HIGH ACHIEVERS HSB 25: Syracuse Orange fulfilled Nissi Ogbebor’s quest for an NCAA football scholarship

By Martin Cleary

Sometimes older brothers can learn from younger brothers.

Nissi Ogbebor will confirm that. He was only attracted to tackle football because his younger sibling Rohi was enjoying all aspects of the game.

“My younger brother started to play when he was 11 or 12. I saw how much fun he was having and I said I should give it a shot,” Nissi said in a recent phone interview.

Indeed, Ogbebor gave it his best shot during his St. Mark Catholic High School Lions football career and it earned him an athletic scholarship to Syracuse University through his determined work on and off the field.

He received his introduction to the Lions’ football program in Grade 9 with the junior varsity team and Grade 10 as a first-year senior. There was no football season for him in Grade 9 because of the COVID pandemic.

In Grade 11, the 6’6″, 290-pound Ogbebor played various roles on offence, whether he was a running back, tight end or lineman.

For Grade 12, he switched to the defensive side of the ball and found his true home as a lineman, and more specifically as a defensive end.

At the end of his fourth and final season, he had developed immensely as a lineman under the coaching of Mike Ireland, a former University of Ottawa defensive end.

Ogbebor, the team’s MVP in Grade 11, was selected the Lions’ lineman of the year and named a first-team all-star in Ottawa and Ontario in 2024.

He also played his role well in helping St. Mark reach the National Capital Secondary School Athletic Association senior football championship game, losing to St. Joseph Jaguars.

Despite individual and team rewards, everything was quiet on his recruiting radar from NCAA university teams. He earned a three-star rating from recruiting services On3, 247 and Rivals, which wasn’t an immediate attraction for American university football programs. There was some interest from Canadian universities, but it wasn’t what he was seeking and it wasn’t the NCAA.

“I always think bigger,” emphasized Ogbebor, who also played one season with the U18 Cumberland Panthers in the Ontario Summer Football League.

So, Ogbebor decided to take charge, like he was eyeing down a quarterback and ready to make a sack.

He went on X (the social media platform formerly known as Twitter), reached out to a number of NCAA coaches and presented his case as a defensive lineman prospect.

Stack Williams, a scouting assistant at Syracuse as well as an assistant strength and conditioning coach, was the only coach to follow Ogbebor on X. He was impressed, after watching Ogbebor’s highlight film package and believed his determination and suitable frame showed potential for the Syracuse program.

Williams invited him to Syracuse’s Sept. 7 home game against Georgia Institute of Technology, a 31-28 win, and later to see the Orange defeat the College of the Holy Cross 42-14 on Sept. 28.

Ogbebor was impressed with everything he saw at Syracuse and signed a letter of intent to accept an athletic scholarship for football on Dec. 3, 2024.

Once word got out that Ogbebor was on the Syracuse radar, the defensive lineman heard from Boston College and Boise State University. Ogbebor did make an official visit to Boston College, but his heart was always with Syracuse.

For the past month, Ogbebor has been at Syracuse getting a double dose of his new reality academically and athletically. He is taking two classes in communications, which is his major. He is carrying a minor in advertising.

As for football, there’s a lot to learn, from the ever-growing playbook to differences in the Canadian and American games, to new teammates in a dome-stadium environment.

As for the whole experience, there have been ups and downs, but everything is now more stabilized and smoother.

“It has been a crazy adjustment,” explained Ogbebor, whose father Joseph is a pastor at Christ Embassy in Ottawa. “The first week, there was no one here … only a few transfers. The second week was very overwhelming for me. I’m here, but I have self doubts. I might disappoint this or that person. But I rely on God.”

Ogbebor called his mom, who also is a pastor, for some direction and she told him “to have faith, you can do it.”

It’s understandable to have concerns when moving away from home for the first time, but football also helped him through his time of uncertainty.

What also aided Ogbebor was a return to Ottawa to experience his school prom earlier this month. He’s planning to attend his St. Mark commencement graduation ceremony on Thursday.

“I like how our head coach (Fran Brown) starts every morning with prayer and ends practice in prayer,” he added. “I like the faith (element) in this environment. Faith and hard work. As long as you have faith, then all you need is hard work.”

Being with his teammates over the past month also has allowed him to grow into the Syracuse football program. His love of football includes sharing time with his peers and the camaraderie that comes with all aspects of the game.

It’s almost two months before the start of the Syracuse 2025 football season, and Ogbebor continues to go through daily workouts, improve his fitness, study the playbook and experience no-pad practices.

“I have a lot of catching up to do,” Ogbebor admitted. “This game of football in America is way different with different coverages and personnel. It has definitely been different. I’m trying to get there.”

The 2025 Syracuse football season starts Aug. 30 with a road game against the University of Tennessee Vols. Ogbebor, who has exceptional speed off the line, is uncertain if he’ll see any playing time at defensive tackle.

“My size isn’t the issue. The only issue is the people ahead of me on the depth chart. They have more knowledge than me at this point,” he said.

Andrew Castellarin, the head coach for the St. Mark football program, added Ogbebor needs to understand all the technical aspects of the game and know the Orange playbook inside and out.

“He is athletically gifted and a smart guy. He’s a spiritual man. He has a lot of great things going for him,” Castellarin said.

Remembering one of his plays, Castellarin recalled seeing “his eyes lit up more as he pursued (the ball carrier) and made the play. He had a lot of fire under him.”

His first play as a defensive lineman for St. Mark brought criticism from the coaches as he took himself out of the play too early. On his second play, he zipped off the line, waited for the play to unfold and tackled the quarterback.

“When I made that sack, that feeling of joy and pride that just took over my body was a very surreal moment,” he said in a Syracuse Orange story written by Connor Pignatello.

“Because I had realized that what I had just done wasn’t just based off of what my own talent was, but the fact that people are teaching me how to do these things and then I’m able to apply it, was just incredible, especially with a position that I have no clue what’s going on, yet I’m still able to read and make a play.”

Ogbebor now displays that fire, joy and intensity popping off the defensive line at Syracuse.

“They gave me an opportunity, an opportunity that no other school saw in me, an opportunity that they will never, ever regret,” he added.

Read More of our 2025 High School Best Series as we tip our caps to top local student-athletes at: OttawaSportsPages.ca/Ottawa-High-School-Best-2025