Northwestern DE/OLB Ifeadi Odenigbo will be a distant, but passionate observer of the Manchester Derby (pronounced “dar-by”) Sunday morning. He has a huge sports weekend ahead of him. Tomorrow is NU’s final spring scrimmage; the main practice that’s open to the public and televised on a regional network.
The next day Ifeadi Odenigbo (pronounced “if-AH-dee o-DEN-uh-bo”), a dedicated Manchester City supporter, will consume a pivotal match between the Citizens and their hated rivals Manchester United. This is a very HUGE match when it comes to Champions League positioning. The Red Devils sit in third place while the Sky Blues are in that fourth and extremely pivotal four slot in the table.
Despite the fact that both teams are eliminated from the title race (Chelsea has that locked up), this is a titanic clash as the Manchester metropolitan area has supplied the last four champions (City in ’14, ’12, United in ’11 and ’13). Thrown in another traditional power right down the road in Liverpool (who had the title in their hands last season but squandered it during a 3-0 blown lead that ended in a 3-3 draw versus Crystal Palace) and the region is quite similar to the state of Alabama producing four straight college football national champions from 2009-2013.
Odenigbo, a redshirt sophomore defensive end who tied a Big Ten record with three forced fumbles in a single game earlier this season, is one of many notable Man City supporters. The list includes:
-Liam and Noel Gallagher from Oasis
-NBA star Serge Ibaka
-Former 007 James Bond actor Timothy Dalton
-NFL and Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers
-ESPN’s Marc Stein
-Princess Beatrice of York
Odenigbo wakes up early Sunday mornings to watch Man City play (no small feat considering how college kids usually abhor waking up early on the weekend) and he has an app on his phone for keeping up with news from England’s top flight. He wears the #4 kit of Vincent Kompany, his favorite player. Odenigbo’s parents were born and raised in Nigeria, while he was born and raised in Centerville, Ohio.
Odenigbo played soccer from the time he was four years old up until the seventh grade, and he didn’t pick up American football until he was in high school. The 245 pound defensive lineman took a very interesting and deeply meaningful route towards becoming a City and Kompany fan.
“I looked at the captain for each team, and one guy that stuck out to me was Vincent Kompany,” Odenigbo said.
“He’s a good person on and off the field, he does a lot of charity work for The Congo.”
Odenigbo watched a lot of Kompany’s interviews on YouTube, and from there he found his new hero.
“If I could be half the man he is, what he does for his team, what he does off the field, what he does on the field,” Odenigbo said with admiration over the phone.
Kompany is an official FIFA ambassador for the SOS Children charity. Of Congolese heritage, Kompany represents his father’s native Congo, and has invested and engaged in projects which aim to provide an education and safe living accommodation for children living in poverty. From there, Odenigbo became a dedicated fan of the Man City and Belgium national team captain.
It’s too bad Northwestern wasn’t able to give Ifeadi the #4 jersey he wanted. He settled for #7.
Odenigbo isn’t the only futbol fan on this American college football team.
Wide Receiver Christian Jones also supports a Premier League side, Tottenham Hotspur. Fellow lineman Greg Kuhar backs Borussia Dortmund of the Bundesliga. Odenigbo often gets together with both of them, and they watch the beautiful game together while sporting their respective kits. Odenigbo plans to see his hero and his teammates play in person someday.
“Probably when I’m done with Northwestern, I’ll end up going to New York to watch a game when they come,” he said.
More English Premier League clubs are coming over to the United States for their preseason exhibition matches. As these international friendlies are sizable cash cows, more clubs are extending their tours, but City has only come to NYC, not Chicago in recent years.
Ifeadi Odenigbo has a sense of humor that’s as stellar as his 40 yard dash time (4.5). You can see that in his Twitter bio (@IfeadiOdenigbo), which reads “the guy with the funny name.”
Odenigbo came to Northwestern as a 6-3 205-pound linebacker who chose the Cats over Notre Dame, Stanford and Ohio State. We know how much Northwestern Coach Pat Fitzgerald loves recruiting service rankings, and how much stock Fitzgerald puts into the “star” ratings, but Odenigbo was rated extremely high across the board. He’s one of the highest rated recruits of the Fitzgerald era.
Be sure to click back here Monday for part two of this feature, which covers Man City football in the Sheik Mansour ownership era (2009-present). Mansour is the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family, and one of football’s wealthiest owners. Mansoor has an estimated individual net worth of at least £17 billion with a family fortune of at least $1 trillion.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with Fox Sports Digital. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. He also appears regularly on numerous sports talk radio stations all across the country.
Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks) and Instagram (@paulmbanks)
