American Football club, San Francisco 49ers’ new defensive tackle, Osawaru Odighizuwa (aka Osa) keeps on excelling in his chosen career, 24 years after his father was convicted for shooting three people dead and wounded another three at a US law school.
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Sports247 gathered that Osa, who joined 49ers last week Wednesday, is never bothered that his dad, Peter Odighizuwa, pleaded guilty to murder and got a life sentence instead of the death penalty, as his ugly past has not slowed down his son’s career in the NFL.
Rather than dwell on a sad side of history that happened while he was a kid, the biggest thought on Osa’s mind now is how to make the best of his highly-unexpected transfer to San Francisco 49ers from Dallas Cowboys.
The Cowboys took a shock decision to sell the Nigerian-born lad, who made top marks with the team, but they traded him with two other defensive linemen; as Solomon Thomas joins Tennessee Titans and Pro Bowler, Rashan Gary also moves on.
Of the lot, Odighizuwa’s trade was most shocking, as he signed an extension just a season ago, and he excelled throughout his five years in the squad, with 216 sacks, 81 quarterback hits, 34 tackles for a loss, 34 tackles for a loss, and 17 sacks.
However, while NFL observers question the transfer of Odighizuwa, after signing a four-year $80m contract extension last off-season, Cowboys owner and general manager, Jerry Jones explained factors behind the trade.
“We needed to spread it around a little bit on what we have available to us with (the salary cap). More importantly, we can put it in some places that probably get more mileage out of what it’s done.
“That’s not taking anything away from him individually, but we’ve got two outstanding football players (Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark), we have other backup, plus we don’t want to rule out drafting one more.
“So, we thought that was the best move. (Odighizuwa) has such high character. He’s done such an amazing job in his career,” Jones expatiated, via Jon Machota of The Athletic.
Sports247 gathered further that Odighizuwa was originally selected by Dallas Cowboys in the third round (75th overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft and has since become one of the league’s most consistent interior defenders.
He was a key contributor in The Cowboys’ defensive line, with his interior pass-rushing ability; which highlighted his 84 career games with 76 starts, recording 216 tackles, 17.0 sacks, two forced fumbles and one pass defended.
Since entering the league in 2021, Odighizuwa ranks fourth among defensive tackles in quarterback hits (81) and ranks 10th among defensive tackles in pass rush win rate (11.5 percent).
During the 2025 season, Odighizuwa appeared in 17 games, finished with 44 tackles and 3.5 sacks, ranked first among defensive tackles in quarterback hits (23) and fifth among defensive tackles in pass rush win rate (10.0 percent).
Over the course of his career, Odighizuwa has totaled 34 tackles for loss and 81 quarterback hits, having appeared in four postseason contests (three starts), recording 14 tackles, 1.0 sack, two tackles for loss and four quarterback hits.
All these belie an ugly past that was ignited on January 16th, 2002, when his father perpetrated a shooting spree at Appalachian School of Law, an American Bar Association accredited private institution in Grundy, Virginia, United States.
Three people were killed, and three others were wounded when the 43-year-old Nigerian immigrant and former student, Peter Odighizuwa, opened fire in the school with a handgun in protest of his expulsion on account of low grades.
Peter Odighizuwa arrived on the Appalachian School of Law campus with a handgun and first discussed his academic problems with Professor Dale Rubin, who he urged to pray for him.
He returned around 1pm and opened fire with a .380 ACP semi-automatic handgun on Dean Anthony Sutin and Professor Thomas Blackwell, shooting them dead, both in the head, then killed a student, Angela Dales and wounded three others.
After three years of treatment, Odighizuwa was found mentally competent for trial and he pleaded guilty to murder to avoid the death penalty, then received six life sentences and an additional 28 years without the possibility of parole.
He is currently serving his sentence at Red Onion State Prison in Wise County, Virginia, but his first son, Owa, would go on to play in the National Football League (NFL) as a 3rd round pick in the 2015 NFL draft.
His other son, Osa, was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2021 NFL draft, from where his career hit a high point with Dallas Cowboys, and he is now aiming for even greater height with his move to San Francisco this past Wednesday.
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