The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
2020 Football Roster
Roster
Joseph Ossai
- Position:
- JACK
- Height:
- 6-4
- Hometown:
- Conroe, Texas
- Weight:
- 253
- Class:
- Junior
- High School:
- Oak Ridge
- Major:
- Undeclared
A three-year defensive lineman and linebacker who played in 36 games and made 24 starts … earned consensus All-America honors in 2020 with first-team recognition from the AP, FWAA and WCFF ... also received second-team honors from thte AFCA and Sporting News ... a finalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy ... named a semifinalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award in 2020 … also a first-team All-Big 12 honoree in 2020 … earned earned honorable mention as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and Defensive Lineman of the Year … selected to the Bronko Nagurski, Chuck Bednarik Award and Lott IMPACT Trophy preseason watch lists … chosen to the 2020 All-Big 12 Preseason Team … a member of the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll (spring 2019) … was a two-time all-district honoree on the field in high school … also earned academic all-district honors in the classroom.
JUNIOR (2020)
Earned consensus All-America honors with first-team recognition from the AP, FWAA and WCFF ... also collected second-team recognition from the AFCA and Sporting News ... a finalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy ... a semifinalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award … also was named to the All-Big 12 First Team and received honorable mention as Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and Defensive Lineman of the Year … played in and started all nine regular season games … recorded 55 tackles, 16.0 tackles for loss, five sacks, three forced fumbles, two quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and recovered one fumble … his 16.0 tackles for loss, five sacks and three forced fumbles were all team-high marks … ranked No. 2 nationally and led the Big 12 in tackles for loss at the conclusion of the regular season … recorded a tackle for loss in eight of nine games … logged eight tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss and one quarterback hurry in the season opener against UTEP … recorded three tackles, one tackle for loss and two pass breakups in a comeback win at Texas Tech … posted 11 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack, one quarterback hurry and forced one fumble versus TCU … logged nine tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and forced a fumble in the AT&T Red River Showdown against Oklahoma … made three tackles in a home win over Baylor … tallied career-highs with 12 tackles, six tackles for loss and three sacks in a road win over No. 6 Oklahoma State … also forced and recovered one fumble … was the first Power Five player to record at least 12 tackles, six tackles for loss and three sacks in a game since Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh (12 tackles, 6.0 TFLs, 4.5 sacks) in the 2009 Big 12 Championship Game … one of only six players overall to achieve that feat since 2000 … sealed the Longhorns’ win with a fourth-down sack of OSU quarterback Spencer Sanders in overtime … was named the Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career following his dominant performance … marked the 10th time a Longhorn has earned one of the WCFF’s weekly honors since 2004 … also was named the Chuck Bednarik Award Player of the Week, the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week … marked his second career game with six tackles for loss, following a six-TFL effort in the 2019 Valero Alamo Bowl … is the only player on Texas record to tally at least six tackles for loss on multiple occasions … tallied three tackles and one tackle for loss versus West Virginia … made three tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss against No. 13 Iowa State … totaled three solo tackles, two tackles for loss and one sack in his final collegiate game, a road win at Kansas State … was named to the preseason watch lists for the Bronko Nagurski, Chuck Bednarik, Butkus and Lott IMPACT Trophy preseason watch lists … also was an All-Big 12 Preseason selection.
