Trieu: Defensive end, Michigan target Ifeanyi Emedobi a quick study

Perhaps the best encapsulation of Fort Wayne (Indiana) Northrop class of 2027 defensive end Ifeanyi Emedobi as a prospect was last August in his first-ever padded scrimmage as a football player.

Emedobi used his exceptional natural foot speed to explode into the backfield. Then, not understanding quarterbacks are non-contact in a scrimmage, he tackled the opposing quarterback. After the opposing offensive linemen let him know they did not appreciate that, Emedobi’s coaches explained to him that the quarterback was not to be tackled.

Fort Wayne (Indiana) Northrop defensive end Ifeanyi Emedobi owns a scholarship offer from Michigan.

The next two plays, he blew into the backfield again, letting up before tackling the quarterback, though.

That is Emedobi. Last season was his first season ever playing football. He recorded a 4.48 in the 40-yard dash at Rivals’ Nashville Camp, though, and that kind of speed and explosiveness have him approaching 30 scholarship offers one year after being talked into trying football.

When Michigan offered a scholarship, he had to have aspects of the school and football program that are very well known to most people explained to him.

“Last year was his first year play and his first year watching,” Northrop defensive coordinator Kalen Desrosiers said. “His dad Sam played at Northrop and was an all-state guy in the early 2000s. He played at Eastern Michigan. Sam stopped playing when he had Ife. He had him in college. Ife helped him out with his business. He’s into technology, video games — he was very athletic but didn’t play any sports.”

The Emedobis moved around some, but eventually ended up back in Fort Wayne. Ifeanyi enrolled at Northrop. That is when Desrosiers kept hearing from students there was a new kid throwing down dunks in gym class. He went down, met the young man and told him he could have a future in football.

Desrosiers is also part of TractionAP, a training facility in Fort Wayne that has had many Division I athletes come through its doors. Emedobi began training there and at the school.

“He started in late March, so he was training and working out then three to four months, it’s the season,” Desrosiers said.

Desrosiers worked on Emedobi’s running form. He was fast, but he did not have proper technique. It was decided that defensive end would be a good place for him to start, so Desrosiers sent him videos of and told him that is how he needed to be.