IK Enemkpali facts for kids
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Enemkpali (#75) with the Buffalo Bills in 2015
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| No. 51, 75 | |||||
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| Position: | Defensive end | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born: | July 3, 1991 Pflugerville, Texas, U.S. |
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| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||
| Weight: | 261 lb (118 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| High school: | Pflugerville | ||||
| College: | Louisiana Tech | ||||
| NFL Draft: | 2014 / Round: 6 / Pick: 210 | ||||
| Career history | |||||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||
Ikemefuna Chinedum "IK" Enemkpali (born July 3, 1991) is a former American professional football player. He played as a defensive end. He was chosen by the New York Jets in the 2014 NFL draft. Before playing professionally, he played college football at Louisiana Tech University.
Enemkpali is known for an incident with his Jets teammate, quarterback Geno Smith. A disagreement happened between them, which led to Enemkpali leaving the team.
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Early Life
IK Enemkpali was born in Pflugerville, Texas, on July 3, 1991. His parents were immigrants from Nigeria and belonged to the Igbo people.
He went to Pflugerville High School in Texas. There, he played for the Panthers football team. During his senior year, Enemkpali made 64 tackles and 14 sacks. He was also chosen for the All-District 25-5A first-team.
College Career
Enemkpali played football at Louisiana Tech University from 2009 to 2013. In 2012, during his junior year, he was named to the First-team All-WAC. He also received the Fred Dean Defensive Player of the Year award that same year.
In his senior season in 2013, he was selected for the First-team All-Conference USA. He also won the Willie Roaf Lineman of the Year award.
Professional Career
New York Jets
The New York Jets picked Enemkpali in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL draft. He was the 210th player chosen overall. In his first year, he played in six games. He made three tackles and helped defend two passes.
On August 11, 2015, a disagreement took place between Enemkpali and quarterback Geno Smith in the locker room. This incident led to the Jets releasing Enemkpali from the team shortly after.
Buffalo Bills
The day after leaving the Jets, Enemkpali was picked up by the Buffalo Bills. The Bills' head coach at the time was Rex Ryan, who had been Enemkpali's coach with the Jets in 2014.
On September 4, 2015, the Bills released Enemkpali. However, he signed with their practice squad a few days later. The NFL suspended Enemkpali for four games on September 10. The Bills then moved him to their main roster on September 11, 2015. He played in 11 games in 2015 and made 13 tackles.
On August 12, 2016, another disagreement happened with a teammate, offensive lineman Cyrus Kouandjio, during training camp. The next day, Enemkpali got a knee injury during a preseason game. It was a torn ACL, which meant he could not play for the rest of the 2016 season. After the season, he became a free agent.
Oakland Raiders
On August 4, 2017, the Oakland Raiders signed Enemkpali. However, the team released him on September 2, 2017.
Personal Life
IK Enemkpali's sister, Nneka, played basketball for the Texas Longhorns college team from 2011 to 2015. She was later chosen by the Seattle Storm in the 2015 WNBA draft.
