Patrick “Ickey” Ikemefuna Ekwonu (born October 31, 2000) plays offensive tackle for the National Football League’s Carolina Panthers.
Born in Nigeria, he played college football for N.C. State, where he was named a unanimous All-American and won the Jacobs Blocking Trophy in 2021 as the league’s top blocker. The Carolina Panthers selected Ekwonu with the sixth overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Where did Ikem Ekwonu go to college? Did Ikem Ekwonu play college football?
From 2019 until 2021, he attended NC State for college. Ekwonu began his freshman season as the Wolfpack’s starting left guard.
He was moved back to left tackle during the season and again led the Wolfpack with 50 pancake blocks and 22 knockdowns. He was named second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) at both guard and tackle by the Associated Press.
Ekwonu started the final seven games of his freshman season at left tackle and led the team with 37 pancake blocks, earning him a spot on the Going into the 2021 season, Ekwonu was selected as a unanimous All-American and was named preseason All-ACC by Pro Football Focus and Sporting News.
He also received the Jacobs Blocking Trophy as the best blocker in the ACC.
