Nigerian Nightmare was the American Dream
May 09, 2006, 4:34:58 AM by Jonathan Rand - FAQ
Anybody over 40 has this experience — often. You remember an event that at first seems fairly recent, only to realize that it happened about 20 years ago. And you ask yourself, “Has it really been that long?”
Has it really been 19 years since the Chiefs opened the pipeline between Africa and the NFL by drafting running back Christian Okoye in the second round?
Scads of post-draft stories have focused on the increasing presence of first- and second-generation Africans selected this spring. The best known is defensive end Tamba Hali, the Chiefs’ first-round pick, who as a youngster saw the horrors of civil war in Liberia before his father was able to bring him to the United States.
Okoye was an inspired draft choice during an era when the Chiefs didn’t often pick wisely. Their first-round pick in 1987, running back Paul Palmer, proved a bust. But Okoye led the NFL in rushing in 1989 and played a key role in the Chiefs’ evolution from doormat to perennial playoff team.
He was a risky pick because he’d never played football until he got to Azusa Pacific, where he’d gone because of his track and field skills. He was big, strong and fast but had starred against small-college competition. And Okoye didn’t have much time to polish his raw talents because he was a 26-year-old NFL rookie.
He was the Chiefs’ leading rusher in four of his first five seasons. He set a franchise record in 1989 with 1,480 yards rushing while becoming only the second Chiefs runner ever to lead the NFL. Priest Holmes in 2001 became the third and broke Okoye’s record.
Okoye’s punishing running style earned him the nickname, “The Nigerian Nightmare.” But his nickname and numbers fail to tell his whole story.
Okoye’s attitude and work ethic stood out as starkly as his statistics. His pure unselfishness, in fact, made you wonder whether he was from another continent or perhaps another planet.
The season after he led the NFL in rushing and made his first Pro Bowl, Okoye had to split time with newcomer Barry Word, yet did not complain. Okoye said he would do whatever was best for his team, and he actually meant it. He maintained that stance even in 1992, when he was being phased out in the final season of an all-too-brief career.
Okoye’s attitude represented a shocking and refreshing change from so many American-born professional athletes who become spoiled by individual success and special treatment, and adopt me-first attitudes. Such a mindset was outside Okoye’s cultural values, and it’s no wonder African prospects are so popular in the NFL draft.
Okoye, inducted into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 2000, had a huge impact on his team and his league. He was the embodiment of Marty Ball, the power running attack that coach Marty Schottenheimer employed to reach the playoffs from 1990 through 1992.
Then in 1993, the Chiefs signed quarterback Joe Montana and running back Marcus Allen and installed the West Coast offense. Okoye, 32, and not a good fit for a passing-friendly attack, was finished.
Okoye’s success made a far bigger impact among Africans than was apparent to most of us. You’d hop in a taxicab in New York and the driver would tell you he was from Nigeria and that Okoye was his hero. His success let young athletes from Nigeria and other African nations realize that football might be an attractive option.
Who could’ve guessed that the Nigerian Nightmare actually was the American Dream?
The opinions offered in this column do not necessarily reflect those of the Kansas City Chiefs.
