Frank Tayo Omiyale ( ; born November 23, 1982) is a former

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 wi ...

offensive tackle who played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the fifth round of the

2005 NFL Draft The 2005 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24, 2005. The league also he ...

. He played college football at

Tennessee Tech Tennessee Technological University, commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech, is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie ...

. Omiyale also played for the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

, Chicago Bears, and the Seattle Seahawks.

Early years

Omiyale attended Whites Creek Comprehensive High School in

Whites Creek, Tennessee Whites Creek is an unincorporated community located near Nashville in the northern part of Davidson County, Tennessee. The community and nearby creek which travels north to south along US 431 were named after an early settler named White who was ...

. In football, he was twice voted as the team's Most Valuable Lineman, and won All-Region honors, and second-team All-State honors. He also lettered in

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

, and competed in shot put and discus on the

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

team.

College career

Omiyale played for

for four years from 2001–2004. As a senior in 2004, he made the

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

team, won All-

Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in the Football Cham ...

honors, and graded 90.5 for blocking consistency to lead the

NCAA Division I-AA The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athleti ...

in that statistical category. Omiyale was inducted into the Tennessee Tech Sports Hall of Fame in November 2015.

Professional career

Atlanta Falcons

Omiyale was selected in the fifth round (163rd overall) of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. As a rookie in 2005, Omiyale was inactive for all 16 regular season games for the Falcons. In 2006, he made his first NFL appearance for the Falcons in a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on October 22, 2006. He was placed on waivers by the Falcons on September 1, 2007.

Carolina Panthers

On September 2, 2007, Omiyale was claimed off waivers by the

. However, he was inactive for all 16 regular season games for the Panthers in 2007. On October 5, 2008, Omiyale made his first NFL regular season start, replacing the injured

left tackle Tackle is a playing position in gridiron football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and defense. In the modern system of specialized units, o ...

Jordan Gross Jordan Alan Gross (born July 20, 1980) is a former American football offensive tackle for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Utah, where he was recognized as a consensus All-American. He s ...

who was out with a concussion.

Chicago Bears

Omiyale signed a four-year, $14 million deal with the Chicago Bears on February 27, 2009. He was released by the team on March 1, 2012.

Seattle Seahawks

On March 21, 2012, the Seattle Seahawks announced that Omiyale had agreed to terms with the team. After spending the 2012 season in Seattle, Omiyale retired from the NFL.

References

External links

Chicago Bears bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Omiyale, Frank 1982 births Living people Players of American football from Nashville, Tennessee American football offensive tackles American football offensive guards Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles football players Atlanta Falcons players Carolina Panthers players Chicago Bears players Seattle Seahawks players