Christian Okoye

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Christian "The Nigerian Nightmare" Okoye (born August 16, 1961 in Enugu, Nigeria) is a former American Football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs (1987-1992). His six seasons in the NFL saw a league rushing title (1989), two Pro Bowl appearances (1989, 1991), and three playoff appearances. His career was cut short by a knee injury. He wore number 35.

He is currently an investor in the Golden Baseball League and owns Okoye Fitness and Nutrition, a company that sells nutritional supplements.

[edit] College career

Born in Nigeria, Okoye did not play American football until 1984, when he joined the squad at California's Azusa Pacific University. He excelled in both football and track & field, winning seven national titles in the shotput, discus, and hammer throw. His track speed was unusual for someone his size — 6-foot-1, 260 pounds — and this rare combination of talents led to his selection in the second round of the 1987 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.

[edit] NFL career

Okoye's NFL career was as brief as it was prolific. In his rookie year, Okoye rushed for 660 yards on 157 carries; and though a thumb injury limited him to nine games, he managed to gain 473 yards the following season.

In 1989, Okoye enjoyed his best NFL season by far, leading the league in both rushing attempts (370) and rushing yards (1,480). Though the Chiefs missed the playoffs, Okoye was selected by UPI as the American Football Conference's Offensive Player of the Year and earned a trip to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl.

The remainder of Okoye's career was marked by a nagging knee injury, one which limited him to 805 yards and a 3.3 yard average per carry in 1990. Though his 1991 performance (1,031 yards, 4.6 yards per carry) earned him his second Pro Bowl appearance, Okoye's carries in 1992 were largely limited to goal-line situations. A re-injury of his knee in training camp in 1993 forced his retirement.

Okoye retired as the Chiefs' all-time rushing leader, having amassed 4,897 yards, 1,246 attempts, and 14 games with at least 100 yards rushing, in his six seasons. Those team records have only been surpassed by Priest Holmes. His 40 career rushing touchdowns as a Chief trail only Holmes and Marcus Allen. His Chiefs record for carries in a game was recently surpassed by Larry Johnson, who had 39. His figure for season attempts (370) remains franchise record. Okoye was the team MVP in 1989 and was enshrined in the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 2000.