Akinola James Ayodele (; born September 17, 1979) 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 ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

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 majo ...

(NFL) for the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divis ...

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 p ...

, and

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 ...

. He was drafted by the

in the third round of the

2002 NFL Draft The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually sinc ...

. 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 in the United States, American football rules first gained populari ...

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mo ...

Early years

Ayodele attended MacArthur High School in

Irving, Texas Irving is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. Located in Dallas County, it is also an inner ring suburb of Dallas. The city of Irving is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. According to a 2019 estimate from the United States Census Bureau ...

. As a senior, he was a two-way player at

and

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

. He tallied 35 tackles, 5 sacks and 8 receptions for 242 yards, while receiving All-District honors. Although he had good grades in high school, he was missing a course to be able to accept the scholarship from

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...

, so he enrolled at Coffeyville Community College for one year. As a

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Entertainment * ''Red Shirts'' (film), a 1952 film about Anita Garibaldi by Franco Rossi * Redshirt (stock character), originally derived from ''Star Trek'', a stock character who dies soon after b ...

freshman, he was switched to

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 formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is p ...

, registering 101 tackles, 7 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries. He received second-team NJCAA All-American, All-Jayhawk and Mission Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors. At the time, he ranked second on the school all-time tackles for loss in a single-season (33). As a sophomore, he transferred to

. He started all of the games at right defensive end, collecting 64 tackles (19 for loss), 11 sacks (fourth in school history), one pass defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. As a junior, he started the first 5 games at strongside linebacker and the last 7 at right defensive end. He registered 66 tackles (15 for loss), 9 sacks (tied for second in the Big Ten), 2 interceptions (second on the team), 6 passes defensed (tied for third on the team) and 2 fumble recoveries. As a senior, he started all of the games at strongside linebacker. He posted 64 tackles, 9 sacks (second in the conference), 20 tackles for loss (sixth in school history), 4 passes defensed, 3 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries. He had 11 tackles (6 for loss), 2 sacks and one pass defensed against the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,0 ...

. He received the Jimmy Rogers Jr. Most Valuable Lineman trophy at the 2001 Sun Bowl. He was named first-team All-

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

as a senior and second-team All-Conference as a sophomore and junior. He was tied with Jeff Zgonina for second on Purdue's career-record list with 29 sacks, topped only by Rosevelt Colvin with 33. He finished his college career with 194 tackles, 54 tackles for loss (fourth in school history), 2 interceptions, 11 passes defensed, 4 forced fumbles and 5 fumble recoveries.

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars

Ayodele was selected in the third round (89th overall) of the

2002 NFL draft The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually sinc ...

by the

, with the intention of playing him at

outside linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

. As a rookie, he had 3 starts at strongside linebacker because of injury to

Eric Westmoreland Eric Westmoreland (born March 11, 1977) is a former linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) who played from 2001 to 2004 for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American footbal ...

and also saw considerable time as a rush end on passing downs. He registered 108 tackles (fourth on team), 3 sacks, 13 quarterback pressures (led the team), 3 passes defensed, one interception, 2 forced fumbles and 13

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

tackles (tied for second on the team). He had 10 tackles, one sack and one interception against the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conferenc ...

. In 2003, he was named a starter at

, while posting 150 tackles (second on the team), one sack, 4 passes defensed, 2 interceptions and 3 fumble recoveries. He had 11 tackles, one sack, one quarterback pressure and one interception in the season opener against 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. ...

. In 2004, he totaled 131 tackles (second on the team), 2 sacks, 3 passes defensed, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one blocked field goal. In 2005, he tallied 100 tackles (third on the team) 2.5 sacks, 4 tackles for loss and 4 forced fumbles (led the team). He had 15 tackles and 2 sacks against the Kansas City Chiefs. Ayodele never missed a game and was the first player in franchise history to record at least 100 tackles in four consecutive seasons.

Dallas Cowboys

In 2006, he signed a five-year contract with the

as a

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 i ...

