Olubunmi Babatunde Rotimi Jr. (born July 16, 1995) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Old Dominion Old Dominion most commonly refers to: *The Old Dominion, a nickname for the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia ** Colony of Virginia *Old Dominion University, a public university in Norfolk, Virginia **Old Dominion Monarchs, the athletic teams represe ...

and signed with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2018. Rotimi has also played for the

Arizona Hotshots The Arizona Hotshots were a professional American football franchise based in Tempe, Arizona, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which played one season from February 2019 to April 2019. They played their ho ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

(AAF) and the

New York Guardians The Orlando Guardians are a professional American football team based in Orlando, Florida. The team was founded by Vince McMahon's Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the XFL. The Guardians played their home games at MetLi ...

of the

XFL XFL may refer to: Sports * XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001 * XFL (2020), a professional American football league Vehicles * Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...

Early life and education

Bunmi Rotimi was born on July 16, 1995, in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

, to African immigrants. He attended

West Potomac High School West Potomac High School, formerly Groveton High School, is a public high school in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County, Virginia. It was founded in 1985 and is part of the Fairfax County Public Schools district. History West Potomac High Sc ...

, earning all-district honors as a junior, even though his freshman year was the first year he tried playing the sport. Following high school he went to

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia with ...

, where he spent his true freshman year of 2013 as a redshirt. A walk-on, Rotimi played in twelve games as a freshman, starting two at

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. He recorded 30 tackles in the season. As a sophomore, Rotimi played in twelve games, starting eleven and recording 36 tackles. He also was second on the team with 4.5 sacks. He transitioned to

as a junior, starting thirteen games, and making 44 tackles and seven sacks. He started seven games as a senior, making 29 tackles and 5.5 sacks. Against

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...

, Rotimi made a blocked field goal. He was named all-Conference USA honorable mention following his senior season.

Professional career

Chicago Bears

After only competing at five NFL Combine drills, Rotimi went unselected in the

2018 NFL Draft The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...

. He was signed as an

by the

on May 11. He was released in July before the preseason started.

Arizona Hotshots

His next team after Chicago was the

of the

(AAF). He appeared in five games, making six tackles and a sack before the league folded.

New York Guardians

After the Hotshots folded, Rotimi was signed by the

of the

. He played in five games again, making 25 tackles before the league suspended.

Washington Football Team

Rotimi signed with the

Washington Football Team The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) E ...

on July 28, 2021. He was released during the team's final roster cuts but signed with their practice squad the following day. He was signed to the active roster on November 13, 2021. He made his first career sack in Week 15 against the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

. On March 16, 2022, the team placed an

exclusive-rights free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

tender on Rotimi. He was placed on injured reserve on August 22, 2022, and was released with an injury settlement a week later.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rotimi, Bunmi 1995 births Living people Players of American football from Virginia American football defensive ends Old Dominion Monarchs football players Washington Football Team players African-American players of American football