Neff Giwa, a 20-year-old Irishman who has never played American football, committed Sunday to play at South Carolina as an offensive lineman.
Just a few months after showing an interest in the sport, Giwa, who is of Nigerian descent, said he was touring U.S. college campuses, meeting coaches and collecting offers. It’s a lot to handle, even for someone who is 6-foot-7½, weighs 295 pounds and has 37-inch-long arms and great foot speed.
“I knew that there’d be a journey there, but I could never have anticipated this,” Giwa told The Associated Press about his recruitment.
Giwa, whose full first name is Oluwanifemi, selected the Gamecocks over offers from Miami, North Carolina, SMU, Tennessee and Texas.
Giwa had two visits to South Carolina and said he spent “a lot of time” with coach Shane Beamer.
He has been clocked at 4.88 seconds in the 40-yard dash, while his broad jump was measured at 9 feet, 10 inches.
Giwa grew up in Cashel, a town in County Tipperary with a population under 5,000.
His mother is a nurse, and his father is a physiotherapist. Giwa, who has three older siblings, said they were the first Nigerian family to move into town and that local residents “definitely made us feel welcome.”
What does he tell everyone about college football and the facilities he has visited?
“I tell them it’s a different world over there,” he said.
Rugby, soccer, hurling and Gaelic football are the local sports.
Giwa likes that American football allows him to use his size. He sees a rugby-to-football template in Jordan Mailata, a 6-foot-8 Australian who plays offensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles.
Name, image and likeness deals allow college athletes, even international ones if done correctly, to earn big money.
“It does make you think about possibilities and choices and how you can help others. [But] it’s more just making your family proud,” he said.