, to play inside linebacker in the team's 3-4 defense and help shore up their run defense. Coincidentally, as a child growing up in Irving, Ayodele was a

ball boy Ball boys and ball girls, also known as ball kids are individuals, usually human youths but sometimes dogs, who retrieve and supply balls for players or officials in sports such as association football, American football, bandy, cricket, tenn ...

for the Cowboys in high school. He recorded 106 tackles (second on the team), 5 tackles for loss (tied for the team lead), 2 interceptions (third on the team), 4 passes defensed, 2 fumble recoveries and 7

tackles. He started in the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game against the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 a ...

, making 8 tackles. In 2007, Ayodele had a chance to play on the same team with his brother

Remi The Remi (Gaulish: ''Rēmi'', 'the first, the princes') were a Belgic tribe dwelling in the Aisne, Vesle and Suippe river valleys during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Their territory roughly corresponded the modern Marne and Ardennes and ...

, while posting 14 starts, 95 tackles (fourth on the team), 4 passes defensed and 3

tackles. He started in the NFC Divisional Playoff Game against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

, making 6 tackles. In 2008, after the team signed

Zach Thomas Zachary Michael Thomas (born September 1, 1973) is an American former professional football player who was a middle linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons. He played college football for Texas Tech University, and wa ...

, he became tradable. On April 25, Ayodele was traded along with

Anthony Fasano Anthony Joseph Fasano (born April 20, 1984) is a former American football tight end. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He played college football at Notre Dame. Fasano also played for the Kansas City ...

to the

in exchange for a fourth-round pick (#100-

Tyvon Branch Tyvon A. Branch (born December 11, 1986) is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft and has also played for the Kansas City Chiefs and Arizona Cardinals. H ...

) in the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 2 ...

Miami Dolphins

In 2008, he reunited with former Cowboys head coach Bill Parcells, who was the team's Executive Vice President of Football Operations with the

. He tallied 13 starts, 74 tackles (third on the team), 2 interceptions, 4 passes defensed and one fumble recovery. He started in the AFC wild card game against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

, tying for a team-high 6 tackles and having one pass defensed. In 2009, he started in 15 games, recording 70 tackles (third on the team), one forced fumble and 2 fumble recoveries. He had 8 tackles against the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their home games at NR ...

. On March 5, 2010, he was released, as he was seen as a liability in pass coverage. Enters the 2010 season having recorded at least one tackle in 71 consecutive games.

Denver Broncos

On April 24, 2010, Ayodele signed with 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 headquar ...

. He was assigned the jersey number 51 and was released on August 24.

Buffalo Bills

On September 10, 2010, the

signed Ayodele to take the spot of LB

Kawika Mitchell Kawika Uilani Mitchell is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at University of South Florida. Mitchell was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2nd round in 2003. Mitche ...

after the team placed him on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. He appeared in 15 games (10 starts), missing the first game of his professional career. He wasn't re-signed at the end of the season.

Personal life

"Akin" is a short name for "Akinola", which in

Yoruba language Yoruba (, ; Yor. '; Ajami: ) is a language spoken in West Africa, primarily in Southwestern and Central Nigeria. It is spoken by the ethnic Yoruba people. The number of Yoruba speakers is roughly 50 million, plus about 2 million second-languag ...

means 'the brave and wealthy one'. His younger brother

Remi Ayodele Remilekun "Remi" Ayodele (born April 22, 1983) is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League for the New Orleans Saints, Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings. He played college football at Oklahoma. Early year ...

played

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 l ...

in the NFL. Ayodele was inducted into the

Irving Independent School District Irving Independent School District is a school district based in Irving, Texas (USA). The district, which covers , serves most of the city of Irving, except for Valley Ranch and a portion of Las Colinas. The district also serves small portio ...

first Hall of Fame Class in 2012.

References

External links

Official websiteCoffeyville Red Ravens bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ayodele, Akin 1979 births Living people Nigerian players of American football People from Irving, Texas Players of American football from Dallas American sportspeople of Nigerian descent American people of Yoruba descent Yoruba sportspeople American football defensive ends American football linebackers Coffeyville Red Ravens football players Purdue Boilermakers football players Jacksonville Jaguars players Dallas Cowboys players Miami Dolphins players Buffalo Bills players