Osi Umenyiora first got to know Roger Goodell in 2008, as part of a small NFL envoy that embarked on a seven-day USO tour to military bases throughout Afghanistan and Iraq. “We became pretty good friends,” the retired Giants edge rusher says of the commissioner. “So when the idea came to my head, I just went straight to him with it and took my shot.”
The results of that ensuing conversation, which took place about a year ago, will be realized this week when the NFL kicks off its first official events in Africa, staging a prospect camp, a “fan zone” and a flag football clinic in Ghana’s capital, Accra. Six other players of African descent are slated to join Umenyiora, including Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (Ghana) and Colts end Kwity Paye (Liberia). But none were as instrumental in making it happen as the Giants great, who was born in London to Nigerian parents, later won two Super Bowl rings in New York and now finds purpose in planting football’s seeds where his personal roots lie.
“It’s a big deal for several reasons,” Umenyiora says. “There are 100-plus players in the NFL who were born in Africa, or are first-generation [African American], and all of them want to do something back home. Then we know in Africa, you have some of the best athletes, and we’re not giving them the opportunity to showcase that talent to make better lives for themselves.
