The story of Larry Ogunjobi is one of them.
I’ll admit up front that until Easter Sunday, I had no idea who he was other than he plays for the Cleveland Browns.
But when you listen to his story, and to the testimony he gave at Momentum Church, you can’t help but admire all that he has accomplished.
There are valuable life lessons to be learned from him, particularly for those who have dreams of being an athlete at the college level and even the pro level.
Ogunjobi didn’t start playing football until his sophomore year of high school. He was too overweight to do so. He was content with playing video games all day.
But his parents pushed him on a different path and the rest is history.
Ogunjobi went on to play college football. The star defensive tackle is now set to enter his third year in the NFL.
But here’s something worth remembering out there for those who think the only path to the NFL is by going to a big-time school like Florida State, Alabama or Auburn. Ogunjobi went to Charlotte.
It’s not a football school by any stretch of the imagination. It has no long tradition of success. Heck, it hasn’t won more than five games in each of its six seasons of existence.
Yet, that’s the school Ogunjobi came out of in the draft.
Never mind that he was told he’d never be a great football player, let alone drafted. He pushed away the negativity the way he pushes NFL offensive linemen out of the way to get to the quarterback and carved out his own path to glory.
The takeaway here is to not let the negativity consume you, to not let it define you. People can say what they want. But always remember you have the power to prove them wrong.
I’m sure he left plenty of those people obsessed with the number of stars you have scratching their heads.
This is a guy who wasn’t supposed to be in the NFL, and yet, he’s now in a place that I imagine so many rated above him in the recruiting rankings never saw the light of day in.
It’s why today Ogunjobi has so much respect for the top. He knows what it’s like to start at the bottom and have every possible odd stacked against him to keep him from getting to the top.
Too often athletes want instant gratification. They want to be told they are great from the get-go and ride their reputation to the top. The best athletes, however, the ones that typically make it big, are willing to put in the work, and not just the bare minimum either. They go above and beyond.
Ogunjobi initially resisted the work. He never had any intentions of playing football for a living.
He soon learned hard work goes a long way and he hasn’t looked back. It’s the reason that today he is one of the great stories that can only be written through sports.
