Julian Okwara (born December 27, 1997) is a Nigerian-English professional

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

for the

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of the

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(NFL). He played

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for the

Notre Dame Fighting Irish The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are the athletic teams that represent the University of Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish participate in 26 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate sports and in the NCAA's Division ...

and was selected by 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 ...

in the third round of the

2020 NFL draft The 2020 NFL draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The ...

Early life

Okwara was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

while his mother was visiting family, but raised in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

. Okwara lived in

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

and was raised in

Lekki Lekki is a city in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is located to the south-east of Lagos city. Lekki is a naturally formed peninsula, adjoining to its west Victoria Island and Ikoyi districts of Lagos, with the Atlantic Ocean to its south, Lagos Lag ...

before moving to the United States when he was in the third grade. He attended

Ardrey Kell High School Ardrey Kell High School is a public high school serving grades 9–12 in the Ballantyne area of Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. The school is part of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools district. History Established in 2006, Ardrey Kell H ...

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. A four-star defensive end recruit, Okwara committed to Notre Dame to play college football.

College career

As a true freshman at Notre Dame in 2016, he played in 11 games, recording four tackles. As a sophomore in 2017, he played in 12 of 13 games, recording 17 tackles, 2.5 sacks and an interception. As a junior in 2018, he started 12 of 13 games, finishing with 38 tackles and eight sacks. Okwara returned to Notre Dame for his senior season in 2019.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

The

of the

(NFL) selected Okwara in the third round with the 67th overall pick of the

. On June 9, 2020, the Lions signed Okwara to a four-year contract. He was placed on

injured reserve 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 ...

on October 21, 2020, after suffering a right leg injury in Week 6. On December 22, 2020, Okwara was activated off of injured reserve. On December 3, 2022, Okwara was placed on injured reserve. Okwara was waived on January 18, 2024, and re-signed to the practice squad. He was not signed to a reserve/future contract after the season and thus became a free agent when his practice squad contract expired.

Philadelphia Eagles

Okwara signed with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

on February 14, 2024. He was released on August 26.

Arizona Cardinals

On August 28, 2024, Okwara was signed to the

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) NFC West, West division. The ...

practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on September 11.

Cleveland Browns

On April 14, 2025, Okwara signed with the

Personal life

Okwara's older brother,

Romeo Okwara Romeo Chidozie Okwara (born June 17, 1995) is a Nigerian-born former American football defensive end. He played college football at Notre Dame. Okwara signed with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2016, and played six seasons wit ...

, also played college football at Notre Dame and also played in the NFL for the Lions.

References

External links

Cleveland Browns bioNotre Dame Fighting Irish bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Okwara, Julian 1997 births Living people Sportspeople from London American football defensive ends American football linebackers Nigerian players of American football Players of American football from Charlotte, North Carolina Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Detroit Lions players English people of Nigerian descent Sportspeople of Nigerian descent English emigrants to the United States Philadelphia Eagles players Arizona Cardinals players Cleveland Browns players