Former FAU defensive tackle Shalom Ogbonda believes his performance at last weekend’s Tropical Bowl collegiate all-star game aided his chances of becoming a professional football player.
“I put together some good practices,” Ogbonda said. “I’m happy about that. Thankfully, teams took notice.”
According to a Tropical Bowl press release, representatives from 26 NFL and CFL teams attended either the practices or Sunday’s game, held in Daytona Beach.
Ogbonda said he spoke with representatives from “a good amount” of teams, but declined to specifically name them.
“I got a good amount of exposure,” Ogbonda said.
The Tropcial Bowl has a history of helping FAU players reach the next level. Former FAU safety Sharrod Neasman, now pursuing a Super Bowl ring with the Atlanta Falcons, played in the game last year. He also played in the NFLPA game.
After a slow start to his senior season, Ogbonda surged to a career-high 52 tackles, fourth most among the Owls. His 5.5 tackles for loss, which included 1.5 sacks, trailed only Trey Hendrickson and Azeez Al-Shaair.
Ogbonda, who stands 6-foot-4 and weighed in at 300 pounds, made an impact on the first play of the game by recording a tackle for loss.
There’s more pre-draft activity on Ogbonda’s upcoming schedule. He says a couple private workouts with undisclosed NFL teams are already being worked into his calendar. Ogbonda will also participate in the NFL’s New Orleans regional scouting combine on March 11, as well as FAU’s yet-to-be-scheduled Pro Day.
He says the push to impress NFL scouts doesn’t feel like much of a grind.
“It’s a great experience,” Ogbonda said. “I’m enjoying every minute of it.”
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