BEREA: The Browns needed to bolster their defensive line as they transition to the 4-3 base scheme of new coordinator Gregg Williams, and they addressed a need at three-technique by selecting Charlotte defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi at the beginning of the third round (No. 65 overall) on Friday night.
Ogunjobi played in the Senior Bowl this past January. The Browns coached in the college all-star game and were impressed by Ogunjobi.
“We were very excited about Larry,” vice president of player personnel Andrew Berry said. “He has really only been playing football since his sophomore year of high school. We thought he was one of the more physically gifted defensive tackles in the entire draft — strong, explosive and athletic.
“Coming into the fall, he obviously dominated Conference USA and improved every year during his career. He was exceptional during the Senior Bowl week and responded well to the uptick in competition. Really just the time that we spent scouting him going to work him out this spring, we felt very comfortable with his overall skill set and his fit in our defense.”
Ogunjobi, 6-foot-2⅝ and 305 pounds, started 46 games the past four seasons and compiled 217 tackles with 49 for loss and 13 sacks.
“Larry Ogunjobi from Charlotte definitely has a chance to emerge as a potential starter,” Senior Bowl Executive Director Phil Savage told the Beacon Journal before the draft. “He’s got a lot of upside potential.”
During a conference call, Ogunjobi said the Browns want him to play three-technique.
“I am a really hard worker,” Ogunjobi said. “My first step, my lateral quickness, the ability to get off the ball and get on the offensive linemen really quickly, that is where I think my game really separates itself from other people.”
Ogunjobi is the first player to be drafted from his small school.
“If you’re good enough, they will come find you,” Ogunjobi said. “I feel like getting drafted is just that stake in the ground that allows people to know that you can do it if you want it badly enough.”
Ogunjobi, 22, has another inspirational story.
He weighed 350 pounds in high school, so his parents hired a personal trainer who pushed him to play football. He stuck with the sport, lost weight and changed his life.
“When you are younger, people talk about the NFL as something they want to do,” Ogunjobi said. “Me, I was still on the coach eating potato chips and playing video games. That wasn’t one of my dreams.
“When my body started transforming, I started becoming a better player and realizing that this goal was attainable. I just knew that if I was the best and if I worked at it, then the NFL would be something that would have to come. And it did.”
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.