SOPHOMORE (2019)
Played in and started all 13 games … made a team-high tackles, including 62 solo stops … also notched a team-best 13.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, two interceptions, one pass break up, one forced fumble and blocked one kick … made five solo tackles, one for a loss, and picked off a Louisiana Tech pass in the season opener … notched three tackles, including one sack, an interception and a quarterback hurry against No. 6 LSU … posted five tackles at Rice … logged eight tackles, including five solo stops, against Oklahoma State in Texas’ Big 12 opener … also logged two tackles for loss, his second sack of the season and forced his first fumble of the year … was the first of five-straight outings with at least eight tackles … bagged eight tackles (seven solo) and one tackle for loss against West Virginia … notched eight tackles (seven solo), pressured QB Jalen Hurts three times, broke up one pass and notched one TFL in the 2019 AT&T Red River Showdown versus No. 6 Oklahoma … racked up eight tackles (six solo), a quarterback hurry and blocked a PAT versus Kansas … logged a career-high 10 tackles, including five solo stops, at TCU… registered five solo tackles and two quarterback hurries against the Wildcats… tallied nine tackles (four solo), 0.5 tackles for loss and two quarterback hurries… registered eight tackles (seven solo) against the Bears… finished with four tackles (two solos) against the Red Raiders … earned Valero Alamo Bowl Defensive MVP honors after registered nine tackles, six tackles for loss and three sacks against No. 11 Utah … his three sacks were the most by a Longhorn in a bowl game since Alex Okafor set the school record with 4.5 sacks during the 2012 Alamo Bowl versus Oregon State … the only FBS player over the last 20 seasons to record at least six tackles for loss and three sacks in a bowl game … marked his second-straight bowl game with at least eight tackles, making him one of only four Longhorns to do so in consecutive bowl games since 2000 … also was his eighth eight-tackle performance of the 2019 season, tied for the second-most by a Longhorn over the last 20 seasons.
FRESHMAN (2018)
Played in 14 games with two starts (Kansas, Georgia) … had 20 tackles (13 solo) with a sack and forced fumble … made his career debut on special teams against Maryland … played in the 28-21 victory over Tulsa … had one solo tackle in the 37-14 win over USC … played on special teams in the victory over TCU … had one tackle on special teams in the Longhorns win over Kansas State .. .contributed to a 48-45 victory over No. 7 Oklahoma … played in the 23-17 victory over Baylor … played in the 38-35 loss to Oklahoma State … recorded one solo tackle in the 42-41 loss to No. 12 West Virginia … had one solo tackle in the 41-34 road win over Texas Tech … totaled three tackles, a sack and forced a fumble in the win over No. 18 Iowa State … made his first career start and had five tackles (three solo) in the 24-17 road win over Kansas … played in the Big 12 Championship Game against Oklahoma … started in the Allstate Sugar Bowl and led the team with eight tackles in the victory over Georgia.
HIGH SCHOOL
Played for head coach Dereck Rush at Conroe Oak Ridge … a two-time all-district and academic all-district honoree … named a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year by the Touchdown Club of Houston in 2017 … chosen first-team All-Greater Houston by the Houston Chronicle … selected first-team All-District 12-6A and Academic All-District … named first-team “Tops in Texas,” and chosen to the 2017 Super Team by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football … rated No. 140 nationally (No. 15 DE) and No. 14 overall in Texas by ESPN … ranked No. 191 nationally (No. 12 WDE) and No. 18 overall in Texas by 247Sports … rated the No. 14 weakside defensive end nationally and No. 31 overall in Texas by Rivals … ranked No. 15 on the Houston Top 100 by the Houston Chronicle … rated No. 25 in the Fab 55 by the Austin American-Statesman … named honorable mention All-State by the Texas Sports Writers Association in 2017 … registered 58 tackles, eight sacks, 15 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles as a senior … part of a defense that allowed 25.7 points per game, including just 9.8 points per game during the first six contests … helped Oak Ridge to a 6-4 overall record, including a 3-3 district mark, and an appearance in the 6A Division I bi-district playoffs in 2017 … tabbed first-team All-District 12-6A and Academic All-District in 2016 … recorded 46 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 10 tackles for loss, three forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries, including one for a touchdown as a junior … part of a defense that allowed 23.8 points per game … played safety as a freshman at Conroe High School … transferred to Oak Ridge prior to his sophomore year … competed in soccer and track in his youth … also played basketball in high school.
PERSONAL
Son of Vitus and Emmanuela Ossai … sisters is Peace and his brothers are Philip, KC and Emmanuel … was born in Ketu Ijaniki, Lagos, Nigeria … … first saw the game of football at age 10 on television after arriving to the United States from Nigeria … wants to study computer science and open a foundation to help kids coming into the country.
