Praise Martin-Oguike (born August 30, 1993) is a

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

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 ...

for the

Ottawa Redblacks The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) ( French: Le Rouge et Noir d'Ottawa) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Startin ...

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 ...

(CFL). 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 ...

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

. Martin-Oguike has also been a member of the

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

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

and

Seattle Dragons The Seattle Sea Dragons (formerly known as the Seattle Dragons) are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. The team is a franchise of the new XFL and plays its home games at Lumen Field in Seattle. Originally founded ...

(XFL).

Early life

Martin-Oguike, was born in

Abia State Abia State ( ig, Ȯha Abia) is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, it is bordered to the north and northeast by the states of Enugu, and Ebonyi, Imo State to the west, Cross River State to the east, Akwa Ibom State to the ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. He is a native of Oka in

Isiala Mbano Isiala Mbano is a Local Government Area in Imo State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Umuelemai. It has an area of 166 square km and a population of 198,736 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is 471. Geographical locatio ...

Imo State Imo State ( ig, Ȯra Imo) is a States of Nigeria, state in the South East (Nigeria), South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north by Anambra State, Rivers State to the west and south, and Abia State to the east. It takes its n ...

. He moved to

Woodbridge Township, New Jersey Woodbridge Township is a township in Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is both a regional hub for Central New Jersey and a major bedroom suburb of New York City in the New York metropolitan area located within the ...

at the age of 10. Martin-Oguike is the son of Venerable Dr. Martin Oguike (Anglican clergyman and adjunct Professor) and Dr. Ngozi Martin-Oguike (Educator and author) who are both highly regarded in the

Igbo Igbo may refer to: * Igbo people, an ethnic group of Nigeria * Igbo language, their language * anything related to Igboland, a cultural region in Nigeria See also * Ibo (disambiguation) * Igbo mythology * Igbo music * Igbo art * * Igbo-Ukwu, a t ...

community of Nigeria. He has a sister, Precious, and two brothers Percy and Pleasant.

College career

Martin-Oguike recorded 124 tackles, 20 sacks, 1 interception, 12 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and 6 blocked field goals during his time at Temple.

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

Martin-Oguike signed with the

as an undrafted free agent on May 5, 2017. He was waived on September 2, 2017.

Arizona Cardinals

On January 19, 2018, Martin-Oguike signed a reserve/future contract with the

. He was waived/injured by the Cardinals on July 26, 2018 and was placed on injured reserve. He was released on August 4, 2018.

Seattle Dragons

In October 2019, the

selected Martin-Oguike in the tenth round of the

2020 XFL Draft The 2020 XFL Draft was the inaugural player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams of the 2020 reboot of the XFL. The draft was held on October 15–16, 2019, via conference call, with results released through the XFL's social m ...

. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020. Martin-Oguike was selected by the Blues of

The Spring League The Spring League was an American football developmental league and scouting event (pro showcase) that played from 2017 to 2021 and was founded by Brian Woods. Aimed at professional athletes but not paying a salary or expenses, the league's go ...

during its player selection draft on October 11, 2020.

Ottawa Redblacks

Martin-Oguike signed with the

of the CFL on June 4, 2021. On his first two seasons in the CFL Martin-Oguike played in 18 regular season games and contributed with 32 defensive tackles, seven sacks, one forced fumble and one special teams tackle. On February 7, 2023, Martin-Oguike agreed to a one-year contract extension with Ottawa.

References

External links

Temple Owls football bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin-Oguike, Praise 1993 births Living people People from Woodbridge Township, New Jersey Players of American football from New Jersey Sportspeople from Middlesex County, New Jersey Woodbridge High School (New Jersey) alumni Nigerian emigrants to the United States Nigerian players of American football American football linebackers Temple Owls football players Arizona Cardinals players Seattle Dragons players The Spring League players Ottawa Redblacks players Sportspeople from Abia State