KC Ossai’s relationship with the Arizona coaching staff was established before he was even a high school football player.
When Ossai first met Kevin Sumlin, Arizona’s head coach was at Texas A&M. Ossai, a UA linebacker commit for 2021, was on a recruiting visit alongside his older brother, Joseph.
The Ossais are tight. KC has three brothers and a sister. The family moved from Nigeria to Conroe, Texas, a suburb of Houston, when KC was 7 years old. Through life-changing events, the affection from Ossai’s parents remained constant.
“They literally give us anything to make us successful,” Ossai said. “The love they show — they may not say it a lot, but they show it. It forced me to become a better player and man for them.”
The connection with Sumlin is what drove Ossai to play for the Wildcats. The 6-foot-1-inch, 222-pound three-star linebacker committed to Arizona in August.
The Star caught up with Ossai, who talked about his relationship with Sumlin, growing up in Nigeria, his football background and what he plans to study at the UA.
Why did you commit to the UA?
A: “Just being able to play college football, and be around a staff that I’m familiar with. All this trouble with the pandemic, I just want to be around a staff that I know and has recruited my brother. I went there and visited and met them. That played a huge role in my recruitment.”
Recently, the UA has focused its recruiting on the state of Texas. What do you think this tactic will do for Arizona?
A: “As they say, football is king in Texas, and Texas breeds the best. We’re going to come in there and show everybody the Texas way.”
What do you remember about meeting Kevin Sumlin and the staff for the first time?
A: “Just how genuine they were when I met them. I remember sitting in Coach Sumlin’s office (at Texas A&M) and he was like, ‘In two or three years, I’m gonna come back for you.’ Thank god he came back for me, and I’m truly blessed to have the opportunity to play for him.”
How would you describe Coach Sumlin as a person?
A: “He’s just a genuine person and a family man. I remember when he was playing around with my little brother when we went there, and my little brother was like 3 or 4 at the time. I could just tell he values family a lot — not only his family but the family as a team. That caught my eye.”
How do you envision yourself fitting into defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads’ 3-4 scheme?
A: “Just being the linebacker that’s the leader of the pack. Just being the alpha dog and just coming in to make plays. I want to bring enthusiasm to the front and wreak havoc. I feel like I can do it all. I can drop back in coverage, rush the passer or stuff the run. Yessir.”
What was the dynamic like growing up with four siblings?
A: “It was amazing. We’re all so competitive. Even at a young age, we were all so competitive. We love each other but we strived to be better than each other. We made a pact with each other when I was in the fifth grade: When we get to high school, we’re not going to have our parents pay for college for us, we plan on getting scholarships.”
What was your relationship like specifically with your brother, Joseph, who is now a junior at Texas?
A: “It was great because I had someone to talk to when I was frustrated and going through stuff. He played the same position as me, and he was just always someone I could talk to and help me grow as a leader.”
How useful is it to have a brother who not only is a Power 5 college football player but plays the same position as you?
A: “It’s very useful. When I get to college, it’s not going to be, ‘Oh, this is college.’ I know what’s going to happen and I know what to expect. That’s a huge advantage for me.”
When did you start playing football?
A: “In the first grade — not tackle, though; it was just at recess. I started playing football when I first moved from Nigeria. I didn’t know what I was doing and it was so confusing. They just told me to run and so I ran, but I didn’t know when to look back to catch the ball, I just kept running. From that day, I just fell in love with football. Every single day, I learned a new rule and how to play. It was just exciting for me.”
Describe your childhood living in Nigeria.
A: “It was fun. My mom and dad traveled a lot to go work so it’d just be us by ourselves, and we were troublemakers. Everything we did, we did together. We created a bond with my four siblings. My little brother was born in America, but we did everything together. We got in trouble together, we just did everything together, it was amazing.”
What activities did you do in Nigeria?
A: “We played soccer a lot. We had our goal outside and we just always played soccer.”
What was your community in Nigeria like?
A: “It was a rural community. It was houses with acres and a lot of land. We had like six neighbors so we always played. … We used to get scared when it got dark and it got dark fast so we would stay outside and play until it got dark.”
What is the most memorable memory you have of living in Nigeria?
A: “I remember one time my mom told us not to go outside to our neighbor’s. We always had this feeling when my mom was coming down the street. So we were at our neighbor’s house having fun and we hear this motorcycle coming down the street. We knew, ‘That’s mom, that’s mom,’ and we jumped the fence and there was this eight-foot drop. We all jumped the fence, but my sister didn’t make it. She tried to sneak in through the gate and my mom is standing right there looking at her. Because my mom caught her, she knew we all went out and we got in trouble. That was the most memorable moment I have there.”
When’s the last time you’ve been back to Nigeria?
A: “I haven’t been back yet. We were supposed to go over the summer, but COVID happened.”
What were noticeable differences for you when you first moved from Nigeria to the U.S.?
A: “The biggest difference has been the education and opportunities here. We saw it immediately as soon as we moved here. We knew we had to take advantage of the opportunity God gave us.”
Do you have favorite football teams?
A: “I watched (Texas A&M) and the Houston Texans. I fell in love with A&M because of Johnny Manziel, and I liked the Texans because of Andre Johnson and Arian Foster.”
Who do you emulate your game after?
A: “(Seattle’s) Bobby Wagner with a little bit of (former Ravens star) Ray Lewis. … They were my favorite defensive players growing up. I still watch Ray Lewis highlights before every game to this day.”
Have you thought about what you want to study at the UA?
A: “I plan on majoring in business and minoring in computer science. … I know how computer science will be in the next five years, so I just want to have a base in that just to be ready for the future. Business? I’ve always wanted to own my own business after football.”
Any business in particular?
A: “I have a few in mind, but I haven’t really gotten into it.”
What can Arizona fans expect out of KC Ossai, the player?
A: “Havoc. I run to the ball and I’m always in pursuit every single play.”
