Previously: Last year's profiles. S Quinten Johnson, S Daxton Hill, CB DJ Turner II, CB Jalen Perry, LB Joey Velazquez, LB Anthony Solomon, LB Charles Thomas.

Aberdeen, Scotland – 6'5", 252
		24/7	4*, #220 overall #16 SDE, #4 NJ
		Rivals	3*, 5.7 rating #34 SDE, #12 NJ
		ESPN	4*, #282 overall #32 DE, #6 NJ
		Composite	4*, #314 overall #19 SDE, #7 NJ
		Other Suitors	OSU, ND, PSU, A&M
		YMRMFSPA	Taco Charlton
Previously On MGoBlog	Hello post from Ace. Future Blue Derivatives from Adam.
Notes	Twitter. Early enrollee. Blair Academy is also the home of 2020 basketball target Jabri Abdur-Rahim.
Film
Junior:

I could have listed David Ojabo's hometown as a spot in New Jersey, but the WTF "Scotland?!" reaction is tells you all you need to know: Ojabo is the kind of guy who arrives in the US as a high schooler in the hopes of becoming a basketball prospect and ends up on the football field because his body makes it destiny.

"The head coach of football was also a coach for the track and field team, and I eventually crossed paths with him as I did track at the time.

"He just took one look at me and said: 'You're very big. You should try football'."

Ojabo first football experience consisted of seven games his junior year, and was a Cousin Balki Eats His First Hot Dog kind of experience. Blair head coach Jim Saylor:

“The kid had never been in a three-point stance. He had no clue. … I got to know him and his enthusiasm to try something. I think someone that tries something for the first time says something about them, that they’re willing to take that risk and try something new."

“The first time he got a scholarship offer, he sat down and was like, ‘Hey, Coach, what position do I play?’ He didn’t know he was a defensive end, a defensive tackle."

The seven games were enough when combined with the kind of freaky athleticism that saw Ojabo run a sub-11 100 meter dash at 230-240 pounds. He netted committable offers from all of the Midwest heavy hitters.

[After the JUMP: freaky man does not know how to football yet]

Even though everyone piled aboard Ojabo remains the definition of a boom-or-bust prospect. Evaluations from his rapid rise last summer are all "if this guy learns how to football, look out." Adam's FBD:

…stands up too quickly too often and has primitive pass-rush skills … My second year of soccer my parents were still trying to bribe me with Micro Machines to get out of the car …excellent first step …rapid acceleration turns into straight-line speed without a hitch … won a number of reps even when his leverage was poor …stark difference in the reps where Ojabo had poor pad level and the ones where he was lower than his opponent.

Touch the Banner:

…knows very little about the game of football. In some ways, that’s a good thing because he’s a blank canvas. …stance, pad level, hand placement, tackling, and other areas of technique are all subpar compared to other players who are comparably ranked. …skilled at being big and fast. He also takes good angles.

Brian Dohn:

"…absolutely can be an All-Big-Ten guy …at his size, his ability to just cover five yards, it was in the blink of an eye. …Ojabo had no offers at the time and I still went and cut up the game film. It was that impressive just to watch him run. …

And then I remember speaking to his coach before the game and he’s telling me ‘yeah, he runs the 4x100. … He runs it in about 11 seconds.’ And I’m saying, “What? Wait, he’s 6’4”, 235… what?” …can’t teach his size, burst and athleticism."

Also Dohn:

…great burst, body control and speed … acceleration at the snap of the ball, his speed in chasing a play from behind and his effort level [stand out] …plays too high … needs to develop his hands …strength to disengage and he can re-direct to get to the ball carrier. … can dip his shoulder to get around the edge, but refining his spin move and using a club move will help him become more versatile …incredibly talented, works hard and is smart, but he is raw.

