Note: Read more about Oshodin’s background and career in Lawrence Rocca’s article for the Washington Post on September 20, 1993. Biographical information in that article were of assistance in writing parts of the bio below.
A native of Benin City, Nigeria who lived on a street that bore his name, Willie Oshodin’s story both on and off the gridiron is an inspirational one. He did not play varsity football until his senior year at Georgetown Prep or start a game in college until he was a junior (redshirt sophomore) at Villanova. Oshodin was not selected in the NFL Draft after his senior year of college. Even on the eve of his first NFL start, he noted that in some respects his favorite sport still was and always had been – lacrosse.
And yet, Oshodin was a first team ECAC and Yankee Conference defensive lineman who would go on to play for three years in the NFL and start a playoff game for the Denver Broncos. He was a two-time member of the Yankee Conference All-Academic Team and was voted Academic All-District his junior year. Oshodin was a Villanova co-captain and part of the first two Wildcats teams to make FCS playoff appearances. He made more than 180 career tackles, including 26 tackles for loss and 13 sacks.
Oshodin arrived at Villanova in 1987 when the Wildcats were entering only their third year as an FCS program since reinstating football after a four-year absence. He decided to enroll at Villanova because it was the only school to offer him a football scholarship, and because there were no schools that offered him a lacrosse scholarship. Oshodin was a medical redshirt in 1987 due to knee surgery and saw action in seven games in 1988 when he played mostly on special teams and as a reserve on the defensive line. He had five solo tackles.
By his junior year – and second season as an active player – in 1989, Oshodin was a mainstay on defense and the Wildcats reached the FCS playoffs for the first time where they were defeated in the first round by eventual national champion Georgia State. Oshodin played in all 12 games of the 1989 season and earned seven starts. He made 67 total tackles on the year, including 35 solo stops and 32 assisted tackles. Oshodin had four sacks for a total loss of 25 yards to go along with three pass breakups, two fumble recoveries and a blocked kick.
In 1990, Oshodin missed the last two games of the season with an ankle injury but started eight of the nine games he played in and had 31 tackles (20 solo) while being credited with six tackles for loss, one sack and a fumble recovery.
Undoubtedly the best season for Oshodin and for Villanova came in his final collegiate season in 1991. He started all 12 games and recorded career highs with 79 tackles (43 solo, 36 assisted), 16 tackles for loss and eight sacks for a total loss of 43 yards. Oshodin also had four pass breakups, four forced fumbles and one fumble recovery as a fifth-year senior. He was named to the ECAC first team defense and the Yankee Conference first team defense for the season.
Oshodin was named the Yankee Conference Defensive Player of the Week on September 22, 1991 after he had a team-high eight total tackles and two sacks in a 35-3 road win at Richmond. Later in the year he earned a spot on the league’s weekly honor roll following a 20-17 win over William & Mary. Oshodin helped the Wildcats go 10-2 in 1991, including a 7-1 mark in conference play and a share of the Yankee Conference title for the second time in three years. Villanova faced Youngstown State in the first round of the playoffs and, similarly to two years prior, lost a close game to the eventual national champion.
Oshodin suffered a broken foot in the playoff game against Youngstown State but had been getting attention from NFL scouts during the season. He had plans to return to his native Nigeria after graduating from Villanova and work for his father’s furniture manufacturer. His father was both a successful businessman and the owner of the land along Willy Oshodin Street in Benin City.
Instead of returning home though, Oshodin attended a workout with the Denver Broncos and had decided to remain in Denver regardless of whether he made the team. He did sign with the Broncos and was on injured reserve for the entire 1992 season due to the foot injury from the 1991 playoff game. He made his NFL debut in 1993 playing in 15 games with five starts during the regular season, and started in the wild card round of the playoffs against an Oakland Raiders team whose defense was led by former Villanova legend Howie Long. His first career start earlier in the regular season – at right defensive end – came against the San Francisco 49ers and star quarterback Joe Montana.
Oshodin played 13 games for the Broncos in 1994 and two more games in 1995 to end his professional career with 30 games played and career totals of 38 tackles, one sack and one forced fumble.
It all added up to a remarkable story for Oshodin, who did not come to the United States until seventh grade when he attended school in California. His freshman year at Georgetown Prep he was 5-foot-6 and could bench press 95 pounds. By his rookie season in the NFL he stood 6-foot-4 and 265 pounds. He bench pressed over 400 pounds during his NFL career.
Oshodin was a reserve for the Georgetown Prep football team as a freshman and carried water for the junior varsity team his sophomore year. By his junior season he was 6-foot-1, 175 pounds and started for the JV squad while earning academic honors. Varsity coach Jim Fegan noticed him and encouraged him to try out for varsity his senior year. He wound up playing tackle for a defensive that registered seven shutouts and allowed only six points the entire 1986 season. Georgetown Prep’s nose guard was a first team All-Met selection and the middle linebacker garnered second team honors. Oshodin came in as an honorable mention choice.
Oshodin was an international business major at Villanova and an academic all-star who earned his undergraduate degree in 1990. He enrolled in the University’s MBA program entering his final season of collegiate eligibility in 1991.
