Isaac Egboida Omiete Ukwu (born January 14, 1999) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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

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) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

James Madison Dukes The James Madison Dukes are the college sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams that represent James Madison University (JMU), in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The name "Dukes" is derived from Samuel Page Duke, the university's se ...

and for the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford, Mississippi, Oxford. The first was the Ole ...

Early life and high school

Ukwu attended Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School located in

Upper Marlboro, Maryland Upper Marlboro, officially the Town of Upper Marlboro, is the county seat of Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population within the town limits was 652, although Greater Upper ...

. Coming out of high school, Ukwu decided to commit to play

for the

College career

James Madison

During Ukwu's five-year career with James Madison from 2017 to 2022, he played in 28 games after suffering two season-ending knee injuries; he totaled 88 tackles, with 27.5 being for a loss, and 16.5 sacks, while being named all-conference twice. After the conclusion of the 2022 season, Ukwu entered his name into the

NCAA transfer portal The NCAA transfer portal is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) application, database, and compliance tool created to manage and facilitate the process for student athletes seeking to transfer between member institutions. It is i ...

Ole Miss

Ukwu transferred to play for the

. In Ukwu's lone season with Ole Miss, he notched 30 tackles and three and a half sacks.

Professional career

After not being selected in the

2024 NFL draft The 2024 NFL draft was the 89th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft was held at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in Detroit on April 25–27, 2024. The draft had an attendanc ...

, Ukwu signed with the

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager 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 a contract at present ...

. He was also selected by the

Michigan Panthers The Michigan Panthers were a professional American football team based in Metro Detroit. The Panthers competed in the United States Football League (USFL) as a member of the Western Conference and Central Division. The team played its home gam ...

in the third round of the

2024 UFL draft The 2024 UFL draft, also known as the 2024 UFL college draft, was the first meeting of United Football League (UFL) franchises to select newly eligible players ahead of the 2025 UFL season. It was the first rookie draft since the league formed ...

on July 17. During Ukwu's three preseason games, he tallied three sacks and a forced fumble while fighting for a spot on the Lions' 53-man roster. He was waived on August 27, and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 20, 2025.

References

External links

James Madison Dukes bioOle Miss Rebels bioDetroit Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ukwu, Isaac 1999 births Living people Players of American football from Upper Marlboro, Maryland American football defensive ends James Madison Dukes football players Ole Miss Rebels football players Detroit Lions players