Brandon Brown:

…built very, very well. He's long and lean… appears to have a lot of room left …natural ability to run is freaky …closes in a hurry and delivers a blow when he arrives at … literally doesn't know what he's doing yet. …just getting by on raw ability

Adam Friedman:

"…absolute physical freak. …one of the highest ceilings in this class. …really raw"

Friedman would later name Ojabo one of the most underrated guys in the class, admitting that's "partly because of me," the regional analyst. Other takes are largely the same, with the word "freak" coming up a lot. Ojabo's "very long arms" and the fact he's "very coordinated and agile" help flesh that assertion out.

FWIW, Ojabo's SPARQ score was a hair behind Alabama commit Antonio Alfano, who shot up to five star status by the end of the cycle, and top-10 2020 player Bryan Breese. And it sounds like that 40 time may have been slow for a reason. Sayler:

"He ran a 4.5 (in the 40-yard dash) but ran a 4.7 at The Opening (Regional in New Jersey). They had running backs and receivers running 4.6’s, so they think the track was a little slow. He’s more of a 4.5 guy."

He is large and fast.

These kind of wildly unprepared projects do work out a fair bit. Michigan's most recent example is Taco Charlton, our YMRMFSPA. Charlton's recruiting profile contains the sentence "the fact that the 6'6" guy stands straight up after every snap leaps out at you" in an extensive discussion of his rawness. Like Ojabo, Charlton was a ridiculous athlete who spent a bunch of time trying to be a basketball player. He enrolled early, like Ojabo, and put on 15 pounds. For Ojabo's part, here's Harbaugh:

“David Ojabo is going to be another guy to really keep an eye on. He’s already put on 20 pounds and looks good. Looks good."

24/7 had an article series on the traits that translated to NFL draft success for defensive ends that cited Ojabo as the "most compelling candidate" to blow up because the set of hits from 24/7's edge evaluations tended to 1) be on the lighter side, 2) crush combines, and 3) play a diverse set of sports. Ojabo hits all three—in addition to playing basketball he's been a soccer player most of his life, and Harbaugh said he played two other sports in addition to those. More Harbaugh:

…all signs are that, all indications that once he really learns the game and understands that part of it, he’s going to be a tremendous player. Exceptional in terms of heavy hands and being able to knock back an offensive lineman and also has real speed.

Unfortunately, Ojabo didn't put together a senior highlight reel and it seems like nobody bothered to check up on him during his senior year. The Athletic did get a quote from his DL coach last December that makes it sound like he came along at the rate you'd hope:

“Every week he’s done something incredible,” Coyle says. “We call it block destruction — it’s just how fast he gets off the ball and just really blows up the whole entire play. You know, linemen are circling around and looking to block him, and they can’t find him. He’s already back there making a play. He does that weekly.”

His output shot up, as his sacks doubled from 6 to 12.

So far so good as Ojabo attempts to become a guy who is big and should play football to a guy who is huge and does play football.

Etc.: Ojabo and his family moved to Scotland from Nigeria when he was seven. The struggle is real!

“I’m not going to lie, when I look at my text messages, there’s no girls in there, it’s all coaches, so it’s kind of stressful,” Ojabo said.

Why Taco Charlton? Giant man with crazy athleticism who hasn't played a ton of football because of other sports. Rankings are in the same range, with a slight edge to Charlton. Offers favor Ojabo.

Guru Reliability: High. All the same takes. The spread is understandable given the boom-or-bust nature of Ojabo.

Variance: Vast. Anything is possible.

Ceiling: Vast. Anything is possible.

General Excitement Level: High. DE is a spot where you can take a raw guy with ridiculous traits for the position and refine him. Ojabo has ALL THE TRAITS.

Projection: The most likely non-OL redshirt in the class. In 2020 Michigan likely starts Paye and Hutchinson even if that's slightly suboptimal at the weakside spot.

In year three Paye's graduation will leave a spot open for Ojabo, Vilain, or Gabe Newburg—by that point I assume both Upshaw and Welschof are DTs. If I had to bet I'd say Ojabo wins that job as a redshirt sophomore and does some things. He'd get another crack at an open job the year after with Hutchinson's departure if that doesn't pan out.