and how Norvell’s offense could help him get there. He told Eze how going to school in a bigger city would help his plans for a business degree to help his family.
“Other schools were saying he could come in and play and may have bigger stadiums, but he saw the reality with it,” Silverfield says. “I think he liked that I’d coached in the NFL for seven years but am young enough I could relate and get to know him.”
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Memphis offered in February 2016. Alabama’s offer came in April, followed by Georgia and Ole Miss. Thirteen of the 14 SEC schools offered him. Most American kids might feel pressure to choose from among the historically dominant programs. Eze understood what it meant, hearing as much from his high school friends, but he wasn’t bound to it.
“Some of them thought I was stupid,” he says. “Every scholarship was big to me. It wasn’t about going to a big-time school. I didn’t have anybody to impress in my family. I didn’t have, ‘If he doesn’t go to Alabama, he’s a disgrace.’ I didn’t have that pressure. I was just looking for somewhere to fit in.”
Eze consulted with Fitzgerald and Quinn, his closest confidants. They knew how rare such a decision would be, but they also knew the Tigers fit what he wanted. In August 2016, he chose Memphis over the SEC. He credited Silverfield for developing their relationship.
“I know there was a lot of high-fiving and dancing, every emotion you have,” Norvell says of the staff’s reaction. “You try to paint a picture for kids, and so many get caught up by logo or a conference. But maybe they take their own experience out of it.”
Memphis defensive lineman O’Bryan Goodson wishes he was still living with Eze. If he was, he could enjoy Eze’s Nigerian cooking again.
Eze lived with five teammates his first year at Memphis in 2017. He cooked for the group, while they introduced him to slang terms, “Memphis English” and Cajun food.
“We wanted people to welcome him in just like we welcomed him in,” Goodson says. “We took him in like a brother and showed him the culture.”
Eze redshirted as a freshman and backed up Trevon Tate at left tackle last season. Now he takes over as a starter. Memphis coaches believe he has a chance to play in the NFL if he continues growing on this trajectory. He has measurables and athletic ability that can’t be taught.
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Eze is majoring in international business and has participated in multiple business internships. Whether it’s through a professional football or business career, he plans to aid his family in Nigeria, including his four sisters, who he talks to every day. He knows gaining citizenship in the United States will be difficult. He doesn’t know his path yet, but he knows the end goal.
“Sometimes things are hard, but that’s life,” he says. “All you can do is be there as much as you can and hope God takes care of them until I can. That’s part of my motivation. I want to put them in a position where I’m not asking how they’re doing. I want to dictate how good their life goes, keep them away from certain difficulties. Until then, I look up to God to take care of them for me.”
Norvell likes that Eze’s first start will come against an Ole Miss team playing a difficult 3-4 front. Throw Eze in the fire, and the real learning process begins.
“Obinna is going to be successful no matter what he does,” Norvell says. “He can play this game for a long time. Whenever the last day of football comes, he’ll continue to have success, because of the drive he has in every aspect of his life.”
(Photo: Courtesy of Memphis Athletics)
