As the leaves change, the weather cools and fall fades into winter, another season of Georgetown football will come to a close when the Hoyas face Colgate tomorrow.
But Saturday’s game represents more than an end to a difficult season. This final contest brings to an end the illustrious career of Michael Ononibaku, and catching one final glimpse of the hulking defensive end might just be worth coming out to the field for.
In the spring of 2002, when Ononibaku first hit the Hilltop, he was much like any other freshman – new to Georgetown, new to Washington, D.C., new to the college lifestyle. The dazed look commonly found on the face of a freshman was just as evident on Ononibaku.
What was different, though, was that most freshmen weren’t coming off a high school football career of 3,350 rushing yards and 47 touchdowns.
Hailing from Amherst, Mass., and a graduate of Amherst Regional High, Ononibaku was a highly coveted football recruit. Primarily a running back, Ononibaku was good enough to garner attention from the University of Massachusetts, Holy Cross and the University of aine. But when Coach Bob Benson of Georgetown came calling, Ononibaku knew where he would be spending the next four years of his life.
“Definitely the academics [were what swayed me]. Schools that were recruiting me out of high school did not rank with Georgetown in terms of academics,” Ononibaku says. “Plus, living in a city was something that I knew I wanted to try.”
Ononibaku started his Hoya career not as the defensive anchor he is today, but as a backup at linebacker and special teams.
“I just tried to help team to the best of my ability,” he says. “Whether it was on special teams or spelling one of the guys on defense as a linebacker, I just tried to contribute.”
Indeed, his freshman year was one defined by transition. In high school, Ononibaku had primarily been a running back. Playing linebacker was just something he did because he was a good athlete. And yet, upon the beginning of his collegiate career, Benson felt that the 6-foot-1, 235-pound Ononibaku fit best on defense.
“It was a weird experience,” he says. “I didn’t really play that much defense in high school. But, as soon as I started playing defense, I loved it. It was second nature to me.”
It didn’t take Ononibaku long to become one of the most vital cogs of the Georgetown defensive machine. His freshman year, in which he recorded 17 tackles and two sacks in limited playing time, was the last in which Ononibaku was an afterthought.
Switched to defensive line, Ononibaku exploded onto the scene as a sophomore. After adjusting to the more physical style of play demanded by the defensive end position, “Ono” recorded 50 tackles, eight sacks and an interception. The eight sacks were good enough for fourth in the Patriot League.
“There was a huge difference [between the first two years],” Ononibaku says. “I was actually starting games, making an impact.”
Strikingly consistent, the Hoyas’ starting defensive end had at least three tackles in 10 of Georgetown’s 12 games. His breakout season earned Ononibaku second-team all-Patriot League honors. Michael Ononibaku had arrived.
When he returned in the fall of 2004, Ononibaku was no longer a relative unknown. Considered one of Georgetown’s brightest stars from the outset, Ononibaku lived up to the billing, and then some.
In a season that would ultimately earn him first-team all-Patriot League recognition, Ononibaku tied for first in the league with 10.5 sacks. He recorded 64 tackles. He stopped his opponents behind the line of scrimmage 18 times. He picked off two passes, running one of them back for a score. He did just about everything.
For his efforts against Lafayette on Sept. 11, 2004, Ononibaku won the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week award. Ononibaku’s numbers for the game were ridiculous: 12 tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble.
The accolades for his outstanding season did not end with the Patriot League honors. Ononibaku was on Football Gazette’s NCAA Division I-AA first-team defensive all-America team, and he was named Georgetown’s MVP.
Still, after a season in which Georgetown won just three games and failed to win a Patriot League contest, Ononibaku was not satisfied.
“I was grateful to be able to play as well as I did. I guess I had good numbers, but I still wasn’t satisfied,” he says. “I wanted to have a winning season, wanted our team to do well. It was good to get recognition, but winning comes first.”
If Michael Ononibaku had been a defensive complement as a freshman, and a solid contributor as a sophomore, he was a full-out stud his junior year. But back on the field as a senior, things were different. After seeing what he could do as a junior, teams were ready for him. They paid him the utmost attention. Nothing was to come easy.
And yet, despite a slight decline in his numbers, Ononibaku has been a rock for the Hoya defense. Through 10 games, he is third on the team with 54 tackles, 12.5 of them for a loss. He has added 5.5 sacks and two fumble recoveries.
