Cyrus Berenice Kouandjio ( ) (born July 21, 1993) is a

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

ian former professional

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 ...

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

. He was drafted by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

in the second round of the

2014 NFL Draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

. 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 ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

High school career

Kouandjio initially attended

High Point High School High Point High School (HPHS) is a Public school (government funded), public high school located in Beltsville, Maryland, Beltsville, an unincorporated area, unincorporated section of Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The school, ...

Beltsville, Maryland Beltsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in northern Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The community was named for Truman Belt, a local landowner. The 2020 census counted 20,133 residents. Beltsville includes the unincorporated ...

, where he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

for the Eagles program. After his freshman year he was recruited by and transferred to

DeMatha Catholic High School DeMatha Catholic High School is a four-year Catholic high school for boys located in Hyattsville, Maryland, United States. Named after John of Matha, DeMatha is under the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and is a member of the Washington Ca ...

Hyattsville, Maryland Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and also a close, urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States Census. History Before Europeans reached the area, the upper An ...

with his older brother

Arie Arie is a masculine given name. As a Dutch name, Arie (pronounced ) is generally a short form of Adrianus, but sometimes also of Arend or Arent, Arnout or Arnoud, or even Aaron. As a Hebrew, Jewish, or Israeli name, Arie (pronounced ) is a tr ...

, where he played football for the Stags program. He competed in the 2011

Under Armour All-America Game The Under Armour High School All-America Game is a high school football all-star game typically held in early January in the U.S. state of Florida created to spotlight the nation’s top high school seniors. The game was first played on January 5, ...

. Kouandjio, a five-star and consensus top

offensive line In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

prospect in the nation by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

Scout.com Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...

, and SuperPrep, received offers from over sixty schools, including:

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

, and

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. He was the fourth-ranked prospect in the recruiting class of 2011. On

National Signing Day National Signing Day has traditionally been the first day that a high school senior can sign a binding National Letter of Intent for a collegiate sport with a school that is a member of the United States National Collegiate Athletic Association ( ...

, Kouandjio announced on

ESPNU ESPNU is an American multinational digital cable and satellite sports television channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Disney Media Networks division of The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and the Hears ...

that he would attend

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a public land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama. With more than 24,600 undergraduate students and a total enrollment of more than 30,000 with 1,330 faculty members, Auburn is the second largest uni ...

. Later that day, it was reported that he had second thoughts about his choice and was still undecided. Three days later, on February 5, 2011, Kouandjio's brother Arie announced on his

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

account that Cyrus would attend the University of Alabama.

College career

In 2011, Kouandjio contributed as a

true freshman Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

, playing in eight games until a knee injury in the second half against

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

ended his season. As a sophomore in 2012, Kouandjio started all 14 games at the left tackle position. He had the fewest career starts on the Alabama offensive line in the 2012 season. In the 2013 BCS National Championship Game against Notre Dame, Alabama repeatedly ran to the left behind Kouandjio, contributing to 265 net yards rushing and 5.9 yards per rush. On Alabama's third drive, Kouandjio pancake blocked Notre Dame defensive end

Sheldon Day Sheldon Day (born July 1, 1994) is an American football defensive end for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Notre Dame and was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fourth round of ...

. Kouandjio ended the 2012 season ranked as the top offensive tackle from the 2011 recruiting class. As a junior in 2013, Kouandjio was a first-team All-

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC) selection. After the season, he decided to forego his senior season and entered the

Professional career

As early as April 2013, Kouandjio was projected as one of the top selections in the

Buffalo Bills

Kouanjio was drafted by the

in the second round of the

. He became the fifth Alabama offensive lineman selected in the first two rounds in six years, after Andre Smith, James Carpenter,

Chance Warmack Chance Warmack (born September 14, 1991) is an American football guard who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans tenth overall in the 2013 NFL Draft. He played college football at Alabama, and earned All-American honors. Hig ...

, and

D. J. Fluker Danny Lee Jesus "D. J." Fluker (born March 13, 1991) is an American football offensive tackle for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He ...

. Kouandjio suffered an ankle injury near the start of the 2016 season, causing him to miss multiple weeks. He went on to play 12 games with five starts in 2016. On January 26, 2017, Kouandijo suffered a hip injury after falling in his home and underwent surgery. He was expected to recover in time for training camp. On May 24, 2017, Kouandijo was released by the Bills.

Detroit Lions

On June 15, 2017, Kouandijo signed with the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

. He was released on August 29, 2017.

Denver Broncos

On November 8, 2017 Kouandjio was signed by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

. He played in three games, starting one at right tackle in 2017. On September 1, 2018, Kouandjio was released by the Broncos. He was re-signed on November 20, 2018. He was released again on December 4, 2018.

New York Guardians

Kouandjio was drafted in the 2nd round in phase two in the 2020 XFL Draft by 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 ...

Saskatchewan Roughriders

On March 23, 2020, Kouandjio signed with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

. He retired from football on July 20, 2021.

Personal life

Kouandjio's older brother,

, played offensive guard at Alabama and for the

Washington Redskins 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) N ...

. Cyrus is married to his college girlfriend, Elizabeth Van Zandt who was also an athlete at the University of Alabama. On April 20, 2017, Kouandjio was found undressed by deputies and firefighters in

Elma, New York :'' For other places with this name, see Elma''. Elma is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 11,721 at the 2020 census. The town is named after the American elm tree. Elma is in the county's central area, southe ...

. Kouandjio required medical attention in an undisclosed condition, and was granted first-aid. Kouandjio formally turned himself in, avoiding his arrest.

References

External links

*
Alabama Crimson Tide bio

Rivals.com Recruiting Profile

Buffalo Bills bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kouandjio, Cyrus 1993 births Living people Alabama Crimson Tide football players All-American college football players American football offensive tackles American people of Cameroonian descent Buffalo Bills players Cameroonian players of American football Denver Broncos players Detroit Lions players Players of American football from Maryland Sportspeople from the Washington metropolitan area Under Armour All-American football players People from Hyattsville, Maryland Saskatchewan Roughriders players DeMatha Catholic High School alumni