Playing a sport professionally is the dream of any ambitious young athlete, at any level. For Augustin Ume-Ezeoke, a Ouachita alumnus from the class of 2014 from Garland, Texas, that dream came true after his time at Ouachita.
When professional football is mentioned, most people immediately think of the National Football League, and indeed, some football players make the cut. However, that is a minuscule number. Ume-Ezeoke, a linebacker, played professionally in Europe, namely in Sweden, Portugal and Germany, and he is thankful for his experience.
Ume-Ezeoke immigrated from Nigeria in the fourth grade and had no concept of football. However, he had a family connection to the sport that proved crucial to his later development.
“I had a cousin [who] played, and I went out there and saw him playing; I decided I wanted to play,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
His mother was on board for him to play, but his father was unsure.
“My dad didn’t want me to play, because he was afraid I would get injured, so my mother enrolled me, and I played all through middle school and high school,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
While he played well in middle school, it was his last two years in high school where he was named to the Texas 5A All-State football team, which was considered the highest honor given to Texas high school football players at the time. After that success, Ume-Ezeoke began to attract attention from colleges.
“I had a couple schools come out and watch me, but they wrote me off because I was extremely undersized for my position…” Ume-Ezeoke said.
At 5 foot 10 inches and 218 pounds, Ume-Ezeoke was indeed undersized for his position of linebacker, but that did not stop him from garnering attention from various programs.
“I had a couple of D2 offers for me to play, then Ouachita came around. The coach was a Nigerian guy like my dad and [me], and my dad came along to meet the coach. I went on a couple campus visits, and I was drawn by OBU’s campus and students and phenomenal academics,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
The Ouachita coaching staff was excited to sign Ume-Ezeoke, and the player made an impact quickly.
“I made all-conference my junior and senior year[s] and played in the All-Star game my senior year,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
At the end of his sophomore season, Ume-Ezeoke tore his ACL and was out for quite a while. It was this time that opened Ume-Ezeoke’s eyes to his greater purpose in life.
“I found my purpose,” Ume-Ezeoke said, “and I was driven to keep playing; I got back in shape and in 2013 had an all-conference year.”
After he graduated, Ume-Ezeoke participated in a Pro Day, with little immediate results.
“I graduated in May 2014, and that Pro Day had all my numbers and video, and no one called. I put my video on YouTube…and I don’t know how but, God willing, a coach from Sweden called me,” he said.
Ume-Ezeoke was going to school to work on his degree in physical therapy when he got that phone call that would change his life.
“[The coach] found me and told me it was professional. Each year in the Swedish league, each team is allowed three imports per team, and I played for six months and came back to America to keep up my studies.”
Ume-Ezeoke made waves in European football, and after his next semester, he got another game-changing call.
“I got a call from a team in Germany, and I went and played over there, and that’s when my international football career really took off. I had a really good year and really got noticed all around the European league,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
The linebacker soon became something of a celebrity overseas.
“After the year in Germany I got a really nice endorsement from a little company in Munich, and I was in their magazines and commercials,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
His final season, he was able to choose between options in Europe.
“I was able to weigh my financial options, and the team that treated me best was in Portugal,” Ume-Ezeoke said.
While he was in Portugal, Ume-Ezeoke continued to give back, putting on a camp for kids, where hundreds of children showed up to learn the ways of the sport.
After another successful season in Portugal, Ume-Ezeoke returned to the Dallas area to finish physical therapy school. He now runs a small business there, working with physical therapy and personal training, and Ume-Ezeoke plans to finish his studies and transfer his business to a full-time job.
After much experience, Ume-Ezeoke has some advice for Division II athletes.
“Believe in what you’re doing,” Ume-Ezeoke said, “You never know who’s watching, and even if you aren’t enjoying what you’re doing, someone that can let you do what you love may be watching.”
Written by Sports editor, Chris Digiovanni