The biggest decline has been in the sack department, but with all the extra attention the drop is to be expected. Yet there is some disappointment; Ononibaku, at season’s start, had a chance to become Georgetown’s all-time sacks leader (he needed 11.5). Though he will fall short – he has 5.5 so far this season – Ononibaku’s season has still been a stellar one.
“As a team, it’s been an up-and-down season,” he said. “For myself individually, it’s been a little bit different. Teams are gunning for me because they know that I’ve had the recognition in the past. . I just play to the best of my ability.”
Still, Ononibaku acknowledged that he had given some thought to the sack record. “The sack record entered my mind every now and then, but I didn’t want to focus on it and let it interfere with our goals as a team,” he says.
No matter the numbers, Ononibaku will be remembered as one of the most talented football players to step onto the Georgetown gridiron.
“Mike has just been one of the very special players we’ve had play here,” Benson said. “He came here as a freshman and made an immediate impact, and he is going to be a three-time all-conference player. He is the leader of our whole team.”
Indeed, Ononibaku’s leadership has been nearly as important as his play. “[I try to] lead by example and be a vocal leader,” he says. “I make sure guys stay on track, not just in football but in the classroom. I want to help the program grow.”
Ononibaku’s dedication to winning and to the Georgetown program is remarkable. Despite all that he has done and the numbers he has posted, winning has remained his top priority. But when the wins don’t come, he stays upbeat.
“It is disappointing to lose, but you win as a team and you lose as a team,” he says. “Football is a team sport – there is only so much that I can do to contribute. Yes, it is disappointing, but I can’t be frustrated or dwell on it.”
From the start, Ononibaku has fed off of his teammates and coaches. At first, it was the veterans, the guys who had been there before that Ononibaku looked to for support. Since then, the other seniors, such as Jason Carter, Mo Banks and Medhi Hassan have afforded Ononibaku plenty of friendship. And Ononibaku’s relationship with Coach Benson has been a key contributor to his satisfaction with the Georgetown football program.
“Benson has been there through it,” he says. “[He has been there] since I first met him in high school, and he has always supported everything I’ve done on and off the field.”
The good will goes both ways. Benson says of Ononibaku, “He is as good as anyone as I’ve ever coached, and a better human being.”
Though Saturday marks his final collegiate game, Ononibaku is not quite ready to let go of football. “I’ve played football for a long time, since I was in seventh grade,” Ononibaku says. “Knowing that there is a chance I’ll never play again [is weird.] [Football] has definitely meant a lot to me. . It’s been something I’ve always turned to as an escape. I’ve always had a passion for it, I’ve always loved it.”
When he graduates, Ononibaku will look to play professionally. The NFL is every football player’s dream, but Ononibaku will not limit his options to the sport’s highest level. “I plan on starting to prepare myself for potential professional days next spring, whether it is the NFL or another level,” said Ononibaku.
Throughout his time with the Hoyas, Ononibaku has been a model student-athlete and one of the program’s hardest workers. He has done everything that has been asked of him, and there are no indications that, with his work ethic, he won’t be successful professionally.
Still, any professional career will only last so long, and Ononibaku is well prepared to face life after football. A Finance major, he is interested in pursuing a career in investment banking when all is said and done with his football career.
“He is a leader, an ultimate student athlete, and he has done tremendously in our business school,” said Benson.
When football is done, though, Ononibaku can be expected to take with him the many lessons he has learned on the gridiron. “Football is something I can relate to life. In a game, in a season, you have your ups and downs, and in life you have your ups and downs,” he says.
One game to go. One final hurrah on the Hilltop. A few years down the line, Michael Ononibaku will just be a name in the record books. But to anyone interested in Georgetown football, Ononibaku has been much more than that.
“He is why we do what we do here,” Benson said. “Georgetown University should be very proud of M.O. in every way.”
“The people, the community, the attitude here at Georgetown [is what makes it special],” Ononibaku said. “Even though we don’t always win that many games, we have people come out and support us and I appreciate that.”
For four years, Ononibaku has been the face of the Hoyas’ football program. Saturday, his career will come to a close. Players like Ononibaku only come around so often. Catch your last glimpse tomorrow.
